Lawes needs more than international exposure, Brathwaite warns West Indies
Key Points(5)
- Brathwaite’s concern follows Lawes’ difficult finish to the West Indies’ recent white-ball tour of India, where the 19-year-old went wicketless in the final two matches of the three-game One-Day International series and conceded 127 runs.
- While those performances drew criticism from some Caribbean fans, Brathwaite believes the bigger question is not whether Lawes is ready to face international opposition, but whether West Indies cricket has the structure needed to help him respond to setbacks.
- “A part of me is happy he’s getting the opportunities and that we’re backing a young player, but for me now the follow-up is how do we support that young player,” Brathwaite said on The Super Over podcast.
- Talent is not the problem, Brathwaite says Lawes emerged as one of the region’s promising young players during the Under-19 World Cup earlier this year before making his senior international debut against New Zealand in July.
- He made an immediate impression during that five-match series, claiming eight wickets as the West Indies lost 2-3.
Former West Indies all-rounder Carlos Brathwaite has challenged the region’s cricket authorities to provide teenage fast bowler Vitel Lawes with a stronger development pathway, warning that exposing the promising Jamaican to international cricket must be matched by opportunities to learn and improve.
Brathwaite’s concern follows Lawes’ difficult finish to the West Indies’ recent white-ball tour of India, where the 19-year-old went wicketless in the final two matches of the three-game One-Day International series and conceded 127 runs.
While those performances drew criticism from some Caribbean fans, Brathwaite believes the bigger question is not whether Lawes is ready to face international opposition, but whether West Indies cricket has the structure needed to help him respond to setbacks.
“A part of me is happy he’s getting the opportunities and that we’re backing a young player, but for me now the follow-up is how do we support that young player,” Brathwaite said on The Super Over podcast.
Talent is not the problem, Brathwaite says
Lawes emerged as one of the region’s promising young players during the Under-19 World Cup earlier this year before making his senior international debut against New Zealand in July.
He made an immediate impression during that five-match series, claiming eight wickets as the West Indies lost 2-3. His best figures were 3-39 in the third ODI, reinforcing the belief that the teenager could offer the senior team an important new option.
India proved a tougher examination. After going wicketless in the second and third ODIs, Lawes found himself at the center of debate over whether he had been promoted to international cricket too quickly.
Former West Indies fast bowler and commentator Ian Bishop came to the youngster’s defense during the series, urging supporters and team officials to show restraint.
“I’ll say it again: We have to be patient with Vitel Lawes and manage the youth better,” Bishop wrote on X. “We keep rushing the kid into scenarios he isn’t ready for. Please give him time to grow and get his reps in. He is 19 years old, not 29 years old.”
Brathwaite shares that concern, but his focus is also on what happens after a young player has been identified and introduced to the international stage.
“The challenge I found that West Indies cricket has had is not necessarily finding talent, [because] finding talent has always been quite easy for us, I think the difficulty for West Indies is honing that talent.”
Limited cricket leaves a development gap
For Brathwaite, the shortage of competitive cricket below the international level is a central obstacle to Lawes’ progress.
He pointed to the limited first-class schedule and the absence of a Super50 tournament this season, questioning where a young player can work through technical weaknesses and rebuild confidence after a challenging international assignment.
“You look to three first class games this season and no Super 50, [so] where does a Vitel Lawes now go at a level below international cricket and learn his game?” Brathwaite asked.
“He would have had lots of things that he would have done well and be happy with, and there’ll be a lot more things that he probably was unhappy with coming out of India, things he can work on, but where does he work on those things?”
Brathwaite argued that development cannot depend solely on informal practice away from the demands of competitive cricket. Lawes needs opportunities to test adjustments under pressure, with the kind of match exposure that can prepare him for another international assignment.
“Does he work on those things in a random pitch somewhere in Jamaica where the pressure is off and the spotlights are off as well? Or do we throw him in at first class level, 50-over level, T20 level? What is the level between CPL and international cricket?”
His comments also highlight the wider challenge facing Cricket West Indies (CWI), whose financial difficulties have limited the number of opportunities available for players to gain experience in domestic competitions.
Brathwaite warns against a stalled career
Brathwaite wants head coach Daren Sammy and the wider coaching staff to assess what Lawes did well in India, identify the areas requiring improvement, and ensure he has a suitable environment in which to address them.
“My challenge to the powers that be in West Indies cricket is to see what Vital Lawes has done well, see the challenges he’s had, and now give him an opportunity to be able to learn at the level below so he can have a quicker bounce back,” he said.
He cited the development of another young West Indies player, Jewel Andrew, as a cautionary comparison, expressing concern that Lawes could struggle to fulfil his early promise if the right support is not provided.
Brathwaite said he did not want Lawes to spend the next few years “flirting between the doldrums and, I don’t want to say failure, but not hitting the heights that we expected of him two years ago.”
The warning was not a call to withdraw opportunities from Lawes. Rather, it was an appeal to ensure that his exposure to international cricket is supported by a clear and practical route to improvement.
Sammy remains committed to Lawes
Sammy has already made clear that the West Indies intend to remain patient with Lawes, whose wrist-spin bowling offers a skill set the regional side has long sought.
Speaking in September, the head coach described the Jamaican as a significant discovery and said his promotion to the senior team had been part of a deliberate plan.
“Vitel, to me, is a find for us. What we saw in him that caused him to debut against New Zealand was all part of the planning and the processes we put in place. You’ve heard me for years talking about a wrist spinner in the West Indies team, and Vitel came in and immediately had an impact on the bowling unit for us,” Sammy said.
The coach acknowledged that the teenager still has considerable work ahead but said the team would continue to invest in his progress through match opportunities and targeted training.
“He’s still got a long way to go but we will continue with his development through either playing games or the specific work we’ve put in place for him. He’s worked really well with Nikita Miller and Ravi Rampaul. We’ll continue creating those opportunities for him and, hopefully, he can continue to grow. A little bit fast-tracked, but we’re pleased with what he’s done so far.”
Sammy’s comments suggest that Lawes remains part of the West Indies’ longer-term plans. Brathwaite’s challenge is to ensure that those plans extend beyond specialist coaching and international selection to include sufficient competitive cricket at the level where young players can refine their skills.
For a teenager already entrusted with a place in the senior team, the next step may prove as important as the breakthrough itself: building the experience and resilience needed to turn early promise into sustained international performance.
