We’re no warm-up act, says Windies coach Law

STUART LAW has warned England they will come unstuck if they treat his young West Indies side as a warm-up act ahead of the Ashes. A Caribbean team robbed of many of its best talents by the Twenty20 revolution have slipped into the country under the radar for three Tests that begin with England’s first day-night Test at Edgbaston next week. But the combative Australian who is now West Indies coach believes England will regret it if they underestimate his team and take this Investec series lightly before the biggest Test battle of them all this winter. ‘There have been things said about this being a warm-up for the Ashes and as an Australian I know that is very much still the No 1 series on the calendar,’ said Law, a former Lancashire and Essex batsman. ‘England will want to take their players to Australia in good form but if they believe we’re just going to turn up and crumble it could backfire on them because we’re not thinking that way. ‘I’m sure some see this as a mismatch. Underestimating a side can be detrimental to a team’s health. If that’s the case with England now it will be great for us.’ A West Indies team lacking the likes of Chris Gayle, Dwayne Bravo, Marlon Samuels and Kieron Pollard will be huge underdogs but Law insists they can cause an upset. ‘Steady improvement is our target but I believe if we play anywhere near our capabilities we’ve got the chance of nipping a Test match,’ said Law. ‘So regardless of the result of the series I’m pretty confident we will go close to upsetting certain people in the English public who doubt us when we get out there.’ And the coach retains hope there might still be a future in Test cricket for Gayle, the ultimate Twenty20 gun for hire, and others currently turning their backs on the ultimate form of the game. ‘The players who haven’t played Test cricket for a while still seem to have a thought bouncing around their heads that they want to,’ said Law. ‘If that’s the case, great, because cricket teams are built with youthful exuberance matched with experience. ‘Chris has expressed a desire to play Tests again but whether that becomes a reality remains to be seen.’ The Australian in the West Indies camp knows he can strike a blow for his countrymen ahead of the Ashes by further exploiting England’s top-order problems. ‘If we can get Shannon Gabriel bowling 100mph he could break a few hands, helping Australia!’ joked Law. Confident: Law is plotting an upset REUTERS West Indies have drawn their two warmup games so far against Essex and Kent, and will practise with the pink ball in their day-night game that starts at Derby today. ‘Can you really call it a day-night Test when play is due to end at 9pm?’ said Law. ‘It’s an experiment to get more people watching Test cricket. It’s not dying here, it’s just not being watched so much on TV, but how can we compete with EastEnders and Emmerdale anyway? ‘I have heard there are concerns about the quality of the pink ball. But we’ve got a day-night fixture against Derbyshire now so I’m looking forward to seeing how it holds up. ‘I’ve heard some say it will swing a lot and others that it won’t at all, but Jimmy Anderson could swing an orange so it’s going to be hard work whatever. ‘I hate using the word potential but potentially the sky’s the limit for most, if not all, of our players. We just need to put it all together under pressure and convert good starts into great things. If we do that consistently we’ll improve out of sight.’