It seems like a great heritage for Roston Chase while stepping forward as a Test Captain of the West Indies cricket team. He wants to follow Frank Worrell, Garfield Sobers, Clive Lloyd and Viv Richards for great captaincy experience. But Chase also wants to create his own personal journey in cricket as a Test leadership role. He was being challenged by his mother to achieve something big from his career within two-years. It was his passion for cricket that made him achieve this role, he shared during an interview on Wednesday.
Now he is going to lead the Test cricket team at the age of 33, while he made his debut at the age of 18 and he tried to just make an entry to the Barbados team. Till now Chase had played 49 test matches in his career.
He said that he always loved cricket from his childhood days, even he preferred cricket over his school.
“I was a student at the University of West Indies (UWI) Cave Hill at the time, and I would be taking a lot of leave to go and play like in the first-class competition,” Chase said. “I wasn’t cemented in the Barbados team at that stage. So my mother encouraged me, but gave me an ultimatum that I will be given two years to make myself a permanent fixture in the Barbados team or I will have to go to school permanently.”
“I loved cricket more than school. I was always a good student, but cricket was my love. I worked hard, and I’m glad that she gave me that ultimatum because that really was the driving force for me to carry my cricket to the next level.”
Chase’s father also contributed a lot towards the success of his career. He was there with his support and love for Chase’s career development.
“He would come and watch all my games, and talk to me about the game, [like] where I need to improve or I need to work on – the dos and don’ts.” Chase added.
Current schedule of the West Indies Test side is lighter than others. He said he is ready to lead the team and he will try to perform his best role as a Captain.
“Captaining the West Indies is a great job to have, and there’s a legacy attached to it,” he further said. “Playing for the West Indies means everything to me, so I’m ready for the responsibilities which come with the job.”
According to Cricket West Indies, Chase has been selected as Captain through a “Detailed assessment process”, as he hasn’t played any test game since March 2023.
In the up-coming World Test Championship 2025-2027, West Indies are scheduled to play only 13 Test games. They also have a test schedule against Afghanistan in 2027 which is non-WTC. Chase’s first test series which he will lead as a Captain is going to start on June 25 against Australia, in Bridgetown. Chase takes over for this post from Brathwaite.
