West Indies

On Friday, the 34-year-old Pollard walked off the field in the 13^th over of the West Indies innings against Bangladesh but returned later to smash the last ball of the inning for six runs that proved to be crucial in the context of the Caribbean side’s narrow three-run win.

The nature of the injury remained unclear even after vice-captain Nicholas Pooran offered assurances in his post-match comments that the team captain was okay.

"He looks fine; the medical team is still working with him but he should be okay. You can see why he's a wonderful leader, walking back in to hit that last-ball six. We try to be someone like that in the future," Pooran said.

However, CWI, in a brief statement on Monday, shed further light on the health of the captain.

“Kieron Pollard sustained a muscle injury to his left thigh in the match against Bangladesh,” the statement said.

“Today (Monday) is the squad’s first training session since that encounter. Pollard is training and being assessed by the medical staff, with the aim of being ready for the match against Sri Lanka on Thursday.”

The West Indies will have to defeat Sri Lanka and Australia to have any chance of advancing to the semi-finals of the tournament after losing to both England and South Africa in their first two matches.

The West Indies are defending champions having won ICC T20 World Cup titles in 2012 and 2016.

Powell's side which was on a high after they opened up an early two-nil series lead with four-wicket and 10-run victories, was brought down to earth in the third and fourth encounters that England won by seven wickets and 75 runs respectively.

On both losing occasions, England's opening batsman Phil Salt hammered centuries, while West Indies batting was sub-par, as they lost wickets at regular intervals when gathering some semblance of momentum.

Still, Powell saw some positives, particularly in the most recent contest on Tuesday when Andre Russell made a brisk 51, as they were bowled out for 192 chasing 267.

“I think the way Andre Russell played, I think he give us some impetus at the back end of the innings, and it showed us that if we had batted properly, or if they had scored just a little bit less runs, we would have been able to get it," Powell said.

“I think the intensity at which we start was very low, and you know in a T20 game when you start with such low intensity it's very difficult to find a rhythm, and I think that's cost us. They posted 260 which was a very, very big total. If you're going to chase 260, everything has to go right and it's not it's not very often you see those things happen, so it was it was always going to be uphill task," he added.

With things now squared at 2-2, Powell is well aware that his regional side will not only have to learn from the defeats, but more importantly, reproduce performances from the top of the series.

In fact, he believes the situation requires some serious introspection, as it is imperative that they improve, both individually and collectively.

“We have to do some introspection. You know, as individuals, we have to look into ourselves and see if we have done ourselves justice, and if we haven't done ourselves justice, then it's obvious that we haven't done the team justice. So, some introspection and see if we can come up with some better plans to fix what's happening," Powell reasoned.

“I think in all the games the batting has stand up, hopefully the batting can stand up for the final game, but the bowlers have to come to the party. It has been disappointing for the last few games how we have executed as bowling group, so this final game provides an opportunity for us to get that right," he noted.

That said, the Jamaican expressed confidence that whichever 11 players take the field at the Brian Lara Cricket Stadium for the day/night clash scheduled for 3:00pm, will represent with much gusto.

“, we always feel as if when we put guys on the park, it's the best combination for that game. We'll sit down, revise the plan, see if we can come up with different plans and if we come up with different plans, we'll find the players who can execute that plan," Powell declared.

"It's a final, and when it comes to final situation West Indies normally triumph so hopefully, we can pull it off," he ended.

After weeks of negotiation and a delay due to positive COVID tests, the teams have finally settled on the official dates of the tour, which will take place in Antigua between Wednesday, March 3 and Friday, April 2.  The teams will play three T20Is, three One-Day Internationals (ODIs), and two Test matches.

With the team having played the last three Test matches away from home, in England, New Zealand, and Sri Lanka, Grave admits it will be good to see international cricket back on West Indies soil.

“It’s been a long time since we hosted Ireland in the Caribbean back in January of 2020, so I’m just delighted that we’ve been able to get Sri Lanka to fulfil their obligations under the ICC Futures Program.

“We’ve had to delay the tour by a few days due to two of the Sri Lanka party testing positive for Covid-19 but we’ve been working really closely with our counterparts at Sri Lanka cricket and we were delighted to confirm that the tour is on and that we have been able to keep all the matches, all three formats.”

The tournament will take place under biosecure conditions, with Covid protocols in full effect for the duration of the series.

West Indies head coach Andre Coley is urging his players to apply themselves and capitalise on early opportunities against Pakistan in their two-match Test series, regardless of the conditions they face.

