Wisden overview
Jacobs was West Indies' one success story of the late 1990s. Awicketkeeper and left-hand bat, he hails from Swetes, the same Antiguan village as Curtly Ambrose, but had to wait until his 31st birthday for his Test debut, which came against South Africa in 1998-99. Jacobs's relish for fast bowling helped him top the batting averages on that unhappy tour, and three years later he notched his maiden Test century against the same opponents in Barbados. Given a true pitch, he can be compelling viewing, unleashing booming strokes off either foot from a high backlift, but quality spin tends to tie him in knots. He's also an inelegant but highly reliable keeper. It seems ironic that the solution to West Indies' long-term problem behind the stumps arrived just as the rest of the team moved into crisis. Simon Briggs

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