Shamarh Brooks and Chemar Holder returned to the West Indies Test squad for the first time since the New Zealand tour in December 2020. Darren Bravo has been left out as he takes a break while Shannon Gabriel has not been picked as he recovers from his hamstring injury.
Both players haven’t donned the West Indian Test jersey since December 2020, when the team toured New Zealand. Holder made his Test debut in NZ, where he took two wickets in the Test match. He was out with an injury that ruled him out of the Test series against South Africa earlier this year. Meanwhile, Brooks scored an impressive 134 in the four-day intra-squad wam-up fixture and that earned him a spot in the side.
Shannon Gabriel has been left out as he continues to recover from his hamstring injury. Meanwhile, Darren Bravo has also not been picked as he has been given a break. The left-hander has been a part of the West Indies team bio-bubble right from the start of the home season.
The rest of the squad is on expected lines, with Kraigg Braithwaite leading the side. West Indies’ chief selector Roger Harper expects the side to be highly competitive and wants the batsmen to step up, as they did in Bangladesh and against Sri Lanka at home earlier this year.
“I expect the team to be highly competitive in every department while playing with passion, purpose and determination. I look forward to the batsmen stepping up as they did in the series against Bangladesh and against Sri Lanka earlier this year in Antigua,”
Harper was quoted saying.
The first Test is scheduled to start on August 12 in Kingston, Jamaica. The second and final Test of the series kicks off on August 20 at the same venue. This is the first series for both Pakistan and West Indies in the new cycle of the World Test Championship.
