Brandon King faces big series in battle for opening berth

SANTOKIE NAGULENDRAN: West Indies have built a remarkable T20 dynasty in recent years, full of experienced players who have featured in every type of match situation. Can King cement his place at the top of the order?

For West Indian players who have walked out to empty stadiums in the Caribbean Premier League and IPL over recent months, the T20I series beginning against New Zealand this week will mark a refreshing change, as the virtually Covid-free nation will make room for stands packed with fans who are actually allowed to make contact with one another.

With short boundaries and some household names on both sides, it is bound to be an entertaining spectacle, but what will the games actually reveal about the tourists’ World Cup ambitions next year?

The answer, potentially, is not much. Captain Kieron Pollard, who has played over 500 T20s in his illustrious career so far, will no doubt demand a series win from a squad somewhat light on international experience; the absence of multiple stars will allow him to have a look at what depth is available and for some players, this could be an opportunity to stake a claim for a coveted World Cup spot.

One such player is 25-year-old Jamaican batsman Brandon King, who has been in the T20I side for the past year without yet managing a breakthrough innings in maroon.

King is facing fierce competition for the opening spot, with Lendl Simmons, Evin Lewis, and Chris Gayle - all household names with higher T20I averages and strike-rates, looming in the shadows. When one of your rivals for a spot is one of the greatest to ever play the format, it’s fair to say the pressure is on.

However, the fact that all three of those players will be absent from this series means it’s also a chance for King to show head coach Phil Simmons what he is truly capable of in the format.

A classy batsman who wears the number 53 as a tribute to his cricketing hero Ramnaresh Sarwan, King’s career trajectory has not taken the route many assumed it might.

Earmarked as a traditional No.3 red-ball batsman who would eventually make his way into the Test side, a remarkable 2019 Caribbean Premier League campaign with Guyana Amazon Warriors saw King surprisingly pushed to the top of the order. He was often imperious – his 132 not out in the play-offs was one of the great T20 innings, after which he was thrust into the T20I limelight.

^{King has played eight T20Is}

A rocky start to his international career came in his debut series against Afghanistan last year, where he was partnered at the top firstly by Simmons and then Lewis, before dropping down to No.3, failing to pass 12 in any innings.

Against India, he remained at No.3, then dropped further down the line-up, before once again being moved up to open in the final match of the series. The last series West Indies played – against Sri Lanka, saw King find his best form playing as an out and out opener, scoring 43 off 21 in the second T20I and looking every inch a batsman of international calibre.

Yet having been given eight T20Is and seemingly struggled in the majority of those, coupled with an abysmal CPL campaign this year in which he failed to make double figure scores on six occasions while averaging 11.60, it’s easy to see why many are doubting his ability to perform at this level in the shorter format. So, what needs to change?

Firstly, you feel a consistent run as opener in the side will benefit him: similar to the start of his Windies T20I career, in 2018 he had also struggled with St Kitts and Nevis Patriots after batting in various positions.

He only found his feet after moving to Guyana Amazon Warriors, telling the Caribbean Cricket Podcast recently: “Pretty early after Guyana selected me, the coaches and the management staff took me in a meeting and told me that they think I can do a job at the top. The confidence that Guyana had that I could perform the role gave me confidence and also, to have a settled role in the team was important for me.”

Improved scores in Sri Lanka, the only series where he has played exclusively as an opener, suggest a show of faith from the coach will improve his game. King will also be aware that he needs to make big scores in both this series and the next one against Bangladesh in January, with the latter’s subcontinental conditions mirroring what West Indies will find in the World Cup and so holding even more importance.

The numerous withdrawals from the squad mean that King will most likely be partnered by Andre Fletcher for this series; the 32-year old has frequently dipped in and out of the side since his debut in 2008 without ever holding a permanent spot. Indeed, his last T20I appearance came over two years ago.

Whether or not opening with Fletcher will benefit King remains to be seen: it could give him the license to thrill without the pressure of batting alongside an established superstar such as Gayle or Lewis. Fletcher has a tendency to anchor an innings rather than accelerate from the off, and this could in turn give King the confidence to believe that he belongs at this level.

^{The shadow of Chris Gayle looms large...}

Outside of the T20 World Cup, bilateral T20Is are generally muddled affairs, with teams often resting their strongest players or many opting out to instead feature in franchise tournaments. That is the case for this tour, with Andre Russell and Colin Munro two players who have both chosen to play elsewhere during the series.

Yet, that’s not to say playing franchise cricket is a lesser option; in fact, the strength of West Indies’ T20 side in the last decade has been built on the experience that players have taken from playing in various elite tournaments throughout the world.

While Gayle and Lewis have not played in maroon colours much in recent times, they have been performing in franchise competitions, with Gayle in particular, surprising many by proving destructive in the IPL last month at 41 years of age.

Lendl Simmons, on top of blasting 91 runs off 40 balls against Ireland In January, was also the highest run-scorer in the CPL this season, which was notably held on spin-friendly Trinidadian pitches, the likes of which will resemble some of the tracks in India next year more so than the green pitches the players will face in New Zealand on this tour.

There is even the wildcard option of West Indies taking a leaf out of Kolkata Knight Riders’ playbook next year and adopting Sunil Narine, who is also absent from this tour, as a pinch-hitting opener.

West Indies have built a remarkable T20 dynasty in recent years, full of experienced players who have featured in every type of match situation. Lewis, Gayle and Simmons encapsulate this; they have all played IPL cricket, with the latter two even scoring T20 centuries in India, while all three were part of the victorious World T20-winning squad in 2016.

For King, the task to retain his opening spot against such competition seems almost insurmountable, yet he is all too aware of the challenges at this level. As he said recently: “Part of the challenge of international cricket is you have to have the ability to adjust to conditions and perform. At the end of the day you are selected to perform.”

Gift a subscription to The Cricketer this Christmas and choose your free gift (a £20 John Lewis gift card or copy of Bob Willis: A Cricketer & A Gentleman). Subscribe here