Although scans showed no fracture after he was clattered on the boot by a Mitchell Starc yorker, Joseph battled pain on the fourth day to produce one of the greatest spells in Test history as he claimed 7 for 68 to inspire West Indies to a famous eight-run win – their first victory in Australia since 1997. At the start of the start of the day, he had not expected to feature before he was dosed up on painkillers by the team physio.
Once introduced into the attack, Joseph bowled unchanged to rip through Australia’s batting line and was still nudging 150kph late in the spell. “I’m not putting down this ball until the last wicket falls,” he told his captain Kraigg Brathwaite.
However, in the aftermath of his Gabba heroics, Joseph committed to always being available for West Indies duty.
“I will always be here to play Test cricket for the West Indies,” he said. “I am not afraid to say this live. There will be times when T20 might come around and Test cricket will be there … but I will always be available to play for the West Indies no matter how much money comes towards me.”
It was a busy 24 hours for Joseph after the Test as he fielded various media requests while he was lauded back in the Caribbean with newspapers leading the front pages with the cricket result. Numerous leaders from around the region also posted their praise and congratulations on social media.
Managing Joseph will now need to be at the forefront of West Indies’ selector’s thoughts and balancing the offers he gets from overseas. During the spell in Brisbane, Ian Bishop expressed how he hoped money could be found to protect Joseph.
“Important for the board, Guyana govt & cooperate bodies to find a way to allocate funds to compensate Shamar Joseph & 1 or 2 other fast bowlers to keep them in the Caribbean & control how much cricket they play,” Bishop posted on X. “Their pace is everything. Don’t allow burnout.”
Although Joseph was never due to feature in the white-ball leg of the Australia tour, he could yet come into contention for the T20 World Cup in June which will be hosted in the Caribbean and West Indies. His next opportunity in Test cricket will come on the tour of England in July where West Indies will play three Tests.
The ODI series against Australia begins in Melbourne on Friday. West Indies will be captained by Shai Hope and coached by Daren Sammy. Three T20Is follow, for which Rovman Powell will take over as captain.