West Indies announced their 15-member squad for the upcoming T20 World Cup in Australia on Wednesday. The squad will be led by wicketkeeper-batter Nicholas Pooran and Rovman Powell as his deputy. The side also saw the return of batter Evin Lewis after his last stint in the previous year World Cup. The announcement also came as a shock as some big names like all-rounder Andre Russell and spin king Sunil Narine were missing. Speaking on Russell’s exclusion, CWI chief selector Desmond Haynes stated that the board was not convinced with Russell’s performances and form.
“We had a meeting with Andre Russell earlier in the year. We’re still not convinced yet, he’s not performing as well as we would like to see him in the competition (CPL). I think in the situation with Andre Russell, we’ve just decided to move on, and look for someone who’s in form, and doing well in the T20 format,” said Haynes as reported by Cricbuzz.
Russell had played for West Indies during last year’s T20 World Cup.
The big-hitting all-rounder has had a quiet time in CPL 2022 so far with Trinbago Knight Riders, particularly with the bat, managing a top score of just 17.
Talking about Narine, Haynes said that he did not receive any notice from the spinner about his availability and he also seemed disinterested.
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“I did not get any notice from Narine regarding his availability to play. There were conversations that the captain (Nicholas Pooran) was having with Narine, and from all reports, it seemed that he was not interested,” Haynes said.
West Indies T20 World Cup squad: Nicholas Pooran (c), Rovman Powell, Yannic Cariah, Johnson Charles, Sheldon Cottrell, Shimron Hetmyer, Jason Holder, Akeal Hosein, Alzarri Joseph, Brandon King, Evin Lewis, Kyle Mayers, Obed Mccoy, Raymon Reifer, Odean Smith.
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