Coach Williams hails Windies rookies as squad returns

West Indies head coach David Williams has saluted the rookies on the regional squad and said their performance in Australia was a positive sign for the future.



The former West Indies wicketkeeper/batsman says the tour had been an encouraging one, despite the team going down 2-nil in the three-Test series.



The 19-year-old Adrian Barath became the youngest West Indies player to score a Test century when he slammed a stroke-filled 104 in the first Test in Brisbane where the tourists crashed to a humiliating innings and 65-run defeat inside three days.



Travis Dowlin, meanwhile, scored two half-centuries in four innings while speedster Kemar Roach was the revelation of the series, impressing with his pace and control as he troubled all of the Australian batsmen.



In his only Test, Narsingh Deonarine carved out a fighting 82 in the second innings in Perth to give the Windies hope of winning the third and final encounter, a game they eventually lost by 35 runs.



The West Indies team arrived in the Caribbean yesterday without their captain Chris Gayle and all-rounder Dwayne Bravo who remained in Australia for the Twenty/Twenty Big Bash tournament.