Simmons also confirmed that the players who transgressed would be sanctioned internally.

Earlier this week, the New Zealand Health Ministry, revealed that several West Indies players repeatedly ran afoul of the restrictions imposed while the team was in isolation in Christchurch. The incidents, they said, were captured on closed-circuit television and also reported by staff at the facility where the team is being housed.

The incident has proven to be an embarrassment for CWI, whose CEO Johnny Grave who said he was disappointment.

Simmons was contrite.

"I have to apologise to the New Zealand public and the government who have allowed us to come here. It's embarrassing from our point of view," Simmons told New Zealand media, explaining that the incident has now robbed the team of valuable training time.

"We were just getting to the levels that we would normally start at, but coming from no cricket, we had to start slower. Hopefully everybody tests negative and then we can move to Queenstown and ramp it up as quickly as possible because later in the week we have a training game," Simmons said.

The West Indies have a practice match in Queenstown from November 20, a week before the first T20 International on November 27.

Roach ended the second Test with overall figures of 4 for 95 but that did not tell the full story.  Prior to that, the pace bowler, despite crafting excellent, economic spells, had failed to claim a wicket for the entire first Test. In fact, Roach’s dismissal of Ben Stokes ended a wicket drought going back to August 31, 2019, and lasting 521 deliveries, or 86.5 overs.

It was a strange for the fast bowler, who starred for the West Indies team the last time the team’s met in the Caribbean, where he claimed 13 wickets, with one five and two four-wicket hauls.  Now that he has got the monkey off his back, however, Simmons expects more wickets to come, which would be good news for the Windies.

“It’s great to see him getting wickets, it’s been a while since I have seen him bowl so well and not get wickets,” Simmons told members of the media on Sunday.

“I’m glad he is back in the wickets that will just fuel his fire for the next Test match.”

The West Indies will play England in the decisive Test, at Old Trafford, beginning on Friday.

In the end, West Indies and Sri Lanka played to a 0-0 Test series draw with neither team really able to press home advantages at various stages in both matches.  In a reversal of fortunes, it was the West Indies who had headed into the final day of the final Test with a big lead and looking to put the pressure on the visitors.  The team, however, managed to take two wickets as Sri Lanka closed the day on 193 for 2.  Ambrose, however, believes the West Indies did not give themselves enough time to win the game.

“I think that we didn’t show enough intent to try and win that game. We batted too long in my opinion, we took too long to score the runs which means we didn’t have enough time to bowl out Sri Lanka on a very placid surface and I thought that the urgency in getting those quick runs wasn’t there. We batted too long,” Ambrose told the Antigua Observer.

During the second innings, with team captain Kraigg Brathwaite anchoring the unit on the third day, Ambrose believes the batting line-up should have been re-tooled in an attempt to score more quickly.

“We know the captain Kraigg Brathwaite isn’t going to take an attacker path. He is one of those guys who are going to bat for long and accumulate his runs and nothing is wrong with that,” Ambrose added.

“Kyle Mayers we know will go on the attack but I thought that later on after Kyle Mayers got out, we should have at least sent Jimbo [Rahkeem Cornwall] or Alzarri Joseph ahead of Da Silva to get some quicker runs so we could have enough time after the declaration to try and bowl out Sir Lanka. Sending Da Silva to me wasn’t a good move at that particular stage.”

Ambrose insisted, however, that there were several positives to be taken from the display.

“You can see that the guys are putting a lot more thought into the cricket which is very good to see. They have been patient, they try to construct their innings in terms of the batting and even in the bowling department, you could see they were really trying to bowl in good areas and not just trying to get a wicket every ball."

The Caribbean team will head to South Asia immediately following the conclusion of the ongoing series against England, where they are currently leading 2-1.  The series has featured a number of standout performances so far, with the likes of Akeal Hosein, Romario Shepherd, and some of the more commonly known names like Rovman Powell and Nicholas Pooran all putting together noteworthy performances during the series so far.

 “They have got some really good one-day players, but we have unearthed some new talents in the ongoing series against England,” Sammy said of the team’s chances for the upcoming series.

“I think the West Indies would do well, but you would need the guys to take the wickets with the new ball.”

The former captain also believes the team’s cause could be helped by the knowledge of current captain Kieron Pollard.

“He has been playing in India for so long (at the IPL) and knows the conditions very well,” Sammy said. “Hopefully that experience and knowledge he could bring on to the field.”

