A series of controversies leading to a change of captain is nothing new to the English cricket team, but beating the West Indies on their home soil, achieved for the first time in Tests since 1968 five years ago, has historically not been a regular occurrence. The tourists, lead by Andrew Strauss in the wake of the captain-coach dispute which resulted in the end of Kevin Pietersen's reign, are priced at 4/7 with Ladbrokes to hang on to the Wisden Trophy which they retained in 2007, with the hosts available at 7/2 to bag their first series since a home win over Bangladesh in 2004 - the draw can be backed at 3/1.
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"We want to win both the Test and one-day series and start building some momentum before an important summer," said new skipper Strauss ahead of the matches which will act as a key indicator of England's chances in this summer's Ashes. England will be hoping talismanic all-rounder Andrew Flintoff and batsman Owais Shah overcome injury scares to play a part in the first Test starting on Wednesday, February 4th at Jamaica's Sabina Park. Strauss's men are evens to stamp their authority on the four-match series by winning the match, as they did by ten wickets in 2004. West Indies, who recently came away from New Zealand with a share of the spoils, are 9/4 to grab a morale-boosting victory, with the draw priced identically.
After being shown the door as England skipper, majestic mid-order man KP has shown no signs of going into his shell. The formidable number four hit 103 in a recent warm-up match against a St Kitts Invitational XI and is 5/2 to top score for his side in their first innings. After falling for a second-ball duck in his first innings of the tour, captain Strauss will be eager to demonstrate his worth to the team's batting order - the Middlesex opener is 3/1 to follow on from his back-to-back centuries in India before Christmas by finishing as England's top first innings run scorer. With the impressive Owais Shah snapping at his heels, Ian Bell will be under pressure to post a big total first time out in Jamaica if he is picked - the beleaguered number three is 6/1 with online bookmaker Ladbrokes to top score.
The West Indies have one of the most accomplished trios of batsmen in world cricket in the form of Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Ramnaresh Sarwan and captain Chris Gayle - the experienced group has already been picked out by many as the biggest potential obstacle in England's Wisden Trophy campaign. "With Gayle, Sarwan and Chanderpaul the mainstay of the batting, if those three fire, life can be a little bit harder for England than it looks on paper," was the assessment of former England international Graham Thorpe, who was speaking to BBC Radio. Gayle, currently terrorising bowling attacks in all forms of the game, is 3/1 to top score in his side's first innings, with Sarwan 4/1 and Chanderpaul 11/4.
Posted: Tuesday, 27th January 2009
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