Head Coach Phil Simmons had debunked speculation that Akeal Hosein was a cover for Veerasammy Permaul ahead of the third and final Apex test against England.
Simmons made the clarification during a pre-match conference yesterday where he pointed out that Hosein was indeed in Grenada and that he was there working with the team but not part of the squad.
“Akeal is here just like we had with a number of times, one time we had Oshane [Thomas] and Obed [McCoy] where we see we need to do a little bit of extra work with players,” he said.
Simmons pointed out that it is not something unusual.
“We tend to invite them to be around the camp and do the work with them so Akeal is here because we have a little extra work to do with him so that’s why he is here he has not been added to the squad.”
This newspaper had reported that Hosein was added to the squad as a cover for Permaul.
Hosein, 28, has represented West Indies in 20 T20Is, taking 15 wickets while batting at a strike rate of 137.5. He has also played 14 One Day Internationals with 22 wickets under his belt. The Trinidadian left-arm spinner featured in 23 First-Class matches where he took 63 wickets and scored a century and two half centuries.
Permaul on the other hand is the lone spinner in the 13-man squad and featured in both Tests so far. The series is currently tied 0-0.
