Persistent rain wiped out the entire final day's play in Port-of-Spain, denying India a chance to sweep the Test series 2-0. The game was called off at 2.50pm local time.
The day had started with showers and the teams didn't even arrive at Queen's Park Oval until after lunch. The rain relented briefly before returning once again in the afternoon to force an end to the game.
India won the series 1-0, having brushed West Indies aside in three days in the first Test in Dominica.
West Indies will not be in action in Test cricket until their trip to Australia in January 2024.
Scores: India 438 (Kohli 121, Rohit 80, Warrican 3-89) and 181 for 2 dec (Rohit 57, Kishan 52*) drew with West Indies 255 (Brathwaite 75, Siraj 5-60) and 76 for 2 (Ashwin 2-33)
The Cricket West Indies (CWI) Senior Men’s Selection Panel today announced the squad for the three match CG United One Day International (ODI) Series powered by YES BANK against India which starts on Thursday 27 July at Kensington Oval.
The 15-member squad was named following a four-day camp at Kensington Oval held to prepare the white-ball players for the upcoming CG United ODI Series, as well as the five-match T20I Series that follows. The selectors have recalled left-handed batsman Shimron Hetmyer and fast bowler Oshane Thomas. Fast bowler Jayden Seales and leg-spinner Yannic Cariah have been included following their rehabilitation from surgery while left-arm spinner Gudakesh Motie is also included, having recovered from injury.
Lead Selector, The Most Hon. Dr Desmond Haynes said: “We welcome Oshane and Shimron back into the group. Both have played at the international level before, with some success, and we believe they will fit well into the set-up. Oshane brings pace and is a potential wicket-taker with the new ball. Shimron’s style of batting will offer a lot especially in the middle stage of the innings and he is also a potential ‘finisher’.”
Keemo Paul is out injured while Jason Holder and Nicholas Pooran were unavailable for selection.
Kensington Oval hosts the first two matches in the three-match CG United ODI Series on Thursday 27 July and Saturday 29 July. The teams then move to Trinidad for the third and final CG United ODI at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy on Tuesday 1 August. All three matches start at 9:30am local time (8:30am Jamaica time).
Tickets for the matches are available from box offices at Kensington Oval in Bridgetown, as well as Queen’s Park Oval, Port of Spain, and the National Cricket Centre in Couva, Trinidad from Monday 24 July. Additionally, tickets are available online in advance from the Windies Tickets service, presented by Mastercard, at tickets.windiescricket.com .
Fans who purchase online will benefit from a 20% discount compared to the box office prices, with tickets ranging from the most premium seats with the best and shaded views in each stadium through to affordable standard seats or mounds/grounds entry.
FULL SQUAD
Shai Hope (Captain)
Rovman Powell (Vice Captain)
Alick Athanaze
Yannic Cariah
Keacy Carty
Dominic Drakes
Shimron Hetmyer
Alzarri Joseph
Brandon King
Kyle Mayers
Gudakesh Motie
Jayden Seales
Romario Shepherd
Kevin Sinclair
Oshane Thomas
West Indies v India Tour Match Schedule
CG United ODI Series powered by YES BANK
27 July: 1st CG United ODI, Kensington Oval, Barbados
29 July: 2nd CG United ODI, Kensington Oval, Barbados
1 August: 3rd CG United ODI, Brian Lara Cricket Academy, Trinidad
T20 Internationals
3 August: 1st T20I, Brian Lara Cricket Academy, Trinidad
6 August: 2nd T20I, Guyana National Stadium, Guyana
8 August: 3rd T20I, Guyana National Stadium, Guyana
12 August: 4th T20I, Broward County Stadium, Lauderhill, Florida
13 August: 5th T20I, Broward County Stadium, Lauderhill, Florida
The West Indies have their backs against the wall heading into the final day of the second Test match against India at Queen’s Park Oval in Trinidad. At stumps on Sunday, the Caribbean men were 76-2, still needing 289 runs to achieve an unlikely victory in the milestone 100th Test match between the two countries.
