DOWN to the very last moment, the West Indies' readiness for repelling the latest invasion from cricket's current superpower was again damaged by the game's version of friendly fire.
They were already undermined by the self-inflicted controversies that have cost them the services of deposed captain Carl Hooper and established opener Chris Gayle, two key players, and distracted by the mystery over the appointment of their new coach.
They needed as much preparation as they could get ahead of the first Cable & Wireless Test, starting at Bourda today.
Instead, the latest administrative problems saw to it that the Jamaicans, Barbadians and Antiguans, seven of the squad of 13, did not arrive in Georgetown until Tuesday night, unsatisfactorily reducing their team practice and get-together to one day, yesterday.
"It had to do with travel arrangements coming out of the recent (Carib Beer Series) final, the double-wicket (World Cup) tournament and, I believe, some late communications with the relevant boards," team manager Ricky Skerritt said.
"Matters beyond my control resulted in half the team getting in last night," he added. "We would have preferred had they arrived the night before."
Captain Brian Lara, Merv Dillon and Daren Ganga did manage to make it on Monday night, joining Georgetown-resident Shivnarine Chanderpaul and newcomer Carlton Baugh, who was already here for the Carib Beer XI match against the Australians.
New West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) chief executive Roger Brathwaite offered no excuses for the foul-up.
"Ideally, we would have liked everyone here on Monday night but that did not occur," he said. "It's something we're looking at. It's regretted that it occurred."
Instead of remaining on in Barbados following the Carib Beer final on Sunday and heading to Guyana next day, the four Jamaican selectees - Wavell Hinds, Marlon Samuels, Jermaine Lawson and David Bernard jnr. - flew north to Kingston on Monday morning and south again to Georgetown on Tuesday.
It was an unnecessary round trip of over 3,000 miles.
Wicket-keeper Ridley Jacobs, who was involved in the double-wicket tournament in St.Lucia, returned home to Antigua on Monday to join the Jamaicans on their Guyana-bound flight Tuesday.
Why the two Barbadians, Pedro Collins and Vasbert Drakes, did not fly to Guyana on Monday, instead of also waiting at home until the following day, was not clear.
The original itinerary that slated the Carib Beer Series final for March 28-31 would have given the West Indies team ample time for getting together prior to the first Test.
But the WICB directors chose put it back a week to allow India 'A' to play their match against West Indies 'B', put off because of their late arrival in the Caribbean.