SYDNEY, Australia (CMC):

The verbal flourishes that typify Australia's tactics before any Test series escalated yesterday.

John Dyson indicated Chris Gayle's side had no chance against Ricky Ponting's Baggy Greens in their forthcoming three-Test series, and rubbished West Indies cricket.

The former West Indies coach believes the visitors were under-prepared and will hardly threaten Australia.

"You can't see that happening," Dyson told the Sunday Herald Sun newspaper.

"Because of the lack of cricket and the preparation that they've had, it's going to be a difficult summer for them."

Most of the players have only had a passing hit or run in the recent West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) President's Cup limited-over competition since the cessation of hostilities with the WICB.

West Indies have a single practice match prior to the first Test against the Aussies.

They face Queensland in a four-day match, starting on Wednesday at Allan Border Field in Brisbane.

Ttest dates

The first Test against Australia starts on November 26 at the Gabba also in Brisbane, the second Test at the Adelaide Oval begins on December 4, and the third and final Test at the WACA in Perth commences on December 16.

"They just haven't played enough serious cricket - most of them have been on strike," Dyson said. "They're going to have to find form very quickly."

Dyson coached West Indies for two years before he was sacked in August because he apparently failed to sign his employment contract with the WICB.

In a tell-all interview in Australia, following his dismissal, he disclosed that he was not given a reason for the termination, and had threatened to sue the WICB before he backed down.

However, Dyson will start in a high-profile position with Cricket New South Wales today as talent scout, where he could also recommend players from the Caribbean to play in the Australian domestic competition.

Stuck in the past

But he feels the game in the Caribbean cannot recover, especially following the recent revolt by the players over pay and contract issues.

"You look at that great era they had (in the 1980s and 1990s), and what a fantastic team it was - they were just blessed at that particular time with a team of great players," he said.

"But given the way everyone else has progressed, and the West Indies haven't, it's difficult to see that happening again.

He continued: "Everyone else has moved forward, but the West Indies are stuck in the past.

"They haven't caught up with their competitions. They need to look at the whole structure at grass-roots level and start all over again. But that won't happen."

Dyson, a former national opening batsman, felt the structure of the game in the Caribbean was a poor second cousin to that in Australia.

"The Australian structure is very good all the way through, but it's not like that in the West Indies," he said.

"Regional cricket is played on very poor (pitches), and they practise on very poor pitches."

He concluded: "There are some good players spread around there, but there are so many problems, as seen with the industrial strike that they've just had."