I guess you didn’t watch the WC, its Brad Hogg.
Anyways, these warmup matches rarely show the true state of the team, Australians will perform at their level when they play the real match.
Hmmmm.. looks like 1st Test Match could be ruined by rain. Here’s the Match Preview:-
West Indies start as underdogs
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Thinkin’…
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**Steve Waugh - ready for record 157th Test **
**First Test, Georgetown: West Indies v Australia
Match begins 1500BST Thursday **
**West Indies’ hopes of a surprise victory over Australia in the first Test have been undermined by massive disruption in and around the team.
And the rain and thunderstorms forecast for the next five days around Georgetown may be the best bet if the home side are to avoid defeat. **
A new-look team under Brian Lara was hit by injury and controversy even before they got together for the first time.
First, Lara’s deputy Ramnaresh Sarwan was ruled out with a damaged index finger.
Then the selectors ruled opening batsman Chris Gayle ineligible because of his decision to miss a domestic match.
And on Monday former skipper Carl Hooper pulled out of the series, which begins at his home ground, reportedly unwilling to play under Lara.
That left Gus Logie, only appointed as interim coach 11 days before the series began, hoping that team spirit would carry the side through.
“It’s difficult but this is the reality of the situation,” Logie said.
**“We have to use whatever adversity we have in the past few days and weeks and build us up and make us stronger. That’s the only way to go.” **
The home side, who suffered a 5-0 thrashing in their last series in Australia in 2000-01, will be expecting young batsmen Wavell Hinds, Marlon Samuels and Daren Ganga to perform.
**Replacing Gayle at opener is debutant Devon Smith. The 21-year-old left-hander becomes the third Grenadian to play Test cricket for West Indies. **
Mervyn Dillon, Pedro Collins and youngster Jermaine Lawson have the task of bowling out the powerful Australian batting order twice.
But much will rest on Lara, 
who scored three centuries - one of them 213 in Kingston - to help the West Indies to draw the last series in the Caribbean 2-2 four years ago.
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Waugh knows Lara will be key in the series
“The Test matches we’ve lost have been because someone’s put their hands up and played a great innings,” said Australia skipper Steve Waugh.
**“That’s what motivates a player like Brian. He likes to play against the best bowlers so he’ll be up for this series.” **
Australia are also below strength, with Glenn McGrath and Shane Warne, who between them have dismissed Lara 17 times, are both absent.
McGrath is expected in the Caribbean for the last two Tests in the series after returning home when his wife was diagnosed with a secondary cancer infection.
Warne is serving a 12-month ban after testing positive for a banned diuretic.
Waugh’s men had a less-than-perfect start to their tour when a Guyana Board XI came within 40 runs of victory in a three-day match.
Of the two wrist-spinners picked in Warne’s absence, Brad Hogg is in pole position to play after taking nine wickets to Stuart MacGill’s three in the sole warm-up match.
In six Tests played at the Bourda ground, Australia have won three and the West Indies two with one drawn.
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West Indies: Brian Lara (captain), Wavell Hinds, Devon Smith, Daren Ganga, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Marlon Samuels, Ridley Jacobs, Vasbert Drakes, Mervyn Dillon, Pedro Collins, Jermaine Lawson.
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Australia (from): Steve Waugh (captain), Matthew Hayden, Justin Langer, Ricky Ponting, Martin Love, Darren Lehmann, Adam Gilchrist, Brad Hogg, Brett Lee, Jason Gillespie, Andy Bichel, Stuart MacGill.
Windies 157/5 ( in 32 overs)
Great comeback from a position of 53/5.
And look at how Chanderpaul is playing...
** 75 in 49 Balls.(11*4,2*6) **
Look at this.is this a ODI or test match.
Bichel 5 0 32 1
Hogg 8 1 40 2
MacGill 6 2 29 0
Aussies are surely missing Macgrath and Warne.
Chandrapaul gets 100 in 69 balls.3rd fastest 100 in history of test cricket.
Thats impressive.
That too against Australian attack. That’s an awesome performance. Chanderpaul is the star and the best batsman in this WI team.