When play resumes on Monday, Tagenarine Chanderpaul will carry on from 24 and Jermaine Blackwood 20. They and their fellow batters will have to produce something extraordinary of the West Indies are to avoid being swept 2-0 in the series that has so far been a lop-sided affair.
On Sunday, the West Indies resumed from their overnight score of 229-5 with Alick Athanaze on 37 and Jason Holder on 11. Athanaze did not add to his overnight score, trapped lbw by Munesh Kumar. Holder added four when Mohammed Siraj had him caught behind for 15.
There was little resistance after that as Siraj tore through the lower order to end with figures of 5-60. Kumar took 2-48 while Ravindra Jadeja had 2-37 as the West Indies folded for 255.
With a commanding lead of 183 runs, India propelled by half-centuries from Rohit Sharma, who made 57 and Ishan Kishan 52 not out, raced to 181-2 declared in just 24 overs.
Opener Yashasvi Jaiswal added 38 and Shubman Gill was unbeaten on 29 when the declaration came.
Jomel Warrican, who dismissed Jaiswal, took 1-36 while Shannon Gabriel took the wicket of Sharma to end with 1-33.
Chasing an unlikely target of 365, the West Indies were in trouble early as Ravichandran Ashwin, who has terrorized the West Indies batters during the series dismissed Brathwaite for 28 and Kirk McKenzie for a duck.
Chanderpaul and Blackwood have so far added 32 for the third wicket and will need to add much more on Monday, if the West Indies are to have any chance of surviving the final two days without crumbling to yet another humiliating defeat.
Captain Kraigg Brathwaite hit his 29th Test half-century as the West Indies ended the third day of the second Test against India on 229-5 after 108 overs, trailing by 209 runs at the Queen’s Park Oval in Port-of-Spain.
The West Indies began the day 86-1 and Brathwaite and his overnight partner, debutant Kirk McKenzie, added a further 31 runs before McKenzie became the first man to fall on day three for a well-made 32 off 57 balls.
Vice-captain, Jermaine Blackwood, then joined the skipper out in the middle and the pair added a further 40 runs to the total before Brathwaite was brilliantly bowled by Ravichandran Ashwin for a top-score of 75 from 235 balls including five fours and a six.
Just after tea, Blackwood became Ravindra Jadeja’s second victim of the innings when he was caught brilliantly by Ajinkya Rahane at first slip for 20 with the score on 178.
Joshua Da Silva was next to go when his middle stump was uprooted by Mohammed Siraj for 10.
Alick Athanaze (37), and Jason Holder (11) were the batsmen at the crease at stumps.
Scores: India 438 off 128 overs (Virat Kohli 121, Rohit Sharma 80, Ravindra Jadeja 61, Yashasvi Jaiswal 57, Ravichandran Ashwin 56, Jomel Warrican 3-89, Kemar Roach 3-104, Jason Holder 2-57) West Indies 229-5 off 108 overs (Kraigg Brathwaite 75, Alick Athanaze 37*, Tagenarine Chanderpaul 33, Kirk McKenzie 32, Ravindra Jadeja 2-37)
Captain Kraigg Brathwaite and fellow opener Tagenarine Chanderpaul placed West Indies on a steady foundation, but they are still left with much to do, after Virat Kohli registered a 29th Test century to put India in full command at the end of day two action at Queen’s Park Oval in Trinidad and Tobago on Friday.
Brathwaite ended the day unbeaten on 37, with the Caribbean side at 86-1 in their first innings, still 352 runs behind the visitors, after losing Chanderpaul for 33 shortly before close in this, the 100th Test between the two teams. India lead the two-test series 1-0.
India resumed from their overnight score of 288-4 and though West Indies bowled with some amount of purpose, they couldn’t stop the opponents from posting a daunting 438 all out, just prior to the tea interval.
Kohli scored 121, his first hundred away from home in five years, while Ravendra Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin, both added half-centuries to what is massive total, give the feeble nature of West Indies batting.
Left-arm spinner Jomel Warrican snared two of the last four wickets to end with 3-89 from 39 overs. He had support from veteran pacer Kemar Roach, who had 3-104 from 22 overs, and Jason Holder, who had 2-57 from 21 overs, as West Indies took the last four Indian wickets for a mere 43 runs.
