The West Indies team is currently on a full tour of South Africa, which includes two Tests, three ODIs and three T20Is.
Senior West Indies all-rounder Jason Holder has expressed concern in a discussion on Wednesday that a limited Test schedule will affect the players’ chances of reaching milestones.
Speaking further, Holder emphasized that only the “big three countries” – England, Australia and India – have a busy schedule.
“The way world cricket is going now, apart from the big three, every team is barely playing any test cricket.”
The all-rounder further highlighted the starting line-up,
“We average six to eight test matches over the last three years. This year we’ve got six, next year around six. You have to be in the 11 for every single game to get anywhere close to 100 tests.”
Holder highlighted the case of West Indies Test captain and opener Kraig Brathwaite, who has played 83 times since his Test debut in May 2011, while England’s Joe Root has 129 from his Test debut in December 2012.
“It just shows you the amount of cricket England plays in comparison to us. It’s beyond our control. We’ve just got to deal with what’s in front of us and try to make the most of it.”
South African fast bowler Anrich Nortje, who has 18 Test caps, said the players are trying to make the most of the limited opportunities they get.
“I probably will never get to 50 tests. That will take me another seven years. Some countries in the next few months they play 20 games. It’s hard.”
“You can’t compare what the greats have done in the past, they played a lot of test cricket. That’s the main format. We play four games, eight games or 10 games over two years.”