The 26-year-old had to be stretchered off the field after being struck by a pull shot from Sri Lanka captain Dimuth Karunaratne.  The incident happened during the fourth delivery off spinner Roston Chase’s over that had seen the player deployed at the short-leg position.

Shai Hope was brought in as the replacement after the injured player left the pitch.  Solozano was reportedly responsive while being taken to the hospital and is currently undergoing scans.  Cricket West Indies has promised to give further news on the player’s condition as soon as it becomes available.

After winning the toss and choosing to bat first Sri Lanka were 163 for 1 at the end of the second session.  Pace bowler Shannon Gabriel claimed the team’s only wicket so far after dismissing Pathum Nissanka.

Following England's success over co-hosts the United States on Sunday, the game in Antigua was a straight shootout to decide the other side to progress from Group 2. 

The Proteas elected to bowl first and looked in control, having restricted West Indies to 135-8, with Tabraiz Shamsi starring in their attack (3-27). 

However, Andre Russell struck twice in the second over of the chase, seeing Reeza Hendricks (1) and Quinton de Kock (7) fall to leave South Africa 15-2.

The West Indies' momentum was halted, though, following a spell of rain at Sir Vivian Richards Stadium, forcing the players off the pitch for over an hour. 

South Africa returned with a new target from their remaining 17 overs, and although Roston Chase, who made 52 with the bat, took three wickets, the Proteas withstood the pressure as Marco Jansen sealed the win with a six with five balls remaining. 

Data Debrief: De Kock breaks T20 record

With the stumping of Rovman Powell, De Kock became the first player to record 100 dismissals as a wicketkeeper in T20I's (82 catches, 18 stumpings). 

South Africa have now won each of their last four men’s T20Is played in West Indies, after winning just one of their five games (L4) in the country prior to that. 

On Sunday, at the end of the 2022 ICC Men's T20 World Cup final, either Pakistan or England will join the West Indies as two-time winners of the tournament.

The Caribbean team, however, once the standard bearers in the world’s shortest format, were nowhere close to hitting those heights in this edition as they crashed out of the tournament in the first round following losses to Scotland and Ireland.

Richards, who once thrilled as part of an all-conquering squad, insists such results are difficult for fans in the region to take, particularly given the team’s once proud legacy.

“There is a legacy where this whole thing is concerned and maybe that’s why some of these players are currently on show,” Richards told the Good Morning Jojo Radio program.

“So, there are a lot of things to represent and I just think that’s lacking. The West Indian fans deserve much more because we have had so many issues like the pandemic and we needed something to uplift us and there are times when we look to our sportsmen and women to do that and presently, the West Indies team is basically lacking where that is concerned.”

The former captain, however, also believes the issue of player availability must be addressed.

Fawwaz Baskh, the Tournament Director, reached out to the regional fan base to encourage the supporters to make wise use of the available window which will allow them to pre-register for tickets.

“Everyone is eagerly looking forward to the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024, this is the biggest event to be staged in the West Indies. It will feature the best players in the world, and as a result, the eyes of the sporting world will be on our countries in this region and the USA,” Baskh said.

“There will be a great demand for tickets as cricket lovers worldwide want to get this golden opportunity to see their favorite players. This will be a truly world-class event – at a level never before seen in our region – and fans will enjoy the amazing atmosphere and entertainment that is in store.

“We want to encourage our ‘hometown’ fans to join the public ticket ballot and give themselves every opportunity to secure the best seats and be part of an amazing event on their shores,” he added.

Ten of the 20 teams will play their first match of the 29-day tournament in the USA – with 16 games to be held in Lauderhill, Florida; Dallas, Texas; and Nassau County, New York.

The remaining 39 matches will be played in the Caribbean across six different countries, with semi-finals to be played in Guyana and Trinidad and Tobago on June 26 and 27 respectively, and the title decider to be played in Barbados on Saturday June 29.

Details on the public ticket ballot will be shared in the coming days. The start time for games will vary from venue to venue, for tournament details fans can visit www.t20worldcup.com.

The West Indies were given a special dispensation to train while they were isolation but have now began more intensive training as they ramp up their preparations for their three T20 Internationals and two Test-series that begins on November 27.

Phil Simmons revealed that there are specific areas which the team has been focused on that will hopefully translate in better performances in what is expected to be a challenging tour.

“The big areas are consistency, especially in the bowling and understanding situations, especially in the batting,” Simmons said.