West Indies started their reply in a solid manner, as Chanderpaul and Brathwaite withstood early pressure from India’s seamers, and later capitalised on the hard, easy-paced surface.
The openers hardly played a stroke wrong and had the bowling at their mercy until Jadeja, bowling his left-arm spin, had Chanderpaul caught at backward point, from an ill-advised lofted drive.
It brought Jamaican debutant Kirk McKenzie to the middle and the young left-handed batsman displayed confidence throughout his half-hour knock which included a lofted drive over long-off for six off Ashwin’s off-spin. He will resume on 14 alongside his captain on Saturday’s third day in which they will be targeting at least 239 to avoid being asked to follow-on.
Earlier, Kohli raised a well-deserved century, partnering with Jadeja in a 159-run fifth wicket stand that pushed India past the 350-run mark.
Kohli’s 76th milestone knock came from 180 balls and included 11 boundaries.
Jadeja reached his 50 from 105 balls, before West Indies grabbed a breakthrough when Kohli was run out by Alzarri Joseph.
Further success came for the hosts five overs later when Roach got Jadeja caught behind for 61 after reviewing a negative verdict from South African umpire Marais Erasmus.
West Indies maintained steady bowling in tough conditions after the visitors continued from their lunchtime total of 373 for six, and it paid dividends, though Ashwin defied them to carve out 56.
Holder had Ishan Kishan caught behind for 25, and after being frustrated by Jaydev Unadkat and Ashwin, they eventually made inroads when Warrican had the former stumped.
The spinner then accounted for Mohammed Siraj for a duck, before Roach brought the innings to a close when he had the last laugh in against Ashwin, who smashed three boundaries off in the same over in is 75-ball 50.
Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and Yashasvi Jaiswal all scored half-centuries as India reached 288-4 at stumps on day one of the second Test against the West Indies on Thursday.
The hosts won the toss and decided to bowl first at the Queen’s Park Oval.
Based on proceedings on day one, that seemed like the wrong choice as India started the day with a 139-run opening partnership between first Test centurions Jaiswal and Sharma.
Jaiswal, who hit a magnificent 171 on debut in Dominica, made a 74-ball 57 while Sharma, India’s Captain who hit 103 in the last Test, fell for 80 off 143 balls with the score on 155 in the 39th over.
Jaiswal’s knock included nine fours and a six while Sharma hit nine fours and two sixes.
Shubman Gill (10) and Ajinkya Rahane (8) were the other Indian batsmen to fall before the end of play.
Virat Kohli and Ravindra Jadeja will be at the crease when play continues tomorrow.
Kohli, who hit 76 in the first Test, will resume on 87* searching for his 29th Test hundred while Jadeja will resume on 36*. Kohli has, so far, faced 161 balls and hit eight fours.
Kemar Roach, Shannon Gabriel, Jomel Warrican and Jason Holder have each taken a wicket for the West Indies.
Former India opening batsman Aakash Chopra has called for West Indies to be stripped of their Test-playing status. He believes that the team has been doing nothing in international cricket for a few years now and that they should be replaced by associate member teams from individual islands.
“They won’t be playing in the World Cup. In all three formats, they are lagging behind in the rankings. Eventually, there has to be a threshold,” Chopra argued during a question and answer session with Sportsekeeda.
“I have been talking about that tier system - promotion and relegation. Just because they are an erstwhile champion side, till when can you carry on with them as a Test-playing nation? The team, as such, is doing nothing.”
Chopra says that West Indies' lack of unity and coordination has been a major factor in their downfall, and that many top players prefer franchise cricket over representing West Indies.
“Their case is unique because they have separate islands. Their pitches are so slow. You saw it in Dominica and you will see it at Port of Spain as well. It’s not a bad idea. May be the island teams might play with more pride. All said and done, West Indies’ state of cricket is quite bad.
“The five fingers are split and everyone is thinking about themselves - be it Jamaica, Barbados, Antigua or Guyana. There is hardly any coordination. During their prime, Clive Lloyd kept them together. This team needs leadership, because it’s a scattered side. Every island nation has them own anthem. As it is, things were difficult and then players became T20 journeymen. The pride in playing for West Indies has reduced.”
