West Indies leave out veteran Kraigg Brathwaite for India Tests
What's the story
The West Indies cricket board have announced a 15-member squad for the upcoming two-match Test series against India. The matches, starting October 2 and October 10 respectively, will be the first time in seven years that West Indies play Test cricket in India. The team is a mix of veterans and youngsters, with former captain Kraigg Brathwaite missing out on selection due to poor form. Here are further details.
Team composition
West Indies squad for India Tests
The West Indies squad for the India Test series includes Roston Chase as captain and Jomel Warrican as vice-captain. Khary Pierre has been included in the squad after impressing with his performance in white-ball matches for West Indies. Here is the Test squad: Roston Chase (c), Jomel Warrican (vice-captain), Kevlon Anderson, Alick Athanaze, John Campbell, Tagenarine Chanderpaul, Justin Greaves, Shai Hope, Tevin Imlach, Alzarri Joseph, Shamar Joseph, Brandon King, Anderson Phillip, Khary Pierre, Jayden Seales.
Team changes
Brathwaite dropped, Chanderpaul and Athanaze included
Brathwaite, who had a poor run with the bat against Australia in their last three-Test series at home, has been left out of the squad. He had scores of 4, 4, 0 and 7 in the first two Tests and was dropped from the third. Meanwhile, Chanderpaul and Athanaze have been included to strengthen top-order batting while Pierre is included as a second specialist spinner after his strong performance in West Indies Championship.
Strategic decisions
Motie rested, Sammy explains top-order focus
The selectors have decided to rest Gudakesh Motie for this red-ball series, considering the demands of the upcoming limited-overs schedule. West Indies head coach Daren Sammy explained that Chanderpaul's return is aimed at improving their top-order batting, while Athanaze was added for his strengths against spin bowling. The squad will arrive in Ahmedabad on September 24 after departing from the Caribbean on September 22.