Trinidad and Tobago Red Force head coach Rayad Emrit is eager to kickstart preparations for the upcoming CWI regional T20 tournament, as he expressed satisfaction with the squad drafted for the competition.

Emrit, who is currently guiding the Red Force in the West Indies Championship, is aiming to shift gears into T20 mode once the four-day tournament concludes. The regional T20 tournament, designed primarily for emerging players and those with fewer than 10 T20 international caps, presents a fresh challenge that Emrit is ready to tackle head-on.

Despite missing out on one player he had his eye on, Emrit believes the squad has the right mix of talent to compete strongly.

“We missed one overseas player we were going for, but the players we got will do the job,” Emrit told the T&T Express.

“We were looking for a bit of experience, but I think we got exactly what we wanted. We have a very strong batting lineup and bowlers who can do the job,” he added.

The T&T squad, which was officially released on Friday, features young overseas fast bowlers McKenny Clarke and Johann Layne, who will bolster the pace attack alongside Shaaron Lewis, Joshua James, and Abdul Raheem-Toppin.

While still focused on the ongoing four-day competition, Emrit revealed that the T20 squad will get valuable match practice in the upcoming Trinidad and Tobago Cricket Board (TTCB) T20 Festival starting next week.

“The TTCB will have the T20 Festival starting next week, so the guys will get some prep there,” he explained.

“When we get back from Barbados, we will have some practice sessions with the players. Once the four-day campaign is finished, we want to have some practice games to see what the guys can do before the tournament,” Emrit noted.

T&T Squad: Navin Bidaisee, McKenny Clarke, Cephas Cooper, Joshua Da Silva, Mikkel Govia, Jyd Goolie, Amir Jangoo, Joshua James, Damion Joachim, Johann Layne, Shaaron Lewis, Kamil Pooran, Abdul Raheem-Toppin, Crystian Thurton