Jayden Seales Hails Five-Wicket Haul Against Australia as Career-Best Despite Personal Struggles

West Indies fast bowler Jayden Seales described his five-wicket haul against Australia in the first Test in Barbados as the most special performance of his career to date, even though he admitted not feeling at his best throughout the day.

The 23-year-old pacer, currently ranked 10th in the ICC Men’s Test Bowler Rankings, was the standout performer with figures of 5 for 60 in 15.5 overs as the hosts bundled out Australia for just 180 on the opening day of the ICC World Test Championship clash at Kensington Oval. His effort was backed by a fiery spell from Shamar Joseph, who claimed 4 for 46 to dismantle the Australian top order.

Seales revealed that while he has taken five-wicket hauls before, this one stood out due to the internal challenges he faced during the day. “This is probably my best five-wicket haul because it wasn’t my best day and I didn’t feel at my best any time throughout the day,” Seales said. “There were times I felt good, but I didn’t feel like I was in full control of what I wanted to do or was nailing my lengths and lines as consistently as I wanted.”

The tone for the day was set by Shamar Joseph, who removed Sam Konstas and Cameron Green early to leave Australia reeling at 22/3. It took a stabilizing 89-run partnership between Usman Khawaja and Travis Head to restore some balance to the innings. Head eventually top-scored with 59, the only Australian batter to cross the fifty mark.

Seales praised Joseph’s contribution, noting that the early breakthroughs opened the game for the hosts. “Blowing away the top-order is the most important thing in this cricket, and that made it a lot easier for us in the middle and in the back end of the innings,” he said. “He did a fantastic job for us today.”

Travis Head, reflecting on Australia’s innings, acknowledged the quality of the West Indies attack. “Jayden bowled exceptionally well,” he said. “Alzarri (Joseph) is always there or thereabouts and Shamar again put the ball in the right areas and asked questions.”

Despite the early dominance by the Caribbean side, Australia responded with intensity, reducing the West Indies to 57/4 by stumps to keep the contest evenly poised. Head noted the significance of the final session and anticipated a critical passage of play in the morning. “Probably makes for an important couple of hours in the morning,” he remarked.