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The Cricket West Indies (CWI) selection panel on Wednesday announced the squad for the ODI series against Australia which will kick-off from July 20.
The squad features most of the players from the 3-0 clean sweep over Sri Lanka in the ODI series earlier this year. There are recalls for experienced left-arm fast bowler Sheldon Cottrell, Shimron Hetmyer, the left-handed top-order batsman, and Roston Chase, the right-handed all-rounder.
The ODI series will be played at Kensington Oval in Barbados on July 20, 22, and 24 with all three matches scheduled as day/night encounters.
"This squad is coming off a comprehensive series win against Sri Lanka which should boost their confidence going into what is expected to be a tougher contest against Australia. The return of Shimron Hetmyer, Roston Chase and Sheldon Cottrell adds greater depth and experience to the squad," Roger Harper, Lead Selector said in a statement.
"Playing in familiar home conditions, hopefully, will bring out the best in each player thereby enabling the team to perform at a consistently high standard. This CG Insurance ODI series against Australia is part of the ICC Cricket World Cup qualification process where every game and every point counts, so it is very important," he added.
West Indies squad: Kieron Pollard (Captain), Shai Hope (Vice-Captain), Fabian Allen, Darren Bravo, Roston Chase, Sheldon Cottrell, Shimron Hetmyer, Jason Holder, Akeal Hosein, Alzarri Joseph, Evin Lewis, Jason Mohammed, Anderson Philip, Nicholas Pooran, Romario Shepherd. (ANI)
Pakistan's Sohail to return home after injury ends England tour
Middle-order batsman Haris Sohail will return to Pakistan after a hamstring injury cut short his England tour, the touring team said on Thursday, just hours before the one-day series gets underway in Cardiff.
The 32-year-old, who sustained the injury during a training session in Derby last week, would undergo a rehabilitation programme at the National High Performance Centre in Lahore, the team said in a statement.
"I was keenly looking forward to the ODIs as part of my objective to contribute in the side’s success and also cement my position in the side," Sohail said.
"I am disappointed that my tour has been cut-short, but I will return to Lahore and undergo a rehabilitation programme so that I can fully recover for the 2021-22 season."
Sohail was selected for only the one-day leg of the tour, which also includes three Twenty20 matches.
Ben Stokes will lead an entirely new England squad in the three-match ODI series after three players and four staff members tested positive for COVID-19 on Monday.
Indian players emerge as hottest overseas property in WBBL
Indian players, led by teen sensation Shafali Verma, have emerged as the hottest overseas property for the Women's Big Bash League, considering they will already be in Australia before the event kicks off on October 14.
The tournament schedule was announced on Thursday.
India play three ODIs, a pink ball Test and three T20s against Australia in September-October.
Since they would have already done their 14-day quarantine upon arrival in Australia, it makes a lot easier for the teams to sign them.
Sydney Sixers are close to formalising a deal with Shafali and left-arm spinner Radha Yadav.
According to cricket.com.au, Smriti Mandhana Harmanpreet Kaur, Deepti Sharma, Jemimah Rodrigues and Poonam Yadav could also be in demand for their services in WBBL.
"(Shafali Verma) is on everyone's list, no doubt," Sydney Sixers list manager and former Australia captain Lisa Sthalekar told reporters on Thursday.
"She loves Australian conditions, we saw that in the T20 World Cup. Each club will have some vacancies and (there may be) an Indian player there that could fit that role ... I'm sure that they're picking up the phone and making those calls.
"It helps that they're in the country and they've already done the two weeks' quarantine."
Another big reason why Indians are in demand is that England's tour of Pakistan is clashing with the WBBL.
Cricket Australia's head of Big Bash Alistair Dobson expressed confidence is getting the services of overseas players amid the pandemic.
"It's inevitable there will be some hurdles but we have great experience from last year and we showed our ability to work closely with governments and players and different stakeholders to get players in," Dobson said.
"We understand the challenges but we're hopeful of being able to work around it again. That said, it is an ever-changing landscape and we'll have to be nimble and flexible."