Chopra's comments come at a time when West Indies are struggling both on and off the field. The team was recently hammered by India in the first Test in Dominica, and they are currently ranked ninth in the Test rankings. Chopra believes that the team needs to be shaken up, and that stripping them of their Test-playing status would be a wake-up call.
Chopra played 10 Tests for India between October 2003 and October 2004 scoring 437 runs at an average of 23.
The Cricket West Indies (CWI) Senior Men’s Selection Panel today announced the squad for the second Cycle Pure Agarbathi Test Match powered by YES BANK against India. The Panel named 13 squad members and two traveling reserve players for the match which will be played at Queen’s Park Oval in Port-of-Spain, Trinidad from 20 to 24 July.
Kevin Sinclair, the off-spinning allrounder has replaced Raymon Reifer in the squad. Reifer will however travel to Trinidad as cover in case of injury. Sinclair was among the leading players in the West Indies Championship four-day first-class competition earlier this year. He also played a significant role with bat and ball in the recent West Indies “A” Team series win in Bangladesh.
Overall, he has so far played 18 first-class matches with 54 wickets including three five-wicket hauls at an average of 23.98 each. With the bat he has scored 756 runs at an average of 29, including six half centuries.
The upcoming second Cycle Pure Agarbathi Test Match powered by YES BANK will be historic – marking the 100th Test Match between West Indies and India, since the two teams first met at the Feroz Shah Kotla in Delhi in 1948. Play starts daily at 10am (9am Jamaica/7:30pm India).
Fans can purchase tickets in their preferred viewing locations from the Windies Tickets service, presented by Mastercard, at tickets.windiescricket.com – where they will be able to download tickets securely to their mobile device, or print out their ticket to present for scanning at the entrance point.
FULL SQUAD
Kraigg Brathwaite (Captain)
Jermaine Blackwood (Vice Captain)
Alick Athanaze
Tagenarine Chanderpaul
Rahkeem Cornwall
Joshua Da Silva
Shannon Gabriel
Jason Holder
Alzarri Joseph
Kirk McKenzie
Kemar Roach
Kevin Sinclair
Jomel Warrican
Traveling Reserves:
Tevin Imlach
Akeem Jordan
FULL MATCH SCHEDULE – Cycle Pure Agarbathi Test Series powered by YES BANK
12-16 July: 1st Cycle Pure Agarbathi Test powered by YES BANK, Windsor Park, Dominica – India won by an innings and 141 runs
20-24 July: 2nd Cycle Pure Agarbathi Test powered by YES BANK, Queen’s Park Oval, Trinidad
Ravichandran Ashwin starred to help India complete a dominant innings and 141-run win over the West Indies inside three days at Windsor Park in Dominica on Friday.
The day started with the tourists adding 109 runs to their overnight 312-2 before declaring on 421-5 off 152-2 overs, a lead of 271 runs.
Yashasvi Jaiswal, who entered day three on 143, was eventually dismissed for 171 off 387 balls while Virat Kohli carried on from his overnight 36 to make 76 off 182 balls. Ravindra Jadeja finished not out on 37.
Ravichandran Ashwin then ripped through the West Indies line-up on the way to 7-71 off 21.3 overs to end up with match figures of 12-131. Ashwin’s second innings figures were his best in his career outside of India.
Jadeja also chipped in with two wickets as the West Indies batted just 50.3 overs, eventually being dismissed for 130.
Alick Athanaze made 28 while Jason Holder was left stranded on 20 for the West Indies.
The second Test bowls off on July 20 in Trinidad.
Yashasvi Jaiswal and Captain, Rohit Sharma, both hit centuries to put touring India in a dominant position after day two of the first Test against the West Indies at Windsor Park in Dominica on Thursday.
Jaiswal and Sharma began day two 80-0 and the pair went on to put on a partnership of 229, the highest for India against the West Indies.
In the process, Jaiswal, 21, became the 17th Indian batsman to score a century on Test debut while Sharma hit his 10th Test hundred and third against the West Indies.
