West Indies coach Stuart Law upbeat despite 'mismatch' of England Test series
Wednesday 23 August 2017 18:41, UK
West Indies coach Stuart Law admits the current series with England is a “mismatch” but he remains keen for them to recover from a disastrous opening Test.
Joe Root's side cruised to an innings and 209-run victory inside three days at Edgbaston in the first day-night Test to be played in England.
The Windies have the opportunity to turn things around when the second match in the three-Test series gets underway at Headingley on Friday - live on Sky Sports - when the game reverts to a more traditional 11am start.
Law's men lost 19 wickets on the third day in Birmingham, with England new-ball duo James Anderson and Stuart Broad inflicting much of the damage, as the West Indies were skittled out for 168 and 137 in reply to the hosts' 514-8 declared.
West Indies fast-bowling great Curtly Ambrose labelled the tourists' performance "totally embarrassing" but Law is hopeful they can greatly improve in Leeds.
"It is a mismatch in talent and a mismatch in experience," said Law. "Having said that, we are going to make sure we understand we need to fight hard.
"We understand there's a lot of people out there who are disappointed in our performance but I can tell you right now there's no one more disappointed than the dressing room themselves.
"We had to bat against two pretty decent bowlers [Anderson and Broad] in favourable conditions under lights and when it was overcast. Taking that in, we understand we've got to be better and we're aiming to do that."
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Law, who took on the role of coach in February, indicated West Indies would retain the same starting XI at Headingley to the one that was humbled at Edgbaston
"I think these guys need a chance to prove that they are good enough to play for the West Indies. They've got the opportunity to turn it around," he added.
Excluding matches against Bangladesh and Zimbabwe, the West Indies have won just three out of 87 away Tests in the past 20 years.
They arrived in England for this tour without several senior players, including Chris Gayle and Marlon Samuels, but Law has faith in his youthful touring squad.
"They are young men, they haven't played cricket in this part of the world," he said. "It's very difficult to play cricket [in England], particularly as a batsman.
"International cricket's pretty tough and in this part of the world, when you are playing against an experienced England side, it's even tougher.
"Australia came here a couple of years ago, got bowled out for 60 [when England clinched the Ashes at Trent Bridge in 2015], so we're not going too bad."
Watch the second Test between England and WIndies at Headingley, which gets underway on Friday. Coverage begins on Sky Sports Main Event and Sky Sports Cricket at 10am.
