ST JOHN’S, Antigua, CMC – Fast bowler Nelon Pascal and off-spinner Shane Shillingford are poised to make their West Indies debuts after being named yesterday in a 14-man squad for next week’s first Test against South Africa.
The duo, who both play for the Windward Islands, have been rewarded for recent outstanding performances for West Indies A in Bangladesh and during the regional first class championship earlier this year.
Pascal, a quick 23-year-old right armer, snatched 14 wickets during the four-day tournament after picking up 25 in the previous first class season. He also impressed on the lifeless wickets in Bangladesh last month.
He has come into the squad for injured strike bowler Jerome Taylor who has returned home to Jamaica after picking up a hip injury during the final One-Day International against South Africa on Thursday.
It marks the end of a wretched period for Taylor, who since returning to the side for the World Twenty Championship following a four-month injury break, has looked out of sorts and has failed to impress.
Pascal made his international debut in a one-dayer against Bangladesh last year when the region’s top tier player withdrew their services.
Shillingford, meanwhile, picked up 28 wickets to be Windwards’ main wicket-taker during the first class tournament and also shone with six wickets in the first four-day “Test” against Bangladesh A and another three in the first innings of the drawn second match.
Guyanese batsman Travis Dowlin, who averages 41 from four Tests with three half-centuries, returns to the squad after leading the Windies A to Bangladesh and is likely to partner captain Chris Gayle at the top of the order as he did in Australia late last year.
Stylish 21-year-old left-hander Darren Bravo, the younger brother of all-rounder Dwayne Bravo, has forced himself into reckoning after heaving scoring with the A team in Bangladesh.
West Indies, still reeling from a 5-0 whitewash in the recent ODI series, face South Africa in the first Test at the Queen’s Park Oval in Trinidad starting next Thursday.
This will be followed by Tests in St Kitts (June 18-22) and Barbados (June 26-30).
SQUAD – Chris Gayle (captain), Dwayne Bravo, Sulieman Benn, Darren Bravo, Shiv Chanderpaul, Narsingh Deonarine, Travis Dowlin, Brendan Nash, Nelon Pascal, Denesh Ramdin, Ravi Rampaul, Kemar Roach, Darren Sammy, Shane Shillingford.