We have situations when we have been in control of games and people give away their wickets, so things like that are the main things that we are concentrating on now.”

Overall, things have been going well Simmons said, explaining that while some days have been cold there have also been warm days which they players have enjoyed.

“When its warm, West Indies teams tend to thrive so they’ve been very good. They’re enjoying it,” he said.

Despite missing a few big faces, West Indies managed to sweep the series, and that along with the rise in rankings should provide a significant boost to the confidence of the Darren Sammy-coached side heading into the June 1-29 showpiece to be hosted in the Caribbean and United States.

With the series win, West Indies (254 rating points), the champions of the 2012 and 2016 editions of the T20 World Cup, are at the fourth place in the list led by 2007 champions India (264 rating points), with 2021 champions Australia (257 rating points) and defending champions England (254 rating points) at the second and third place respectively.

There were individual bright spots for West Indies in the series, who gained substantially in the T20I Player Rankings. This included stand-in skipper Brandon King, whose 159 runs helped him jump up five places to the eighth position in the Men’s T20I Batting Rankings.

His opening partner, Johnson Charles, who hit a blistering 69 from 26 balls in a Player of the Match performance in the third game of the series, gained 17 spots to reach the 20th place.

Meanwhile, Kyle Mayers (31st place in Batting Rankings) and Gudakesh Motie (27th place in Bowling Rankings) were the other beneficiaries from the recently concluded series.

These results bode well for the Men in Maroon, who will be looking for a record third title during their home T20 World Cup. They are placed in Group C along Afghanistan, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, and Uganda.

They start their campaign against Papua New Guinea in Guyana on Sunday.

ICC Men's T20I Team Rankings

India -264 points

Australia - 257 points

England - 254 points

West Indies  - 252 points

New Zealand  - 250 points

Rovman Powell may have stolen the headlines with his sensational knock of 107, but Pooran played just as critical a role in providing the backbone that the 20-run win for the West Indies was built on. As a pair, they combined to frustrate the England bowlers after adding 122 runs for the third wicket.

Pooran, who admits he is still working on adapting to batting at the unfamiliar position of three, scored a crucial 70 off 43 balls.

“For me it was simple. The last couple of games, even from Pakistan I got the opportunity to bat at number 3 and I’m trying to figure out how I should bat at number three. Today I just felt like I had to be clear. Today was about being clear and just executing. If I said I wanted to look for a single for example, I looked for a single and picked the gap. I just tried to put the ego away for me it was all about staying in the moment, playing the situations well. Trying to play things as well as I can."

The team was also forced to put in a strong effort in the field as led by 75 from Tom Banton, England made a good effort of chasing the target before falling short at 204 for 9.

"For me the extra 22 runs at the end was key. In saying that England batted well but we knew if we could string a couple good overs together we would have a good chance. It seems like they played more bowlers today, so that was also a big help for us."

The issue was brought to the fore after up and coming fast bowler Chemar Holder was left out of the Test team for the tour.  Holder, who made his debut in New Zealand, showed plenty of promise in tough conditions.  Chief of selectors Roger Harper went on to explain that the player had been left out to accommodate more spinners, in order to take advantage of Bangladesh’s slow pitches.

The Test squad selected included four spinners but also has the usual pace bowling trio of Kemar Roach, Shannon Gabriel, and Alzarri Joseph and Simmons insists the balance of the first team is yet to be settled.

“I think we are here with a balanced squad, we have three spinners, we have three fast bowlers and a seeming all-rounder, it’s a case where we have balance all round,” Simmons told members of the media via a Zoom conference on Tuesday.

“So, it’s a case where we have balance all around.  The decision has to be made whether we go with three fast bowlers, two spinners, two fast bowlers, three spinners, a decision hasn’t been made yet.  We just have a balanced lineup and that’s what we came here with.  We will make decisions closer to the game.”

The West Indies were defeated by an innings and 134 runs last weekend at Hamilton in a match that ended early on the fourth day.

Speaking on the eve of the match, Estwick said the team had honest and frank discussions but the time had come for the players to back themselves to deliver when it matters.

“The talking has to stop. We have to go out and stay in the contest, stay in the fight,” he said.

“We have got to be ready. The game in Hamilton is gone, we have to look forward to this one in Wellington. We are representing eight million people back in the Caribbean. They want to see us fight and we have to be prepared to fight.

