Hope and Thomas return as West Indies name squad under Rovman Powell for T20Is against India

Port of Spain, Aug 1 (PTI) Wicketkeeper-batter Shai Hope and fast bowler Oshane Thomas were recalled as the West Indies named a 15-member ‘provisional’ squad for the five-match T20 International series against India, beginning on Thursday at Tarouba.

All 15 members of the provisional squad, to be led by Rovman Powell, will travel to all matches. There will then be a 13-member squad for each match from which the final XI will be selected, the Cricket West Indies (CWI) said.

The 29-year-old Hope, the West Indies captain in the three-match ODI series, last played a T20I in February last year in Kolkata during the tour of India.

The 26-year-old Thomas, on the other hand, is coming back after playing his last T20I in Karachi in December 2021.

Kyle Mayers has been named vice-captain in the squad announced by the CWI senior men’s selection panel.

Lead selector Desmond Haynes said the squad was selected with next year’s ICC Men’s T20 World Cup at home in mind.

“We are looking at various plans as we try to find the right combinations. As we prepare; we are looking to build a unit which we believe can do the job when we host the global event in just under a year,” Haynes said in a CWI statement.

“We have some match-winners in our line-up and we will look to have the right kind of preparation. We also have other players who could come into consideration going forward, with the Caribbean Premier League starting next month, others will come into the reckoning.”

The Brian Lara Cricket Academy in Tarouba, Trinidad, will host the opening match on Thursday. The teams then move to the Guyana National Stadium for the second and third fixtures on August 6 and 8.

The series will climax with the blockbuster weekend at the Broward County Stadium, Lauderhill, Florida (USA) for the final two matches on August 12 and 13.

West Indies Squad

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Rovman Powell (captain), Kyle Mayers (vice-captain), Johnson Charles, Roston Chase, Shimron Hetmyer, Jason Holder, Shai Hope, Akeal Hosein, Alzarri Joseph, Brandon King, Obed McCoy, Nicholas Pooran, Romario Shepherd, Odean Smith, Oshane Thomas.