Tour of Zimbabwe 2001            Captain: Carl Hooper

48th official Test tour

First Test-playing tour of Zimbabwe by West Indians   

    (June - August 2001)

West Indies' first Test series with Zimbabwe was sandwiched between a limited-overs triangular tournament and a visit to ICC associate member Kenya.  Zimbabwe (lacking Andy Flower and Henry Olonga) were not strong but, in view of results on previous tours, the West Indians gained satisfaction from achieving victories on all three sections of this trip. New skipper Carl Hooper and the coach Roger Harper restored for the moment some of the discipline lacking on the tour of Australia.

However, Ridley Jacobs was found to have offended the spirit of cricket in a ODI at Harare for not recalling Indian batsman Sehwag whom he had 'stumped' though he did not have the ball in his hand.  He was suspended for the next three ODIs West Indies would play (which were in Kenya). Match referee Denis Lindsay was not aware that Jacobs was not even going on the tour of Kenya and had to amend his suspension to the second Test match against Zimbabwe.

There was no physiotherapist in the tour party, only the sports therapist and trainer Ronald Rogers from Trinidad. The West Indies Board later questioned whether someone more fully trained to treat the many injuries that caused three fast bowlers to return home early should have accompanied the team. Embarking on their first cricket tour in more than a decade without either Curtly Ambrose or Courtney Walsh, it was impossible to gain any pointers to their possible successors as fast bowlers.

Other West Indies tours

Previous tour

Australia 2000-01

Next tour

Sri Lanka 2001-02

Next tour of Zimbabwe

2003-04

Members of the Test tour party (16 + 4)

Opening batsmen:  Chris Gayle, Daren Ganga, Leon Garrick

Middle-order batsmen: Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Carl Hooper, Ramnaresh Sarwan, Marlon Samuels Brian Lara (w/d), Wavell Hinds (r)

Wicket-keeper: Ridley Jacobs.

Spin bowler: Neil McGarrell, Dinanath Ramnarine

Fast bowlers: Corey Collymore, Reon King, Cameron Cuffy (w/d), Mervyn Dillon (w/d), Colin Stuart, Marlon Black (r), Pedro Collins (r)

Regional representation

B - Barbados

G - Guyana

Ja - Jamaica

L - Leeward Islands

T - Trinidad & Tobago

W - Windward Islands

Average age of  team at time of first Test match

   (19 July 2001) :

      26 yrs  10 months

ODI (Z)  Member of ODI squad in Zimbabwe

ODI (K)  Member of ODI squad in Kenya

Test Appearances made before the tour

Hooper 85,  Lara 80, Chanderpaul 47,  Jacobs 31,  Dillon 16, Browne 13,  King 12,  Sarwan 12,  Gayle 9,  Ganga  8, Ramnarine 8,  Samuels 7,  Cuffy 5,  Black 3,  Collins 3, Stuart  2, Collymore 1, Garrick 1,  McGarrell 1.

Team Officials

The President of the West Indies Cricket Board dismissed Ricky Skerritt as team manager on 28 May, just 15 months into a three-year contract, but the Board reinstated him on 3 June.

Selectors

Mike Findlay (chairman),  Joey Carew,  Joel Garner and  Carl Hooper (captain).

Selection

On 23 May 2001 a 22-man squad for was named for the two-week training camp in Trinidad from which the touring side would be picked, subject to fitness tests on 2 June.

Unavailable:  Courtney Walsh was asked to postpone his retirement but he stuck to his decision.

Test and ODI Tour Parties to Zimbabwe announced :  8 June 2001.

Original Test squad:  Carl Hooper (captain), Ridley Jacobs, Chris Gayle, Daren Ganga, Brian Lara, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Marlon Samuels, Ramnaresh Sarwan, Leon Garrick, Cameron Cuffy, Mervyn Dillon, Reon King, Corey Collymore, Colin Stuart, Neil McGarrell and Dinanath Ramnarine

Original ODI squad:  Hooper (captain), Jacobs, Chanderpaul, Ganga, Gayle, Lara, Samuels, Sarwan, Hinds, Cuffy, Dillon, King, Collymore, Jeremy, McGarrell and Nagamootoo.

