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Challenging West Indies earn respect

West Indies didn't win a Test and failed to regain the Frank Worrell Trophy but the contest was much tighter than the 2-0 Australian victory suggests

Chris Gayle's back-to-back centuries in Adelaide and Perth were part of an admirable fightback after a debacle in the opening Test in Brisbane  •  Getty Images

Chris Gayle's back-to-back centuries in Adelaide and Perth were part of an admirable fightback after a debacle in the opening Test in Brisbane  •  Getty Images

Numbers can be deceiving, as Australia know all too well. They felt as though they were the better team in the Ashes this year, yet lost 2-1. West Indies will fly out of Australia with a similar reaction - they didn't win a Test and failed to regain the Frank Worrell Trophy but the contest was much tighter than the 2-0 Australian victory suggests.
Consider the following: West Indies players scored four centuries in the series to Australia's none; at the WACA they bowled Australia out for their lowest total in a home Test in almost 13 years; they had a realistic chance of winning on the final day in Adelaide and Perth; and Chris Gayle was the Player of the Series. West Indies are often unpredictable but none of those things could have been expected after they were skittled out in three days in the opening Test at the Gabba.
That result was enough to prompt derision from critics and scare Cricket Australia into thinking the summer might be a one-sided dud. The former Australian captain Kim Hughes even called for West Indies to be axed from the Test cricket family. But after a long, frank discussion following the Brisbane debacle, West Indies found resolve, and soon enough gained respect.
"I think people look at us now and think a bit differently, based on how we went about this series, even though we lost 2-0," the captain Gayle said. "I definitely know from Australia's point of view we've gained a bit more respect from them. They know it wasn't going to be a pushover, and only in the first match did they actually walk over us."
Arguably their most pleasing discovery was that their captain still has the patience for five-day cricket and has not been seduced by Twenty20. Gayle has often been criticised for appearing indifferent to his team's slumps but his calm and phenomenally controlled 165 not out in Adelaide showed a man who was desperate to see his team improve. Barely a week later, he displayed the other, more familiar side of his game when he made the fifth-quickest Test century and landed a ball on top of the roof at the WACA.
There were other positive signs for West Indies, despite the fact they have now won only three of their past 42 Tests. The teenage opener Adrian Barath made a debut century in Brisbane and is a player to watch, while Narsingh Deonarine and Brendan Nash added middle-order starch. Sulieman Benn's suspension overshadowed a very impressive tour for him, and Kemar Roach displayed speed and talent, even if his wickets tally did not reflect it.
West Indies remain eighth on the Test rankings but the gap between them and Australia is more a shallow valley than a canyon. Australia gained a position and jumped back up to third on the rankings, but they were shown to be vulnerable at home. The failure of any player to reach triple-figures was a concern and the fact that West Indies were so competitive led to some ugly moments.
Shane Watson, Mitchell Johnson and Brad Haddin were all fined for their behaviour in Perth, while Doug Bollinger was reprimanded in Adelaide. The pressure didn't always have a negative effect and Gayle admired Michael Hussey for fighting off speculation about his future to average 47 for the series, and the way Bollinger stepped in and finished second on the wickets list.
"They've been under a bit of pressure, even though they won the series 2-0, there's no two ways about it," Gayle said. "Bollinger came in for the second Test, they were missing a strike bowler like Ben [Hilfenhaus] but it's very complicated, a pressure situation often brings the best out of a player, to actually step up to the plate, and in the Australian team they've mentioned Mike Hussey as well, he's still scoring runs under pressure."
Bollinger was one of the finds of the series for Australia, while all the batsmen made contributions without dominating. The captain Ricky Ponting admired the way West Indies improved after the Gabba defeat, but he was also thrilled with the way his men stuck to their tasks to come out of the series with two wins.
"They've played better, there's no doubt about that," Ponting said of the opposition. "It would have been nice to have performed better in the second innings [in Perth] with the bat and play them completely out of the game but I think they've shown a bit of character. Even the young blokes coming in have stood up when they've needed to. They've played some good cricket over the last couple of weeks and they need to be credited for that."
For Australia the next Test challenge is the Boxing Day Test against Pakistan in six days; for West Indies it's a home series against South Africa in six months. It's a shame that we must wait so long to see how West Indies build on their impressive progress.

Brydon Coverdale is a staff writer at Cricinfo