Under-25 cricketers from prominent Test nations who could be the next big superstars in world cricket

West Indies – Kraigg Brathwaite

Kraigg Brathwaite has emerged as a promising opening batsman for West Indies in Tests

The travails of West Indies cricket have been well-chronicled over the past few years, but amidst the turmoil, the Caribbean conglomeration of nations has seen certain cricketers who have thrived despite the adversities and have proven themselves on the international stage. Kraigg Brathwaite is one of them. 1686 runs from 27 Tests at 34.40 with 4 centuries and 8 fifties qualify the 23-year-old as one of the brighter stars in the West Indian Test team.

A Test century against South Africa and a 94 against Australia, both of them coming away from home, and two more centuries against England and New Zealand at home speak in abundance about the talent that is there in store, and this opening batsman from Barbados can go on to be one of the lynchpins of the now-beleaguered West Indies Test team. During the disastrous tour to Australia last year, wherein the men from the Caribbean were criticised for more reasons than one, Brathwaite returned with two gritty half-centuries – 94 at Hobart and 85 at Sydney – and missed out on a couple of Test centuries only by a whisker. The ability to bat under pressure and grind out hours and hours of batting with tremendous patience make him one of the better prospects for the West Indies.