I remember well the first time I saw the Dominican off-spinner Shane Shillingford. Back in early January 2001, it was.

Well over six feet tall, the teenager turned the ball square and got steep bounce from the second-day Sabina Park surface. He took 7-66 as Jamaica collapsed from 101-0 to 175 all out.

The obvious problem was a ragged, jerky bowling action. It came as no surprise when news broke a couple of games later, that he had been called for throwing by umpire Steve Bucknor.

Many in Shillingford’s position would have simply faded away. Credit is due to him for sticking with it following remedial work. Today, nine-and-a-half years later, after consistent performances year after year, building a reputation as arguably the biggest spinner of the ball in West Indies cricket, Shillingford has gained high reward.

Finally, he is part of the West Indies Test squad.

It is my view that Shillingford and the even taller Sulieman Benn, the left-arm spinner, will be key, if the West Indies are to upset the powerful South Africans in this three-Test series. Are the selectors ready at last to include two specialist spinners in a first-string West Indies Test match 11? In my view, they should be.

Just for the record: last year when the West Indies Players Association (WIPA) opted for that idiotic strike, the selectors did go for both the left-arm spinner Nikita Miller and off-spinner Ryan Austin in that makeshift team for the first Test against Bangladesh

The South Africans have a huge edge on the West Indies in pace bowling. They are led by the talented Dale Steyn, the towering and equally pacy Morne Morkel, and of course, their great all-rounder Jacques Kallis.

South African superiority in pace becomes even more pronounced with the latest breakdown of Jerome Taylor and reports that Kemar Roach’s ankle remains sore. In the circumstances, it now seems certain that Ravi Rampaul will at last play a Test match on Caribbean soil — in his native Trinidad at that.

Presumably, the selectors will accept that Darren Sammy deserves his place in the Test team. If the decision is taken to include the two specialist spinners, that would require Sammy or Dwayne Bravo to share the new ball with Rampaul, and there would be no place in the first Test for the strong and pacy Nelon Pascal. Unless of course, the selectors gamble big time and opt for the greater pace of Pascal ahead of Rampaul.

One thing that will make coach Otis Gibson and the selectors very hesitant about two specialist spinners is rain. This is very late in the season to be playing international cricket in the Caribbean, least of all in Trinidad in the southern Caribbean. There is almost certain to be rain about, which means a wet ball. Bowlers generally, and spinners in particular, hate damp balls. Of course rain could also mean a fresh, green pitch – which would be incentive enough to include both Rampaul and Pascal and rely on just one spinner.

So what of the West Indies batting? Sadly the talented Trinidadian teenager Adrian Barath remains unfit leaving the way open for the veteran Travis Dowlin to again show his spunk in partnership with captain Chris Gayle at the top of the order. The injury to Ramnaresh Sarwan means the exciting 21 year-old Darren Bravo should be making his Test debut today, slotted in at number three in the batting order, leaving Narsingh Deonarine to watch from the sidelines.

The number four spot presents a slight difficulty since it seems Shivnarine Chanderpaul has a clear preference for number five. Neither is ideally suited to the position but it seems that Brendan Nash or Dwayne Bravo will have to walk at four.

Can this injury-hit West Indies team upset the dominant South Africans in the Test Series? It surely is a long shot. Dare we hope that the South Africans will be sufficiently distracted by FIFA World Cup football back home?