Gabba win is the springboard West Indies needed, but they must pounce on it
Ian Bishop could not stop himself from yelling Carlos Brathwaite's name from the commentary box after the all-rounder carted four consecutive sixes to lead the West Indies to T20 World Cup glory and celebrate over a crestfallen Ben Stokes.
Brathwaite might not have done many notable things after that, but he will be remembered for giving the West Indies that special half-hour. However, that moment is among the few glistening through the sorry state of the West Indies men's cricket setup.
"It's the hope that kills you, you know that?" the quote by Ed James hasn't held true for anyone other than West Indies cricket. The beacon of hope came multiple times without the leap that ascended them to unparalleled heights in the 1970s and 1980s.
There was the Test series win against England at home in 2019 as the bowlers rattled the Englishmen, while Jason Holder's 202* at Bridgetown was undeniably the standout batting performance of the leg.
A closely-fought Test win in Southampton followed to open the proceedings after the first wave of the COVID-19 leg. It was followed by Kyle Mayers' double-century in Chattogram the following year on his first Test appearance to script one of their greatest victories. Another monumental series win occurred in early 2022 as the Caribbean soil continued to become England's holy grail.
But sandwiched between these were equally bleak performances that reasserted the belief of 'one step forward and two steps back' for the West Indies. It has been a consistent pattern that the Caribbeans have struggled to find a way out of.
A heavy series loss in the white-ball leg against England followed the Test series win in 2019. Stokes triggered a storm of epic proportions to swing the series England's way after Holder and Jermaine Blackwood battled successfully in Southampton.
And it was not much to expect from a power-packed Caribbean side to go the distance in the 2021 T20 World Cup. But indeed, it was a lot from an aging side with players who were past their best. However, this was even before the maroon shirts failed to make it to the main draw of the 2022 T20 World Cup and the 2023 World Cup.
To regain the aura boasted under Clive Lloyd and Viv Richards or even get close, the Men in Maroon had to be extraordinary, and those flashes in the pan hardly carried any spot.
Shamar Joseph plants the seed for progress, but he cannot carry it alone
Returning for the second time on the trot, the expectations were for Australia to sweep aside the West Indies to round out another perfect summer. A 2-0 win for the hosts looked inevitable, and a 1-0 victory would be a marked improvement for the West Indies from the last time.
After all, playing Test cricket Down Under would in itself have been a massive learning curve for a squad of seven uncapped players. But the tourists weren't going to settle for a consolation prize and sent the message even as they succumbed to a 10-wicket loss in Adelaide.
Shamar Joseph, with a debut fifer, laid down the precursor for what was to come at the Gabba. The Caribbeans had come with an extra motivation that Rodney Hogg's spiteful comments had provided them.
The Gabba was thought to still be Australia's fortress, despite India breaching it for the first time in 2021 since 1988. And the question was, did the West Indies, among all other teams, have the steel and guile to replicate it? With the pink ball in hand, things had already looked grim in the first hour for the West Indies, reducing them to 64-5.
Joshua da Silva and Kavem Hodge certainly laid the building blocks for the first inning, and the remaining teammates deserve equal credit, but it was Joseph who dragged the team along with him.
As much as his right toe breathed fire on day 3 after a searing yorker from Mitchell Starc, Joseph pushed through the pain and set the stage ablaze to down Australia at the Gabba on the next. His every wicket-taking delivery was symbolic of the West Indies' requirement to go that extra mile to taste a Test win over Australia since 2003.
Gabba still remains one of the most challenging venues to defeat Australia in, but it has never been the fortress since India razed it. Instead, it has turned into a storied venue where the inexperience and fearlessness of the visiting side rule the roost, as the latest conquest also demonstrated.
West Indies cannot let the Brisbane Test be an aberration
Over the years, the West Indies men's team has witnessed several springboards to regain their once-invincible aura. But none of those were as promising as the victory in Brisbane, and needless to say, the Caribbeans must pounce on that and make it count.
It won't be easy by any stretch of imagination, given the number of players still prioritizing franchise cricket. However, with the WICB lacking money, the absence of proper structure, and the constant upheaval between the board and players, the team is shorn of stability.
Hence, there are caveats to consider. As repeatedly stressed by the cricketing fraternity, the Big 3 must come together to extend all the support instead of merely acknowledging Joseph's heroics.
And yet, it is mostly the players' discretion as to which path they wish to walk, albeit whatever the cost may be. Shamar Joseph's asserting his commitment to Tests despite the potential windfall from the franchise landscape and Kemar Roach's belief that the West Indies' heart still beats for red-ball cricket speak volumes. But only time will tell how it will all unfold.
If anything one can predict from their meek surrender to Australia in the 1st ODI at MCG is that the West Indies seem to be again taking that one direction. But don't count out another turnaround.