West Indies’ tour of India will commence on February 6, and the Caribbean side will play three ODIs and three T20Is. On January 30, they have announced a 16-member squad for the three-match T20I series.
The team will be led by the legendary Kieron Pollard with dynamic wicket-keeper batter Nicholas Pooran acting as his deputy. Shamarh Brooks, Nkrumah Bonner and Kemar Roach are few of the prominent names that are included in the squad for the ODI series but will not play the T20Is.
West Indies are currently engaged in a feisty five-match T20I series against England on home soil. The series is tied 2-2 at the moment, with both sides having won two T20s each. The final match at the Kensington Oval in Barbados scheduled on January 31 will serve as the series decider.
Despite being among the favourites to go all the way, defending champions West Indies endured a torrid time during the 2021 T20 World Cup in UAE. They won just a single game against Bangladesh, and following defeats to England, South Africa, Sri Lanka and Australia, they crashed out of the tournament in the Super 12 stage itself.
As a result, the two-time World T20 champions will have to go through the process of qualifiers before securing their passage to the Super 12 stages of the 2022 T20 World Cup to be held in Australia later this year.
The T20I squad announced by West Indies sees most of the names that are currently participating against England being retained.
There is no shortage of quality all-rounders as Pollard, Jason Holder and Rovman Powell can all do plenty of damage to the opposition. They’ve also been in great form recently.
India had earlier announced their T20I squad for the series as well. Rohit Sharma will be back in action and will captain the side while he will also be able to count on former captain Virat Kohli.
Veteran bowlers Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammad Shami have been rested, while young spin sensation Ravi Bishnoi received his maiden India call-up following impressive performances with Punjab Kings.
All three T20 matches will be held in Eden Gardens in Kolkata to mitigate the risk of travel due to COVID-19.