Brian Lara 
assalamoalikum 
bichel strikes 2 wickets in an over, chanderpaul after a mezmorising knock out lbw it was plumb, the ball pitched in around about middle and leg and he couldn’t flick the bowl away from his pads in time, then 2 deliveries later gilli takes a awesome catch diving towards his right hand side and taking a clean one handed catch and away goes v. drakes for a duck.
latest score west indies - (221 /7) jacobs* 43 and dillon 20*
(44.4 overs)
Stupid decision by Asoka desilva to give Lara out LBW:smack:
amazaing batting by chander paul he was hitting every australian bowler all over :k:
latest score West Indies 225/8 (47.0 ov) dillon gone MacGill flighted a delivery on the middle, Dillon went for the sweep but missed the ball by miles, the ball crashed into the back-leg and a huge appeal followed, Ashoka de Silva again just as he did against lara's decison took ages before raising his finger,
at the crease pedro collins
WOW great attacking display by Shivnarine Chanderpaul. Bichel went for over 7 runs per over for his 3 wickets. What a way to play test cricket on the very first day.
West Indies all out on 237 runs. Brian Lara wasn’t out. That idiot Ashok Desilva gave him out. I don’t understand why don’t Umpire ask 3rd Umpire to make the decision of LBW if it is critical to decide.
Great knock by Changerpaul and Jacobs. :k:
West Indies 1st innings R B 4 6
WW Hinds c Langer b Hogg 10 44 1 0
DS Smith lbw b Lee 3 17 0 0
D Ganga b Gillespie 0 3 0 0
*BC Lara lbw b Bichel 26 30 6 0
MN Samuels c Hayden b Hogg 0 1 0 0
**S Chanderpaul lbw b Bichel 100 72 15 2
+RD Jacobs not out 54 106 6 1**
VC Drakes c Gilchrist b Bichel 0 4 0 0
M Dillon lbw b MacGill 20 18 4 0
PT Collins st Gilchrist b MacGill 3 9 0 0
JJC Lawson b Lee 0 5 0 0
Extras (b 10, lb 2, w 3, nb 6) 21
Total (all out, 50.3 overs) 237
FoW: 1-9 (Smith, 4.5 ov), 2-10 (Ganga, 5.5 ov),
3-47 (Hinds, 14.3 ov), 4-47 (Samuels, 14.4 ov),
5-53 (Lara, 15.5 ov), 6-184 (Chanderpaul, 39.2 ov),
7-184 (Drakes, 39.5 ov), 8-222 (Dillon, 45.5 ov),
9-236 (Collins, 49.2 ov), 10-237 (Lawson, 50.3 ov).
Bowling O M R W
Lee 10.3 1 41 2 (5nb, 3w)
Gillespie 12 3 40 1
Bichel 8 1 55 3
Hogg 8 1 40 2
MacGill 12 4 49 2 (1nb)
Australia: 54/1. Hayden run out. 29 remaining over to be bowl of the 1st Day of 1st Test Match.
Aussies in full command at the end of 1st Day.
Australia 1st innings R M B 4 6
JL Langer not out 55 135 91 8 1
ML Hayden run out (Drakes) 10 29 9 2 0
RT Ponting not out 46 104 72 9 0
**Extras (lb 5, nb 4) 9
Total (1 wicket, 28 overs, 135 mins) 120**
To Bat: *SR Waugh, GB Hogg, +AC Gilchrist, DS Lehmann, AJ Bichel,
B Lee, SCG MacGill, JN Gillespie.
FoW: 1-37 (Hayden, 5.6 ov).
Bowling O M R W
Dillon 9 0 49 0
Collins 7 0 25 0 (3nb)
Lawson 4 0 27 0
Drakes 7 4 13 0 (1nb)
Samuels 1 0 1 0
Must have been a great inning from Chanderpaul, he is improving day by day.
Australia is scoring at an awesome rate of 4.33 Runs Per Over in the first innings of the first test macth in Guyana.
latest score updates ppl aussies 206 / 1 (51 overs)
langer * 100 & ponting 85* run rate - 4.03
thats langer's 100 ladies and gents its his 14th test ton, well played indeed.
carl hooper
assalamoalikum :jhanda:
http://uk.cricinfo.com/link_to_database/ARCHIVE/CRICKET_NEWS/2003/APR/168423_REUTERS_11APR2003.html
I haven’t retired, says Hooper
Axed West Indies captain, Carl Hooper, said on Thursday that he had not retired from international cricket and intended to fight his way back into the team.