“We can’t just roll over and say New Zealand is a good side and we are not going to fight and we’re going to lay down an let them run all over us. Once we can stay in the contest we have a chance.”

In the first Test, the West Indies replying to New Zealand’s 519 for 7, got off to a solid start at 49 without loss but as has seemingly become the norm, collapsed to 138 for 9. Shane Dowrich was unable to bat because of a reported hand injury.

Following on, the team collapsed again to 89 for 6 before Jermaine Blackwood scored 104 and Alzarri Joseph, a career best 86, in a 155-run seventh wicket partnership that took the West Indies to a more respectable 247.

Estwick said the team had to improve in all areas when play begins in Wellington.

“We have to be prepared to work hard. The bowlers have to be prepared to bowl long spells, a lot of overs, the batsmen have to be prepared to bat for a very long time. This is Test cricket, this is one of the better teams in the world and you have got to be prepared to do those things,” Estwick said.

“If you’re not prepared to do these things then you’re going to play T20 cricket but you have to be prepared to scrap and fight and battle and really represent. Put a price on your wicket, put a price on every ball you bowl, put a price on every ball you field, put a price on every ball you catch.

“There is no other way, there is no hiding place in Test cricket.”

The Caribbean side will open the tournament on Saturday against England but despite being defending champions will have several questions to answer.  One of those recurring issues has been the ratio of the team’s use of traditional hitting versus rotating the strike with singles.

In the past, the Windies have had success with their power-hitting game, winning the tournament twice in just such a fashion.  In recent years, however, the team has shown a propensity to get bogged down looking for boundaries.  Pollard, however, insists that the team has been looking to address the issue, but were at the same time not looking to get away from their style of play.

“A lot of work has been done behind the scenes.  The guys have worked tirelessly to get to where we are right now in terms of trying to cover our bases,” Pollard told members of the media on Friday.

“I’ve said before that we try to keep our strengths and work on our weaknesses.  We’ve accepted certain things and gone back behind the scenes and hopefully, we will see a difference,” he added.

“In terms of the two games that we played, guys didn’t show that intent and different things might have come out but we are confident that the guys have done what is needed and will look to hit the ground running come the first game.”

West Indies Head coach Andre Coley has emphasized unwavering focus on the upcoming two-match Test series against Pakistan, setting aside thoughts of his tenure ending after the series.

Coley, whose time at the helm will conclude with this tour, insists his primary goal is to guide the regional side to better performances in their first series of 2025.

In 2019, when the teams last met in the Caribbean, the hosts secured a 2-1 series win and West Indies head coach Phil Simmons wants his team to keep the trend alive.

“We’re looking to play the cricket that we know will put us in a position to win the series. We’re trying to make sure we’re ready for everything England can throw at us,” the Trinidadian head coach said during a pre-match press conference on Monday while indicating that it will critical for the hosts to build strong opening partnerships when they bat.

In that series, Captain Kraigg Brathwaite and John Campbell shared opening stands of 53, 52, 70, 17 not out, 57 and five and they will once again be entrusted with the responsibility.

“The last time we beat England here, the opening pair was Kraigg and John Campbell. Let’s hope that’s a good omen for us because they gave the team some good starts. We’ve been talking about getting a good start and making sure that the top four put things together and not leave it for the middle and lower order,” Simmons said.

“That’s been the focus of our camp leading up to this series. We need batsmen to bat long so the bowlers can have something to work with and I think the camp went well so I expect good things from them.”

The absence of James Anderson and Stuart Broad from the England team has been a big talking point ever since their squad was announced, but Simmons says he is more interested in who they do have.

“We keep harping on no Broad and Anderson but when you don’t have the experience, you have young players who are hungry to make their name and that is something that you have to guard against too. They have quality bowlers who we still have to bat well against,” he said.

Simmons also spoke about the importance of having one specialist spinner in their squad, Veerasammy Permaul.

“Your spinner, at least in the first couple of days, will always play that holding role. Permaul has been bowling really well so, hopefully, by the time we get to the fourth day he will come into play and possibly be a match-winner for us,” Simmons said.

Simmons also mentioned the conditions he expects at the Sir Vivian Richards Cricket Stadium on Tuesday.

“It looks like it’s going to be a good wicket. We’re going to have to work hard for our runs but also work hard for our wickets,” he said.

At the conclusion of the Test match, the teams move on to the Kensington Oval in Barbados for the second Test set to start on March 16. The final Test is scheduled to be played at the National Cricket Stadium in Grenada beginning on March 24.