"Make no bones about it - our loss in Brisbane was not only disappointing but it was also downright embarrassing. I've got a message for those people - I'm not going anywhere. I have been chosen as captain and it's a job I will continue to do to the best of my ability.

"My heart is in it and I feel really strongly that I am the right man to lead the West Indies through this challenging period," under-fire West Indies captain Chris Gayle in the Courier Mail after his team's three-day thrashing in the first Test in Brisbane.

If ever there was a chance to prove that actions speak louder words, then the second Test in Adelaide is the perfect opportunity for Gayle to do so. It's quite clear to the rest of the world that the opener is no longer the right man to lead his country, but with no other captaincy candidates in the squad, the status quo will remain and it's unlikely that we will see much change in the Windies' play over the five days (or three).

Getting bowled out twice in a day is about as embarrassing as it gets in Test cricket and the only positive from that game for the islanders is that it surely can't get any worse for them when it comes to batting.

Their three most experienced batsmen - Gayle, Shivnarine Chanderpaul and Dwayne Bravo - didn't contribute much in Brisbane so it's unlikely (we hope) that they will all fail again the second time around. No one expects them to score a century every time they go in to bat, but a bit of patience and protecting your wicket at all costs could go a long way to stopping the rot.

Another source of hope for the tourists is the return of fit-again Ramnaresh Sarwan, who is set to replace Travis Dowlin, and exciting youngster Adrian Barath Besides Chanderpaul, Sarwan is by far the tourists' leading batsman. He has a healthy Test average of 42.32 and on a wicket that has a penchant for free-flowing runs, this could well be his time to step up to the plate. The talented Barath showed the experienced players how to do it with a counter-attacking century in the second innings and all that one can ask is more of the same.

While there's a bit of good news on the batting front, it's the exact opposite when it comes to the bowling. Jerome Taylor's injury enforced-absence is a massive blow to the visitors.

Although Taylor and his co-bowlers gave away 480 runs in just over a day in Brisbane, they picked up wickets at regular intervals and kept the Australian batsmen honest early in the match. The exciting Gavin Tonge seems to be the front-runner to replace Taylor and, if he follows in Barath's foot steps, then perhaps all is not lost for the Windies.

The Australians, on the other hand, have promised that they won't take the visitors lightly despite their massive victory at the 'Gabba. It can sometimes be difficult to motivate yourself when the opposition doesn't seem interested in playing, but Ricky Ponting has promised there will be no let-up.

"We know that they are under a lot of pressure and we know if we play the cricket we know we can play they are going to remain under pressure for the summer so that's obviously a goal of ours anyway, to make things as difficult as we can for them," the Australian captain said ahead of the game.

Although he will be delighted with his team's performance in the opening game, Ponting will be the first to admit there is plenty of room for improvement, especially when it comes to batting. Besides Shane Watson, who went for a duck, all of the batsmen got in but failed to go past 100. In Adelaide it will be all about reaching the three figures.

Bowling wise it's hard to find any negatives after they dismissed the visitors twice in one day. Their attack, though, have suffered a minor setback with Ben Hilfenhaus out through injury. Doug Bollinger will get a go with the new ball, but he has proved during the recent ODI series against India that he has something about him.

With Mitchell Johnson, Nathan Hauritz and Peter Siddle all in good form, the West Indies batsmen could be in for another tough couple of days.

Key Players
Australia After missing out in the first game, Shane Watson will be eager to make up with a big score in Adelaide. He has a bit of a history of scoring ducks and then following it up with a century.

West Indies After scoring just four in his two outings to the crease in the first Test, Shivnarine Chanderpaul needs to find his groove again and put up a fight when all around him is crumbling.

Prediction
The Australians won't be in the mood of handing out any early Christmas presents so the West Indies can expect more misery and Chris Gayle can expect more calls for his head. If things go the hosts' way then we could be in for another three-day game.

Last Five Head-To-Head Results
2009: First Test: Australia won by an innings and 65 runs in Brisbane
2008: Third Test: Australia won by 87 runs in Bridgetown
2008: Second Test: Match Drawn In North Sound
2008: First Test: Australia won by 95 runs in Kingston
2005: Third Test: Australia won by seven wickets in Adelaide

Likely Starting XIs
Australia Simon Katich, Shane Watson, Ricky Ponting (capt), Michael Hussey, Michael Clarke, Marcus North, Brad Haddin (wk), Mitchell Johnson, Nathan Hauritz, Peter Siddle, Doug Bollinger.

West Indies Chris Gayle (capt), Adrian Barath, Ramnaresh Sarwan, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Dwayne Bravo, Brendan Nash, Denesh Ramdin (wk), Darren Sammy, Sulieman Benn, Kemar Roach, Gavin Tonge.

Umpires: Ian Gould and Mark Benson, 3rd Umpire Asad Rauf

Match Referee: Chris Broad

Dates: 4-6 December; First Session: 10:00-12:00 (23:30-01:30GMT), Afternoon Session: 12:40-14:40 (02:10-04:10GMT), Evening Session: 15:00-17:00 (04:30-06:30GMT)

Shahida Jacobs