Hooper, sacked as skipper after the World Cup, said he would not be available for the Test series against Australia and Sri Lanka.
“I want to remain active. I don’t want to be out for too long,” he added.
Hooper was replaced by Brian Lara as captain and then withdrew from the West Indies squad after being selected for the first Test against Australia, which started on Thursday in Georgetown, Guyana.
Chairman of selectors, Viv Richards, responded by saying he was not aware of Hooper’s long-term plans but thanked him for his contribution to the West Indies cricket.
Hooper, speaking on the phone, said he had withdrawn from the squad for personal reasons but declined to discuss them, although he felt it was time for West Indies to select young talent.
He added he would consider playing in England if he was offered a county contract but was aiming to return for the West Indies for the tour to South Africa at the end of the year.
West Indies failed to reach the second round of the World Cup in South Africa in February-March.
Hooper has scored more than 5,000 runs and taken more than 100 wickets with his highly effective off spin in both Test and one-day cricket. He has played 102 Tests and 227 one-dayers.
It is the second time Hooper has opted not to play for the team. He went into a two-year self-imposed exile in 1999, never fully explaining why, before returning as captain.
latest update
West Indies 237
latest Australia 253/1 (62.0 ov) @ lunch day 2 RR: 4.08
Australia lead by 16 runs with 9 wickets remaining in the 1st innings
JL Langer 129*
RT Ponting 103* <<<<<<<15th test ton
Gayle eligible for selection for rest of Test series
assalamoalikum :jhanda:
http://uk.cricinfo.com/link_to_database/ARCHIVE/CRICKET_NEWS/2003/APR/168635_REUTERS_10APR2003.html
Jamaican opening batsman Chris Gayle will be eligible for selection for the West Indies team for the remainder of the Australian series, the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) said on Thursday.
Gayle was left out of the first Test side after choosing to play in a special double-wicket tournament instead of for Jamaica in the final of the West Indies first class competition.
The WICB said at the time that according to their rules a player must be available for their country in any match immediately prior to a West Indies game to be eligible for selection for the team.
However on Thursday the WICB decided after an investigation that Gayle had received permission from Jamaican officials to compete in the tournament and to miss the final against Barbados.
“The board has accepted that Gayle received tacit, if not explicit, permission to play in the double-wicket tournament in St Lucia rather than the final of the Carib Beer International Challenge,” the board said in a statement.
“The WICB has decided that Gayle should continue to be eligible for selection for the series against Australia,” it added.
The board said it had written to Gayle expressing their disappointment at his decision to miss the final, won by Barbados by seven wickets.
Australia finished the first day of the first Test in Guyana on Thursday on 120-1 in reply to West Indies 237 all out.
Australia lead by 111 runs with 6 wickets remaining in the 1st innings
37 overs remaining today.
Australia 1st .innings R M B 4 6
JL Langer c Hinds b Drakes 146 270 19 2
ML Hayden run out (Drakes) 10 29 9 2 0
RT Ponting c Samuels b Drakes 117 195 18 0
DS Lehmann c sub (DE Bernard) b Drakes 6 8 1 0
*SR Waugh not out 25 47 1 1
+AC Gilchrist not out 14 19 3 0
Extras (b 17, lb 5, nb 8) 30
Total (4 wickets, 90 overs) 348
To Bat: GB Hogg, AJ Bichel, B Lee, SCG MacGill, JN Gillespie.
FoW: 1-37 (Hayden, 5.6 ov), 2-285 (Ponting, 71.1 ov),
3-300 (Lehmann, 75.2 ov), 4-319 (Langer, 82.6 ov).
Bowling O M R W
Dillon 16 0 84 0
Collins 17 1 60 0 (3nb)
Lawson 17 0 80 0
Drakes 21 5 54 3 (5nb)
Samuels 18 5 47 0
Ganga 1 0 1 0
should they declare at 500?
I think 600 ( a lead of 350+ ) would ensure Aus won't bat again. I see at least another century by middle order and a quick fire 50 by someone in the tail.