Revisiting West Indies’ last Test series win against Australia in the Frank Worrell Trophy
Australia and West Indies will resume their rivalry in the Frank Worrell Trophy when they face each other in two Test matches. The two sides will meet in the first Test at the Adelaide Oval from January 17 to 21. The second game of the series will be played at The Gabba in Brisbane from January 25 to 29.
If we look at the head-to-head stats, the Aussies have a dominant record over the Windies. The two sides have met each other 118 times in Test matches, with Australia winning as many as 60 and West Indies only 32. Of the 118 Tests, 25 games have ended in a draw, while one match was tied.
West Indies dominated the rivalry in the late 1970s and 1980s when they were the most feared opponent in international cricket. Their aura began to wane by the 1990s and, come the 2000s, Australia were well and truly the top side in the sport. Their domination over West Indies can be evaluated by the fact that since 1994-95, they have drawn only one Test series against the Caribbean side, winning all the others.
As Australia and West Indies prepare to restart their rivalry that has, unfortunately, lost its competitive edge over the years, we revisit Windies’ last Test series win over the Aussies.
The last time West Indies won a Test series against Australia
West Indies' last Test series triumph over Australia in the Frank Worrell Trophy came way back in 1992-93 when they won a five-match series 2-1.
The Aussies had a 1-0 lead after three Tests, but the Windies made a memorable comeback to clinch the series by winning the last two Tests, thus registering their fifth consecutive triumph in the Frank Worrell Trophy.
The first match of the series was played at The Gabba in Brisbane and ended in a draw. Australia batted first after winning the toss but were held to 293 as Carl Hooper claimed 4/75. For the hosts, skipper Allan Border top-scored with an unbeaten 73. West Indies responded with 371 as Keith Arthurton scored a defiant 157*.
A second-innings century from opener David Boon (111) and a half-century from Mark Waugh (60) pushed Australia to 308 despite Curtly Ambrose’s 5/66. Set to chase 231, West Indies crumbled to 128/8 as Craig McDermott claimed four wickets. However, they hung on for a draw as Ian Bishop scored 16* in 107 minutes.
Australia took the significant lead in the five-match series with a 139-run triumph in the second Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG). Australia again won the toss and batted first. This time, they put up 395 on the board as Border (110) and Mark Waugh (112) hit fine tons. Craig McDermott (4/66) and Merv Hughes (3/51) then combined to restrict West Indies to 233.
Despite being bowled out for 196 in their second innings, the Aussies maintained their upper hand as they had set a highly challenging target of 359 for the Windies. Shane Warne then spun his magic as the opponents were bundled out for 219. The late leggie claimed 7/52 as Phil Simmons’ defiant 110 went in vain.
The New Year Test in Sydney ended in a high-scoring draw and is synonymous with Brian Lara’s brilliant 277. Australia again batted first after their skipper won the toss. A hundred from Steve Waugh and 70s from Border, Boon, and Greg Matthews allowed the hosts to declare at 503/9.
West Indies, however, took the first-innings lead, riding on a superb double ton from Lara. Against a strong Australian bowling attack, he struck 38 fours, batting for 372 balls and occupying the crease for 474 minutes. West Indies ended up posting 606. Australia were 117/0 in their second innings when the Test ended without a result.
West Indies make incredible comeback to clinch series
Down 1-0 after three games, West Indies needed to win the last two Tests to clinch the series. They sneaked home to a spectacular one-run win in Adelaide.
On this occasion, West Indies won the toss and elected to bat first. The visitors were held to 252 as Hughes claimed 5/64. Windies pace legend Ambrose, however, starred with 6/74 as Australia were restricted to 213 in response.
Bowlers continued to dominate the Test in the second innings as well. Tim May registered incredible figures of 5/9 as the Windies were bundled out for 146; skipper Richie Richardson contributing 72 of them. There was another twist in the tale, though, as Australia crumbled to 184 all out while chasing 186.
Ambrose starred one again for West Indies, picking up 4/46, while his long-time fast bowling partner Courtney Walsh claimed three scalps. The hosts had lost nine wickets for 144. Tim May and McDermott took the score to 184. West Indies, however, had the last laugh as Walsh had McDermott caught behind for 18, leaving May stranded on 42.
The visitors then clinched the series with an emphatic innings and 25-run triumph in the final Test in Perth. Ambrose ran through the Aussies with figures of 7/25 in 18 overs after Border won the toss and batted first. Australia were rolled over for 119 after which West Indies responded with an impressive 322 - Simmons (80) and Arthurton (77) making significant contributions.
It was Ian Bishop’s turn to shine in West Indies’ second innings. He claimed 6/40 in 16 overs as Australia were skittled out for 178 in 57 overs. Boon (52) was the only Aussie batter to score a half-century. West Indies celebrated a famous win, which also marked the last instance of them lifting the Frank Worrell Trophy.