Follow UsIt was six years and some months ago that the West Indies’ mini Test resurgence hit its peak, with the side routing England 2-1 at home in a series which saw the Caribbean pacers run riot.
Kemar Roach, Shannon Gabriel, Jason Holder and Alzarri Joseph bullied the English batters on lively wickets, and an extraordinary couple of Tests saw the Windies quicks take 32 wickets at 16.8 apiece to seal the series.
Six years on, Joseph is the only surviving pacer from that series, with Roach and Gabriel moved on from and Holder, the then skipper, out of the red-ball picture.
And yet the Windies’ pace-bowling stocks are as high as it's ever been in years, all thanks to the emergence of one Jayden Seales.
Naturally, due to how box office he is, it’s Shamar Joseph who has become a poster boy of sorts for the current Windies pace battery. Yet it’s Seales who has been the actual leader and standout of this group, excelling across conditions while doing all the heavy lifting away from the limelight.
After 19 Tests, Seales has 81 wickets at an average of 22.22.
Among all West Indian bowlers, only four in history have taken more wickets at a better average at the completion of their 19th Test: Joel Garner, Ian Bishop, Andy Roberts and Lance Gibbs, all among the best the region has ever produced.
That Seales finds himself in a list with the aforementioned names should itself tell you how special he is, but if it doesn’t, how about this for a stat? As it stands, Seales’ bowling strike rate of 38.7 is the best for any West Indies bowler who has taken over 75 Test wickets.
Put simply, we’re talking about a youngster who, barely four years into his career, has already forced his way into lists involving some of the greatest ever players from the Caribbean, a region which has produced some of the greatest ever cricketers.
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Still only 23, Seales, who debuted at 19 and instantly made a roaring start, picking up three 3-fers and a 5-fer in the first six innings of his Test career, taking the new ball alongside Kemar Roach.
A bout of injuries meant that the right-armer had to miss close to 20 months of action between late 2022 and mid-2024 — 9 Tests in total — but that seems to have ended up working in his favour as the youngster has since returned as a more evolved, mature and complete pacer.
Since his return to the side in July 2024, Seales has taken 44 wickets at an average of 20.52. In the entire world, among bowlers who have taken over 40 wickets during this period, only two have averaged better: Jasprit Bumrah and Kagiso Rabada.
Players from smaller nations are often accused of ‘statpadding’ against weaker teams, yet what’s truly astonishing about Seales’ returns during this period is that a whopping 70.45% of his wickets have come against Australia, South Africa and England, currently the top three sides in the world.
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What immediately stands out about Seales’ CV is how he’s excelled across conditions. He’s remarkable at home, having taken 64 wickets @ 19.82, but he also averages 27 in England and 21 in the sole Test he’s played in Asia.
It is worth delving into the series against England in particular. There, the 23-year-old took 13 wickets at 27.23 in his maiden series in England, which is an impressive feat in itself, considering we’ve seen over these past couple of years how unforgiving it can be to be a pacer bowling on flat decks to the Bazballers.
But these returns look outrageous when you put them into context, as the rest of the Windies quicks averaged 55.70 in what was largely a miserable tour for the visitors.
That Seales shone bright in the England series is as much a testament to his temperament as his skills, yet it goes without saying that what’s made him stand out all this while is his well-roundedness as a seamer.
For one, Seales swings the new ball as much as any frontline speedster going around in the world right now, which is why he’s among the best new ball bowlers in the world currently and has an exceptional record in West Indies, where the ball, of late, has tended to swing more than any other place in the world.
However, why Seales has been among the best pacers in the world for two years is owing to his ability to extract serious seam while bowling impeccable lines and lengths.
He’s found a way to remain effective throughout the innings, with his average of 24.2 in overs 20-50 serving as proof of the same. For context, Kagiso Rabada, during this phase of the game since 2024, has averaged 39 while going at 3.8 (compared to Seales’ 3.2).
Data, in fact, shows that not only does Seales hit the good length (6m - 8m) more often than most pacers, but his good length deliveries are up there as the toughest to deal with in the entire world.
With a bowler of this quality in their hands, these are exciting times for West Indies cricket. In a way, Seales has already ensured that the post-Roach transition will be smooth and seamless, with the side almost finding an instant like-for-like replacement.
The real challenge, though, starts for the West Indies now. They’ve struck gold with Seales, but can the board nurture him and ensure that he not only continues to develop at a steady pace but prioritises Test cricket in the long term? There have been plenty of missed opportunities in the past, but this is an individual that the West Indies cannot afford to fumble.