Not selected : Rickie Christopher (Leewards)

Leon Garrick, Colin Stuart and Dinanath Ramnarine were to play in the Test series, replacing Wavell Hinds, Kerry Jeremy and Mahendra Nagamootoo from the ODI group

On 13 June it was announced that Courtney Browne, 30, and Dave Mohammad, 21, would join the Kenyan leg of the tour in place of Ridley Jacobs and Dinanath Ramnarine.

Time between selection and departure from West Indies

  4 days

(8 June to 12 June)

Travel

BridgetownQ  London Q   Harare

The squad attended a two week pre-tour camp in Trinidad and prepared to leave from Barbados on 12 June.

West Indies arrived in Harare on Thursday 14 June 2001. The players were tired after lengthy flying time, but work began the same day with their first training session. 

Colin Stuart arrived on 3 July with Leon Garrick and Dinanath Ramnarine; Courtney Browne arrived in Zimbabwe on 18 July; Dave Mohammed arrived on 23 July.

On 1 August the team flew to Nairobi's Jomo Kenyatta International Airport for a 20-day tour.

Time spent in Zimbabwe

   48 days

(14 June - 1 August)

On-tour selection panel

Reinforcements

Four players went home early before the Test series began, and three players had to be added to the Test squad. Then Browne was brought in for the second Test when Ridley Jacobs was suspended.

Brian Lara withdrew from the tour with a right hamstring muscle pull on 25 June and four days later it was announced he would be replaced by two players: Leon Garrick for the remaining ODIs and Wavell Hinds for the Test series and Kenya.

Cameron Cuffy (stress fracture of the left instep) and Kerry Jeremy (back strain) suffered injuries during the ODI series serious enough to necessitate their return to the Caribbean.

Colin Stuart, who would be taking over from Jeremy for the Test section of the tour, was asked to arrive in Harare earlier than planned on 3 July along with Leon Garrick and Dinanath Ramnarine, the others chosen only for the longer matches.

Merv Dillon then suffered a tear in the tendon of his right knee and also returned home (on Thursday 12 July), putting him out of the Test squad.

Fast bowlers Pedro Collins and Marlon Black flew out on 11 July for the remainder of the tour of Africa.

Courtney Browne flew out on 17 July as back up for Ridley Jacobs, who was both suspended for the second Test match and would not be participating in the Kenyan leg of the tour.

On 22 July Dave Mohammed travelled to Zimbabwe early, as cover for the injured Dinanath Ramnarine (back strain).

Fixtures/Results

Nairobi  (1) Ruaraka Sports Club   (2) Simba Union Ground   (3) Gymkhana Club Ground

† not first-class

§  one-day internationals (Coca Cola Cup)

Time spent in Zimbabwe before First Test: 

35 days

(14 June - 19 July)

§  one-day internationals (

Test appearances on tour

2  -   Chanderpaul,  Ganga,  Gayle,  Hooper,  King,  McGarrell,  Samuels,  Sarwan,  Stuart.

1 -    Black,  Browne,  Collins,  Jacobs.

0 -    Collymore,  Garrick,  Hinds.

Highlights

•  Ganga (89) and Gayle (121*) scored 214 for the first wicket at Bulawayo, exceeding Zimbabwe's first innings by 59 before they were parted.

•  Chris Gayle scored 152 in the first ODI against Kenya with 17 fours and a six

Tour Summary

Return to West Indies

NairobiQ  London Q   Bridgetown / Kingston

Brian Lara returned to the Caribbean on 24 June. Cameron Cuffy and Kerry Jeremy returned on Monday 2 July.

Merv Dillon returned on Thursday 12 July.  Dinanath Ramnarine returned …….

Wavell Hinds was supposed to return home after the ODIs but would remain with the team in view of Lara's absence. Ridley Jacobs returned home after the first Test match.

At the end of the tour the Jamaican players - Leon Garrick, Chris Gayle, Wavell Hinds - arrived at Norman Manley Airport on 21 August.

Barbadians Courtney Browne, Corey Collymore and Pedro Collins, Guyanese Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Reon King, Ramnaresh Sarwan and Neil McGarrell, Trinidadian Dave Mohammed and coach Roger Harper arrived home on 21 August at Grantley Adams Airport, Barbados. Following the most positive results for six years, they were given a welcome reception hosted by British Airways in the Club Caribbean Lounge at the airport.

Time away from West Indies    70 days  

(12 June to 21 August)

Match Appearances