Sharma was the first of two wickets to fall on another tough day for the West Indian bowlers. He became Alick Athanaze’s first Test wicket, going caught by wicketkeeper, Joshua Da Silva, for a well-compiled 103 off 221 balls including 10 fours and two sixes.
Shubman Gill was the other to go, caught by Athanaze off the bowling of Jomel Warrican for just six.
Jaiswal stood firm, ending the day on 143* off 350 balls. His knock has, so far, produced 14 fours.
Former Captain, Virat Kohli, was Jaiswal’s partner at stumps as India ended the day 312-2 off 113 overs, holding a commanding 162-run lead. Kohli was not out on 36 off 96 balls at the close.
Another day, another poor performance from a West Indies team as India took firm control of the first Test in Dominica at the end of Wednesday’s opening day.
After Captain Kraig Brathwaite won the toss and chose to bat, the home side were bowled out for 150 in 64.3 overs. The West Indies batsmen were left in a spin as Ravichandran Ashwin took 5-60 and Ravindra Jadeja had figures of 3-26.
At stumps, India were 80-0, trailing by only 70 runs as Test debutant Yashasvi Jaiswal remained unbeaten on 40. At the other end Rohit Sharma was not out 30. Neither batsman seemed troubled by a West Indies attack that lacked penetration.
The only thing redeeming about the West Indies was Alick Athanaze, who scored 47 to top score for the home side. Brathwaite got 20, which was the second-highest score for the West Indies.
Raheem Cornwall was not out on 19 when the West Indies innings came to an end.
As things stand, the West Indies bowlers have a long day ahead of them on Thursday.
West Indies great, Brian Lara, believes India can bring the best out of the West Indies when they square off in a two-match Test series beginning on July 12 in Dominica.
“It’s a young group, ably led by Kraigg Brathwaite, of course, but I feel like some of the guys can really come into their own in this series,” Lara, who is with the team as a performance mentor, said in a CWI interview on Saturday.
“It’s a tough opposition but I believe that’s the way we can get the best out of them,” he added.
The West Indian selectors have started to look to the future in the batting department with the selections of 22-year-old Kirk McKenzie and 24-year-old Alick Athanaze.
Jamaica’s McKenzie earned his selection on the back of some good performances in the inaugural Headley Weekes Tri-Series and in a subsequent A-team tour of Bangladesh.
He had scores of 221 and 50 in the Headley Weekes series and followed those up with scores of 91 and 86 against Bangladesh A.
Athanaze captained the Windward Islands Volcanoes in this season’s West Indies Championship and scored 647 runs in five matches at an average of 64.70 with a pair of hundreds and four fifties.
“They’re both young, capable players. Of course, you’d hope they had a little more experience in the first-class arena but, looking at their style of play and their attitude, I believe they do have what it takes to perform at the highest level,” Lara said.
“It may take some time but, obviously, as an international cricketer, if you’re entering this stage it doesn’t matter what age you enter; you’ve got to learn very quickly and I think they have that sort of attitude to want to learn and be willing to listen. I look forward to good things in the future,” he added.
These matches will mark the start of the 2023-25 ICC World Test Championship cycle for both teams.
“Obviously, we’ve got two very important Test matches against India that start the two-year cycle for us. We know, whether it’s at home or away from home, they’re one of the top teams in the world,” Lara said.
“I think the guys are moving in the right direction in terms of where we started the camp and where we are at this present moment only a few days out from the first Test match in Dominica,” he added.
The two teams had very different results in the 2021-23 cycle. India, currently the top-ranked Test team in the world, finished the cycle second behind Australia, who they recently lost to in the World Test Championship Final.
On the other hand, the West Indies ended the cycle in eighth, only finishing ahead of Bangladesh.
The Cricket West Indies (CWI) Senior Men’s Selection Panel today announced the squad for the first match of the Cycle Pure Agarbathi Test Series powered by Yes Bank against India.
The Panel named 13 squad members and two traveling reserve players for the match which will be played at Windsor Park in Dominica from 12 to 16 July.
