England Tour to West Indies April/May 2015

Just 7 days after the WC Final, England will begin their three-Test tour to the Caribbean. During that tour England play their first-ever Test match at the National Cricket Ground in Grenada.
Grenada will host the second Test of the series between April 21 and 25 next year. It will be only the third time Grenada has staged a Test match – the last against Bangladesh in 2009.
The Test series will begin in Antigua at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium starting on April 13 with the final Test at the Kensington Oval between May 1 and 5, 2015.

Tour itinerary
April 6-7 - 2-day warm-up, St Kitts
April 8-9 - 2-day warm-up, St Kitts
April 13-17 - 1st Test SVRS, Antigua
April 21-25 - 2nd Test Grenada National Stadium, Grenada
May 1-5 - 3rd Test Kensington Oval, Barbados

 

Full England squad: Alastair Cook (capt, Essex), Adam Lyth (Yorkshire), Jonathan Trott (Warwickshire), Gary Ballance, Joe Root (both Yorkshire), Ian Bell (Warwickshire), Ben Stokes (Durham), Jos Buttler (wk, Lancashire), Jonathan Bairstow (wk), Adil Rashid, Liam Plunkett (all Yorkshire), Stuart Broad (Nottinghamshire), James Anderson (Lancashire), Chris Jordan (Sussex), Mark Wood (Durham), James Tredwell (Kent)

Trott gets a recall, I may be biased, but I thought the time might've been right for James Vince to break in, maybe he needs a good season in Division One to proove himself to the selectors.
KP looks finished as long as the "bullies" Broad and Anderson are around...

 

Great to see Trott back in

 

Until he has another breakdown.

 

I would love to see Trotty grind the Australians down in the summer

 

MCC tour match in Abu Dhabi has several England players involved:

End of Day 2
Cook 3 - Lyth 113 - Bairstow 0
Rashid 2-51 and 42
Cook 2no in 2nd Inns

In 2nd Inns - Cook out for 5 - Rashid took 4-72

 

West Indies have named a 20-man squad for a training camp in Antigua ahead of the upcoming three-Test series against England, which begins on 13 April.
Batsman Darren Bravo, who came home midway through the World Cup because of a hamstring injury, is included.
Opener Chris Gayle will miss the series because of the persistent back problem which hampered him in the World Cup.

 

England have appointed Ottis Gibson as their fast bowling coach for their tour of West Indies, which starts in April. The 46-year-old ex-Windies bowler takes over from David Saker, who is to become head coach of Big Bash League side Melbourne Renegades. Gibson moves back into a role he held between 2007 and 2010 before being succeeded by Saker.

 

A good start as England began their West Indies tour by skittling out a St Kitts & Nevis Invitational XI for just 59.
In response, captain Alastair Cook was 95 not out and Jonathan Trott - in his first senior international appearance since leaving the 2013 Ashes tour early - hit 72 as England closed on 181-1

 

Rashid opened the bowling and took 1-8. Joe Root took 3-10. Must have been quite a turner!

 

This isn't right. I think the BBC website put the wrong figures against each bowler

Stokes 3-10, Anderson 1-8, Broad 2-16, Rashid 1-5, Tredwell 1-1, Jordan 2-19

 

See one of the useless tossers has had the good grace to stand down, the others should follow suit:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/cricket/32225643

 

Never understood how Downton got picked ahead of Bruce French for England as a player.

Still don't.

 

St Kitts Invitational XI drew with England XI
St Kitts Invitational XI 59 (Stokes 3-10, Broad 2-16) and 76 for 7 (Tredwell 3-35) - England XI 379 for 6 dec (Cook 101, Trott 72, Root 64, Bell 59)

 

I think I have made my feelings clear about Downton - just need Whitaker to go now and we can move forward

Vaughan as Director of Cricket and Giles as Chairman of Selectors?

 

Not sure that either of those would rock the boat, what we need is a younger Boycott or Botham, people who would drop an out of form player, change things around, not award mediocrity with a "central contract".

 

At the end of Day 1 of the 2nd tour match - St Kitts Invitational XI 303 for 9 (Bairstow 98, Root 87*) v England XI
Very strange game with half the England team playing for the opposition - still it's good time out in the middle I suppose!
England will now bat on the 2nd Day

Update - England 222 (Bell 43)
Match Drawn

 

Legspinner Devendra Bishoo has made a comeback to the West Indies squad for the first Test against England starting in Antigua from April 13. Shai Hope, a 21-year old uncapped wicketkeeper-batsman, and fast bowler Carlos Brathwaite have also been picked in the 14-man squad. Bishoo, 29, played the last of his 11 Tests in April 2012. Brathwaite has appeared in four ODIs and two T20Is but is yet to play a Test. .
West Indies squad: Denesh Ramdin (capt), Kraigg Brathwaite (vice-capt), Sulieman Benn, Devendra Bishoo, Jermaine Blackwood, Carlos Brathwaite, Darren Bravo, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Jason Holder, Shai Hope, Kemar Roach, Marlon Samuels, Devon Smith, Jerome Taylor

 

Trott out for a duck.
Not a great start.

 

England are 341 for 5 at the end of the first day of the first test against the West Indies
England 341 for 5 (Bell, 143, Root 83, Stokes 71*, Roach 2-71)
England's day - good recovery having been 34-3