All-rounders Andre Russell, Sunil Narine & Fabian Allen were the big omissions as the West Indies named their 15-man squad for the T20 World Cup in Australia.
Chief Selector Desmond Haynes cited Russell’s poor batting form behind his exclusion. The all-rounder has only managed 37 runs from 5 innings in the ongoing Caribbean Premier League (CPL). Haynes also stated that Sunil Narine was never considered since the all-rounder never made himself available for selection.
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Meanwhile, the selection committee picked left-arm spinner Akeal Hosein over Fabian Allen for the marquee tournament. There was also no place for the big-hitting all-rounder Romario Shepherd.
Opener Even Lewis though was called up to the squad having last represented the Windies at the T20 World Cup last year.
While all-rounder Raymon Reifer was rewarded for his excellent form in the current CPL, the surprise inclusion came in the form of Yannic Cariah, a leg-spinner who made his debut against New Zealand in the ODI series last month. Cariah, who is yet to make his T20I debut, has played just 4 games in the shortest format.
2-time Champions West Indies will start their World Cup campaign against Scotland on October 17.
West Indies squad: Nicholas Pooran (c), Rovman Powell (vc), Evin Lewis, Brandon King, Kyle Mayers, Odean Smith, Johnson Charles, Shimron Hetmyer, Jason Holder, Raymon Reifer, Obed McCoy, Alzarri Joseph, Akeal Hosein, Sheldon Cottrell, Yannic Cariah