There is a first-time call-up for left-handed batter Kirk McKenzie, while fellow left-hander Alick Athanaze is the other uncapped player in the squad. There are recalls for allrounder Rahkeem Cornwall, who played his last Test in November 2021, and left-arm spinner Jomel Warrican who was in the squad which toured Zimbabwe but missed the last tour of South Africa in February.
Left-arm spinner Gudakesh Motie is unavailable for selection as he is undergoing rehabilitation from injury.
“We were very impressed with the approach to batsmanship of McKenzie and Athanaze on the recent ‘A’ Team tour of Bangladesh. These are two young players who got good scores and played with great maturity, and we believe they deserve an opportunity,” said Lead Selector, The Most Hon. Dr Desmond Haynes.
“We are without Motie, who is doing his rehabilitation, and this has created an opportunity for Warrican and Cornwall in the spin bowling department. They have both played at Test match level before and are capable of doing the job.”
Haynes added: “We had Jayden Seales here in the camp and he has made good progress during his rehab from surgery. However, we felt he is not yet quite ready to return, and we don’t want to risk him at this stage. Kyle Mayers was also considered but he has some niggles, and the precaution is not to have him in the rigors of a five-day match at this stage.
“Looking ahead to the series we know it will be a challenging one as we start the new cycle of the ICC Test Match Championship. We want to build and improve and strive to move up the ladder.”
West Indies squad will travel to Dominica on Sunday following their ongoing pre-series camp at Coolidge Cricket Ground in Antigua. They will have training sessions on Monday afternoon and Tuesday morning in the build-up to the match.
The Cycle Pure Agarbathi Test Series powered by Yes Bank will be the first fixtures for both West Indies and India in the new 2023-2025 ICC World Test Championship. The first match bowls off on Wednesday at 10am (9am Jamaica/7:30pm India). The second Test on 20-24 July at Queen’s Park Oval in Trinidad will be historic – marking the 100th Test match between West Indies and India.
Fans can purchase tickets in their preferred viewing locations from the Windies Tickets service, presented by Mastercard, at tickets.windiescricket.com – where they will be able to download tickets securely to their mobile device, or print out their ticket to present for scanning at the entrance point.
FULL SQUAD
Kraigg Brathwaite (Captain)
Jermaine Blackwood (Vice Captain)
Alick Athanaze
Tagenarine Chanderpaul
Rahkeem Cornwall
Joshua Da Silva
Shannon Gabriel
Jason Holder
Alzarri Joseph
Kirk McKenzie
Raymon Reifer
Kemar Roach
Jomel Warrican
Traveling Reserves:
Tevin Imlach
Akeem Jordan
FULL MATCH SCHEDULE:
Cycle Pure Agarbathi Test Series powered by Yes Bank
12-16 July: 1st Cycle Pure Agarbathi Test Match, Windsor Park, Dominica
20-24 July: 2nd Cycle Pure Agarbathi Test Match, Queen’s Park Oval, Trinidad
CG United ODI Series powered by Yes Bank
27 July: 1st CG United ODI, Kensington Oval, Barbados
29 July: 2nd CG United ODI, Kensington Oval, Barbados
1 August: 3rd CG United ODI, Brian Lara Cricket Academy, Trinidad
T20 Internationals
3 August: 1st T20I, Brian Lara Cricket Academy, Trinidad
6 August: 2nd T20I, National Stadium, Guyana
8 August: 3rd T20I, National Stadium Guyana
12 August: 4th T20I, Broward County Stadium, Lauderhill, Florida
13 August: 5th T20I, Broward County Stadium, Lauderhill, Florida
Cricket West Indies (CWI) Men’s Selection Panel has announced the squad for the preparation camp ahead of the start of the two-match Cycle Pure Agarbathi Test Series against India in the Caribbean.
Jayden Seales will return to West Indies training following his rehabilitation. The fast bowler last played for West Indies in the first Test at the Perth Stadium, last December. He had knee surgery in December and has subsequently been working on a rehabilitation programme overseen by the CWI Medical Team.
The training squad includes several players who are uncapped at the Test level – including batsmen Alick Athanaze, Kavem Hodge, and Kirk McKenzie; as well as fast bowlers Akeem Jordan, and Jair McAllister.
