Hobart [Australia] : West Indies white-ball coach Darren Sammy is determined that his side has overcome the ODI whitewash against Australia and expects the team to play “a different brand” of cricket in the three-match T20I series.
West Indies were humbled by the hosts during the ODI series as their inexperienced side got bashed all over the park. In the third ODI, the Caribbean team got outplayed in all facets of the game as they succumbed to a score of 86.
Sammy asserted that the team won’t carry the nightmares from the past to Hobart on Friday as they gear up to kick off the three-match series.
“You see, I’m already in Hobart. We’re not going to carry the ODI series to Hobart. It’s a fresh squad, a settled squad, more experience (and) guys who believe they are some of the best in the world to do it. I expect to see a different attitude, a different brand and we expect to come out there and compete and win,” Sammy said as quoted from cricket.com.au.
West Indies will see the return of some experienced key players in their T20 set-up with experienced all-rounder Andre Russell and explosive batter Nicholas Pooran returned to the squad.
Russell made his last appearance for the West Indies in 2023 during their famous triumph over England in the five-match T20I series. Along with Russell, the likes of Akeal Hosein, Jason Holder and Rovman Powell will further bolster their chances of putting a strong outing against the Baggy Greens.
“Our guys will not be playing international cricket, but they will not be short of cricket. So many leagues, (they) play in the IPL (Indian Premier League), the PSL (Pakistan Super League), and obviously playing (the World Cup) at home, it’s our conditions. The way we’ve progressed over the last year; we didn’t lose a T20 series in 2023, confidence is building, momentum is building. We all believe that we can become the first team to actually win the tournament at home and that’s what we are working towards,” Sammy said.
West Indies: Rovman Powell (c), Shai Hope, Johnson Charles, Roston Chase, Jason Holder, Akeal Hosein, Alzarri Joseph, Brandon King, Kyle Mayers, Gudakesh Motie, Nicholas Pooran, Andre Russell, Sherfane Rutherford, Romario Shepherd, Oshane Thomas
Australia: Mitchell Marsh (c), Sean Abbott, Jason Behrendorff, Tim David, Josh Hazlewood, Aaron Hardie, Josh Inglis, Spencer Johnson, Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, Matthew Wade, David Warner, Adam Zampa.
