The West Indies Selection Panel, chaired by the Rt, Honorable Desmond Haynes, and comprised of fellow Selectors Roland Butcher and Head Coach Daren Sammy, has finally announced the chosen 15-member squad for the forthcoming ODI Home Series against England. Not surprisingly, the squad announcement has been greeted with a very wide range of reactions, from mildly supportive to vehemently disagreeable.
The sad reality about far too many contemporary West Indies cricket fans, however, is that their expressed opinions are most often obviously based far more on personal favoritism and/or nationalistic insularity than on any fundamental knowledge of West Indies cricket. Based on the team selection opinions I have often seen expressed on social media, particularly through the numerous West Indies cricket fan groups that now exist on Facebook, I would hazard a guess that well over 45% of the posts are insularity-driven. Those which are personal player favorite influenced would arguably account for a similar percentage. Only ten, or less, percent of such posts are, therefore, based on either logic, foundational knowledge, and/or rational thinking.
A poignant example of the capacity for personal player favoritism to cloud rational thinking has been poignantly demonstrated by the former West Indies ODI captain Dwayne Bravo’s publicly expressed reaction to his brother Darren’s somewhat controversial omission from the announced Squad.
“When will the BS [sic] stop?! I’m not surprised by my brother’s non-selection, but with the recent changes in WI cricket management, I held onto hope for the better,” Dwayne posted on Instagram.
“This is NOT acceptable, and I just can’t make sense of it! So here are my burning questions: What’s the criteria for West Indies team selection? Surely, it can’t be solely based on performance?”
Darren was the leading run-scorer in the Super50 Cup 2023 that concluded earlier this month and captained Trinidad & Tobago to the title. He scored 416 runs in the competition at an average of 83.20 and a strike rate of 92.03, batting at No. 3, and was one of the two players with over 400 runs in the competition.
Bravo was also among the leading run-scorers for Trinidad & Tobago last season in the 50-over competition, with 240 runs at an average of 48 and a strike rate of 76.92.
As incensed as he was by his brother’s omission, Dwane Bravo has been totally unaccepting of West Indies’ lead selector Desmond Haynes’ provided explanation for Darren’s squad omission. Haynes indicated Darren, 34, had been left out to give opportunities to younger players keeping the 2027 ODI World Cup in mind.
“It was a very tough decision for us to make as a panel,” Haynes said of Darren’s omission.
“Darren has proven, not only this year but last year as well in the Super50 tournament, to be somebody who has performed well at this level. But we have invested in players like Alick Athanaze and Keacy Carty.
“We also had to take into consideration that the World Cup 2027 is something that we have got in mind. We believe that we have invested in these players, and we need to give the opportunity to play against a very strong England side. That is the reason why Darren has been omitted.”
Dwayne Bravo’s reaction to Haynes’ provided explanation was to accuse the selection panel of “mistreatment” and “disrespect” towards players.
I usually stay away from these discussions, but the mistreatment, disrespect, and dishonesty towards players over the years demand a voice. When will it stop?” he wrote.
“To Mr. Desmond Haynes, your statement didn’t surprise me. It feels like another former player singing for his supper. I hoped for trust in the system with figures like you, Sammy, and the new director of cricket, but the system failed again. To my brother, this too shall pass. Keep your head up, stay focused, and trust in the Almighty.”
Such obviously emotionally driven responses to the announced squad should, however, be duly cast aside and rational thinking applied instead. Any such rational approach would then invariably lead to the inescapable conclusion that given the parameters under which they were operating, Haynes and his fellow Selectors have in fact done a highly commendable job.
For starters, the Selectors’ eventual choices would have been governed by the unavailability of at least three key players, who would otherwise have been absolute certainties for squad inclusion. Ace batsman Nicholas Pooran, as well as former all-formats captain and key world-leading allrounder Jason Holder both became unavailable for the entire three-match series. So too was the injured opening batter Justin Greaves who finished the recently concluded Super50 tournament as the second-highest run scorer. Greaves’ 403-run aggregate was only marginally behind Bravo’s 416.
Notwithstanding the non-availability of those three, the announced 15-member squad also includes at least another ten players whose inclusion no one in their right mind could or would seriously question.