The camp will be held at the Coolidge Cricket Ground (CCG) in Antigua with training starting on Friday 30 June. The squad for the opening Test will be named at a later date and will travel to Dominica on Sunday 9 July.A
The Cycle Pure Agarbathi Test series will be the first fixtures for both West Indies & India in the new 2023-2025 ICC World Test Championship. The first Test will be at Windsor Park, Dominica from 12-16 July which will be followed by the historic second Test on 20-24 July at Queen’s Park Oval in Trinidad – marking the 100th Test match between West Indies and India.
SQUAD: Kraigg Brathwaite (captain), Alick Athanaze, Jermaine Blackwood, Nkrumah Bonner, Tagenarine Chanderpaul, Rahkeem Cornwall, Joshua Da Silva, Shannon Gabriel, Kavem Hodge, Akeem Jordan, Jair McAllister, Kirk McKenzie, Marquino Mindley, Anderson Phillip, Raymon Reifer, Kemar Roach, Jayden Seales, Jomel Warrican
TEST MATCH SCHEDULE:
Cycle Pure Agarbathi Test Matches (start at 10am local time, (9am Jamaica time))
12-16 July: 1st Cycle Pure Agarbathi Test Match, Windsor Park, Dominica
20-24 July: 2nd Cycle Pure Agarbathi Test Match, Queen’s Park Oval, Trinidad
BCCI on Friday announced India's Test and ODI squads for their upcoming tour of the West Indies.
The selection committee's patience with veterans Cheteshwar Pujara and Umesh Yadav finally ran out as the duo were dropped from the Test side after a disappointing WTC final.
Pujara's dwindling returns ever since his return to the Test side a year ago were always a concern while Umesh Yadav's lackluster show against Australia in the WTC final put the writing on the wall.
Young top-order batter Yashasvi Jaiswal and pacer Mukesh Kumar earned their maiden Test call-ups while Navdeep Saini returned to the scheme of things after a long gap.
Jaiswal was always on the selector's radar after his fantastic show in IPL 2023, where he scored 625 runs at a strike rate of 163. What also went in the left-hander's favor was his staggering record in first-class cricket. The Mumbai cricketer has an average of 80.21 in 15 matches with 9 centuries and a highest score of 265.
Mohammed Shami was given a break from both Tests and ODIs. Jaydev Unadkat, Shardul Thakur and Ajinkya Rahane held on to their places in the Test squad and so did spin-bowling all-rounder Axar Patel.
Interestingly, Rahane, who was nowhere in the scheme of things for about 15 months, was named as the vice-captain of the Test side following a successful WTC final where he ended up as India's top run-getter riding on the back of a gritty 89-run knock in the first innings.
As far as the ODI squad is concerned, Sanju Samson was named as wicketkeeper-batter along with Ishan Kishan. In the absence of Shreyas Iyer and Rishabh Pant, the selectors quite understandably decided to back Suryakumar Yadav at No.4, who has had a forgetful run in the 50-over format so far.
Mohammed Siraj will lead the pace battery. He will have Shardul Thakur and Jaydev Unadkat for support. Umran Malik made his comeback into the side while Mukesh Kumar was named in ODIs too.
For the spin department, there were no surprises as Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel and Ravindra Jadeja picked themselves.
The three-match ODI series will begin on July 27 in Barbados.
India’s Test squad for West Indies series: Rohit Sharma (Captain), Shubman Gill, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Virat Kohli, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Ajinkya Rahane (vice-captain), KS Bharat (wicket-keeper), Ishan Kishan (wicket-keeper), Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Axar Patel, Mohd. Siraj, Mukesh Kumar, Jaydev Unadkat, Navdeep Saini.
India’s ODI squad for West Indies series: Rohit Sharma (Captain), Shubman Gill, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Sanju Samson (wicket-keeper), Ishan Kishan (wicket-keeper), Hardik Pandya (vice-captain), Shardul Thakur, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Jaydev Unadkat, Mohd. Siraj, Umran Malik, Mukesh Kumar.
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