Former captain Jason Holder returned to a 13-member West Indies squad for the upcoming three-match ODI series against India, beginning in Port of Spain on July 22. The seasoned all-rounder was rested for the preceding home series against Bangladesh, but the Cricket West Indies selection panel decided to recall him for the assignments against India. Nicholas Pooran will continue to lead the side after his impressive outing in the series against Bangladesh.
While the West Indies won the Test and T20I series against Bangladesh, they were winless in the three-match ODI contest. Shai Hope will be Pooran’s deputy. “As we all know Jason is one of the leading all-round cricketers in the world and we’re happy to have him back in the team,” chief selector Desmond Haynes was quoted as saying by Cricket West Indies in a statement.
“He will be refreshed, re-energised and ready to go and we can expect to see his brilliance on the field as well as meaningful contributions off the field. “We had a very challenging three matches against Bangladesh in Guyana, so we will be looking to rebound when we face India in the conditions in Trinidad. “We have seen some growth among some players, but overall we need to regroup and play better against the Indians,” Haynes added. The Caribbean team’s ODI record this year has been disastrous as they have won just four of the 15 games they have played so far. To paint a clearer picture, those wins have come against minnows Ireland and the Netherlands. In fact, currently, they are on a sixmatch ODI losing streak. In contrast, India will be much more confident as they are coming off a superb ODI series win in England.
The Shikhar Dhawan-led team, however, will be without many key players — Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Jasprit Bumrah, Hardik Pandya and Rishabh Pant — who have been rested for the series. Also in focus will be the pitches in Port of Spain as the home team players were not happy with the slow and low wickets in Guayana, where they were outplayed by Bangladesh. The three matches will be played on July 22, 24 and 27 at the Queen’s Park Oval.
(Written with PTI inputs)