Brandon King, Alick Athanaze, Keacy Carty, skipper Shai Hope, Romario Shepherd, Gudakesh Motie, and vice-captain Alzarri Joseph would all be considered undisputed inclusions. Add to those the twenty-five-year-old Sherfayne Rutherford who finished Super50 2023 as the tournament’s fifth highest run scorer with a 278run aggregate and 46.33 average.
Shayne Dowrich’s inclusion should also be uncontentious as the required backup wicket-keeper given Pooran’s unavailability. Dowrich also had a commendable 2025 Super50, scoring 234 runs from 5 completed innings at an impressive 78.00 average.
Finally, as with any squad selection, even more so with the governing view of building a squad for the next World Cup in four years, the Selectors are allowed a “one for the future” wild card pick. In this instance, their choice has been Matthew Forde, the twenty-one-year-old medium pacer, who despite having taken only five wickets while representing the West Indies Academy during Suoer50 2023, impressed everyone with his talent and future potential.
That then leaves only five players, Kjorn Ottley, Shimron Hetmeyer, Roston Chase, Yannic Cariah, and Oshane Thomas whose squad inclusion can be questioned.
As Haynes explained Kjorn Ottley, 33, was picked for the first time since 2021 as a back-up opener after Justin Greaves was ruled out with injury. Ottley made his ODI debut in Bangladesh in January 2021 and scored 25 across two games before being left out. But he put in a strong performance in the Super50 Cup this year with 317 runs while opening the batting. Only Greaves and Darren Bravo scored more runs than Ottley this season.
In terms of Hetmeyer, the Selectors have demonstrated their faith in his indisputably obvious talent, despite his relatively poor Super50 2023. Hopefully, he will seize the provided opportunity with both hands to justify their expressed faith.
Roston Chase’s inclusion can also be understood when considered against the backdrop of Kevin Sinclair having been included in the West Indies A team for their four-day Test tour to South Africa. The Selectors have seemingly looked ahead to Sinclair being the likely off-spinner choice for the Test tour to Australia early next year.
In Sinclair’s absence, Chase was simply the next best available alternative for his off-spin bowling and middle-order batting. His 2023 Super50 returns were 16 wickets, joint fourth highest, at a 4.77 economy rate. He also chipped in with 166 runs from 6 completed innings at a 27.66 average.
Yannic Cariah instead of Hayden Walsh would not have been my preference. Walsh ended Super50 2023 with 20 wickets. Two more than Cariah’s 18 and with a far more impressive economy rate of 4.89 by comparison to the Trinidadian’s 5.65.
With the bat, Walsh also scored 222 runs at a 44.40 average with two half-centuries. This compared to Cariah’s 170 runs, four not-outs influenced identical average and only one half-century.
Internationally for the West Indies Walsh has to date been the more successful of the two. His 28 wickets in 22 matches played have been captured at a 5.41 economy rate. Cariah by comparison has so far taken only 12 wickets in his 11 played matches, the economy rate for which has been an unacceptable 6.06.
Add to all the above the reality that Walsh as a genuine world-class fielder would in all likelihood save the team at least twenty-thirty-plus runs every time he steps onto the field and the choice should have been a no-brainer! Difficult, nigh impossible to justify the Selectors’ expressed preference for Cariah over Walsh.
Finally, Oshane Thomas, who despite having a relatively unimpressive 2023 Super50 with only two wickets captured was, however, impressively economical with a rate of only 4.51. He also bowled well in partnership with his equally pacy Leeward Hurricanes skipper Alzarri Joseph. The Selectors are obviously hoping that the Joseph-Thomas express pace combo will provide early inroads into England’s batting order.
When rationally analyzed the announced West Indies ODI squad, except for one highly disputable choice is now as good as could be expected. Given the circumstances and the need to start rebuilding toward 2o27.
About The Writer:
Guyana-born, Tony McWatt is the Publisher of both the WI Wickets and Wickets/monthly online cricket magazines that are respectively targeted toward Caribbean and Canadian readers. He is also the only son of the former Guyana and West Indies wicket-keeper batsman the late Clifford “Baby Boy” McWatt.