Ac c o r d i n g to Desmond
Haynes, the Chief Selector, CPL 2022
performances will be considered
for selection for the T20 World Cup,
in which West Indies will play the first
round to qualify for the Super 12s. This
CPL season could, therefore, be a big deal
for several players effectively either advancing or
conversely undermining their chances for West Indies
T20 World Cup squad inclusion. Foremost among all those seeking to advance their respective claims for
consideration will be Evan Lewis, Fabian Allen and Haydn Walsh.
The CPL 2022 performances of St Kitts & Nevis
Patriots’ Evan Lewis will likely be at the very top of
the list of those Haynes’ Selection Panel will be keenly
following. Lewis didn’t appear for the fitness test that
had been arranged for him by Cricket West Indies
(CWI) during his IPL stint with Lucknow Super Giants,
according to Haynes. Lewis has since got gigs in the
Lanka Premier League (Jaffna Kings) and T10 League
(Bangla Tigers) and most recently he captained St
Kitts and Nevis Patriots to the Inaugural men’s 6ixty
title. Lewis, however, hasn’t played for West Indies
since the 2021 T20 World Cup and needs a bumper
CPL season to force his way into the Australia-bound
squad for which his vast T20I experience would be a vital and
much needed asset.
Jamaica Tallawahs’ Fabian Allen is another
whose CPL 2022 performances the Selectors
will be keenly following. Having previously declined
a CWI central contract, Allen had marked his return
to competitive cricket with a 33-ball 82 not out – the
highest individual score in the Men’s 6ixty – and finished
as the tournament’s highest run-scorer. If he can press
on further in the CPL, Allen has a chance to return to
the T20I XI as the spin-bowling allrounder.
Akeal Hosein has established himself as West Indies’
frontline finger-spinner – with or without Sunil Narine
– but there are questions over leg-spinner Walsh’s
potency (or the lack thereof ). During the home series
against India and New Zealand, Walsh struggled for
control and often let the opposition batters hit with the
wind.
Walsh’s wrong’un, however, can be deceptive as it skids
off the pitch and despite his patchy form, it is quite hard
to see a side travel to Australia for the T20 World Cup
without a wrist-spinner. In 2019, it was the CPL that
propelled Walsh into the international spotlight. He
now returns to the scene of his emergence in his quest
to relaunch his international career.