West Indian cricket team in Australia in 1996–97

International cricket tour

The West Indies cricket team toured Australia in the 1996–97 season and played 5 Test matches against Australia. Australia won the series 3-2. The team also played the 1996–97 Carlton and United Series, a One Day International tournament, against Australia and Pakistan and lost 2–0 to Pakistan in a best of three finals series.

Test series summary

First Test

22–26 November 1996
(5-day match)
Scorecard

Australia	v	West Indies
479 (151 overs) IA Healy 161* (250) CA Walsh 4/112 (35 overs)		277 (108.1 overs) CL Hooper 102 (228) PR Reiffel 4/58 (24.1 overs)
217/6d (65 overs) ME Waugh 57 (95) IR Bishop 3/49 (13 overs)		296 (106.5 overs) SL Campbell 113 (327) GD McGrath 4/60 (29.5 overs)

Australia won by 123 runs
Brisbane Cricket Ground, Woolloongabba, Brisbane
Umpires: CJ Mitchley (SA) and SG Randell (AUS)
Player of the match: IA Healy (AUS)

West Indies won the toss and elected to field.
MTG Elliott and MS Kasprowicz (both AUS) made their Test debuts.

Second Test

29 November–3 December 1996
(5-day match)
Scorecard

Australia	v	West Indies
331 (119.5 overs) GS Blewett 69 (169) CA Walsh 5/98 (30 overs)		304 (117.2 overs) SL Campbell 77 (155) GD McGrath 4/82 (31 overs)
312/4d (106 overs) MTG Elliott 78 retired hurt (162) IR Bishop 2/54 (20 overs)		215 (69.4 overs) S Chanderpaul 71 (68) SK Warne 4/95 (27.4 overs)

Australia won by 124 runs
Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney
Umpires: DB Hair (AUS) and DR Shepherd (ENG)
Player of the match: GD McGrath (AUS)

Australia won the toss and elected to bat.
JN Gillespie (AUS) made his Test debut.

Third Test

26–28 December 1996
(5-day match)
Scorecard

Australia	v	West Indies
219 (74.5 overs) GS Blewett 62 (154) CEL Ambrose 5/55 (24.5 overs)		255 (109.1 overs) S Chanderpaul 58 (147) GS McGrath 5/50 (30 overs)
122 (45.5 overs) SR Waugh 37 (87) CEL Ambrose 4/17 (12 overs)		87/4 (23.5 overs) S Chanderpaul 40 (82) GD McGrath 3/41 (9 overs)

West Indies won by 6 wickets
Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne
Umpires: PD Parker (AUS) and S Venkataraghavan (IND)
Player of the match: CEL Ambrose (WI)

Australia won the toss and elected to bat.
The match was scheduled for five days but completed in three.

Fourth Test

25–28 January 1997
(5-day match)
Scorecard

West Indies	v	Australia
130 (47.5 overs) JR Murray 34 (43) MG Bevan 4/31 (9.5 overs)		517 (162.3 overs) ML Hayden 125 (226) CL Hooper 2/86 (31 overs)
204 (69.4 overs) BC Lara 78 (144) MG Bevan 6/82 (22.4 overs)

Australia won by an innings and 183 runs
Adelaide Oval, Adelaide
Umpires: SG Randell (AUS) and DR Shepherd (ENG)
Player of the match: MG Bevan (AUS)

West Indies won the toss and elected to bat.
The match was scheduled for five days but completed in four.
AJ Bichel (AUS) and AFG Griffith (WI) made their Test debuts.

Fifth Test

1–3 February 1997
(5-day match)
Scorecard

Australia	v	West Indies
243 (80 overs) MG Bevan 87* (164) CEL Ambrose 5/43 (18 overs)		384 (111 overs) BC Lara 132 (183) PR Reiffel 5/73 (26 overs)
194 (47.3 overs) ML Hayden 47 (102) CA Walsh 5/74 (20 overs)		57/0 (10.3 overs) RG Samuels 35* (39)

West Indies won by 10 wickets
WACA Ground, Perth
Umpires: DB Hair (AUS) and P Willey (ENG)
Player of the match: CEL Ambrose (WI)

Australia won the toss and elected to bat.
The match was scheduled for five days but completed in three.
This was the West Indies last Test win in Australia until 2024 in Brisbane.

References

Playfair Cricket Annual
Wisden Cricketers Almanack (annual)

External sources

CricketArchive

International cricket tours of Australia

Test and LOI tours
Afghanistan	2021–22
Bangladesh	2003 2008
England	1876–77 1878–79 1881–82 1882–83 1884–85 1886–87 1887–88 1891–92 1894–95 1897–98 1901–02 1903–04 1907–08 1911–12 1920–21 1924–25 1928–29 1932–33 1936–37 1946–47 1950–51 1954–55 1958–59 1962–63 1965–66 1970–71 1974–75 1977 1978–79 1979–80 1982–83 1986–87 1987–88 1990–91 1994–95 1998–99 2002–03 2006–07 2010–11 2013–14 2017–18 2021–22 2022–23
India	1947–48 1967–68 1977–78 1980–81 1985–86 1991–92 1999–2000 2003–04 2007–08 2011–12 2014–15 2015–16 2018–19 2020–21 2024–25
New Zealand	1973–74 1980–81 1982–83 1985–86 1987–88 1989–90 1993–94 1997–98 2001–02 2004–05 2008–09 2011–12 2015–16 2016–17 2019–20 2022–23
Pakistan	1964–65 1972–73 1976–77 1978–79 1981–82 1983–84 1989–90 1992–93 1995–96 1996–97 1999–2000 2002 2004–05 2009–10 2016–17 2019–20 2023–24
South Africa	1910–11 1931–32 1952–53 1963–64 1971–72 (cancelled) 1993–94 1997–98 2000 2001–02 2005–06 2008–09 2012–13 2014–15 2016–17 2018–19 2022–23
Sri Lanka	1987–88 1989–90 1995–96 2004 2007–08 2010–11 2012–13 2016–17 2018–19 2019–20 2021–22
West Indies	1930–31 1951–52 1960–61 1968–69 1975–76 1979–80 1981–82 1984–85 1988–89 1992–93 1995–96 1996–97 2000–01 2005–06 2009–10 2012–13 2015–16 2020–21 2022–23 2023–24
Zimbabwe	1994–95 2003–04 2022

Tournaments hosted
World Cup	1992 2015
T20 World Cup	2022
Tri-series	1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2011–12 2014–15 2017–18
Other multi-team tournaments	1985 1987

Other tours
Afghanistan	2014–15
Australian Forces	1919–20 1945–46
English	1861–62 1863–64 1873–74 1902–03 1922–23 1929–30 1935–36 1979–80
England Lions	2012–13 2021
Fijian	1907–08
Ireland	2014–15
Multi-national	1971–72 2005–06
Nepal	2023–24
New Zealand	1898–99 1913–14 1925–26 1927–28 1937–38 1953–54 1961–62 1967–68 1969–70 1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1974–75
PNG	2014–15
Scotland	2014–15
Sri Lanka	1982–83
UAE	2014–15
World Series Cricket (West Indies & World XI)	1977-78 1978-79