With four rounds of competition for a possible total of nine matches to win it all, the pressing question now is not whether West Indies will triumph in T20 World Cup 2024, rather it is all about the squad’s final 11 composition, beginning with the opening encounter against Papua New Guinea today.
As it is the Regional side doesn’t have an embarrassment of riches to choose from but the competition for places is as close as it will ever get. The blow- out series sweep victory over South Africa and the hammering of Australia in preparation games, will make West Indies slight favorites to top Group C, at the expense of New Zealand and Afghanistan to reach the Super 8 stage, and it makes the selectors’ job far from a walk-in-the-park exercise.
For the first two match-ups against minnows Papua New Guinea and Uganda, Chief Selector Desmond Haynes and Coach Darren Sammy can literally pull names from a bag of the 15-man squad and come up with winning lineups.
But the other two clashes with the stronger New Zealand and Afghanistan opposition will require much pondering to determine who makes the final cut. And it is incumbent the selectors use current form of the players as their main yardstick and resist too much use of analytics. Our players named in the 15-man squad are the best available in the region and would do their best against any opposition in whatever conditions presented.
Shimron Hetmyer seems to have played himself out of contention for spot in the middle order as his displays in the Indian Premier League (IPL) and against Australia on Thursday have not been convincing enough. He was shown -up by fellow IPL draftees Nicholas Pooran, Rovman Powell, and his Guyanese counterpart Sherfane Rutherford. They all hit the ground running with commanding performances against Australia in Trinidad and Tobago while the former Windies Under-19 captain seemed left standing. His 13-ball 18 runs off a depleted Aussie attack was overshadowed by his teammates. As well, Hetmyer was unable to light up Rajasthan Royals scoreboard much over the last two months as his team was unable repeat making the IPL final like they did in 2023.
In contrast Rutherford who hardly had a game in the competition there for eventual champions Kolkata Knightriders, took the crease in Trinidad and Tobago after Hetmyer and went on to take apart the Aussie attack for an 18-ball 47 -run blitz. It was after Rutherford impressed in West Indies’ lone win in their three-game rubber against Australia there in January.
As a result, Hetmyer shouldn’t be aggrieved as the selectors are likely to continue with Enmore-born Demerara Cricket Club player in the World Cup opener. Brandon King was not given a chance to bat against Australia in Trinidad and Tobago and rightly so as he has already locked up one of the two opening slot positions.
Following scintillating displays against South Africa, King is refreshingly more mobile on his feet in attack and tends to execute his shots playing straighter than across the line, thus the Jamaican seems ready for the challenges the World Cup brings against both pace and spin. His opening partner is most likely Johnson Charles whose 69-run onslaught of South Africa on Sunday was proof he can still deliver, following up on good performances in Nepal in May. Shai Hope who was tested in the opening position against Australia did not do enough then and in the opportunities he had with Delhi Capitals in the IPL, and should be on the reserve list. Pooran whose 75-run 25-ball assault of the Australian bowling, following one of his best IPL performances that netted him 499 runs at a phenomenal average of 62 and a strike rate of 178, means he will go into the World Cup as West Indies’ key batsman.
Andre Russell’s all-round prowess brings a quality few of the teams can match in the competition as his improved batting adds a new dimension to his proven bowling ability at all levels and much will be expected of him in the middle and at any stage of the game with the ball. With captain Rovman Powell as well in the middle and Romario Shepherd at lower middle, West Indies boasts a slew of power hitters throughout the batting order, none of the competing teams can match. However, as always been the case over the years their competence against high quality spin bowling the World Cup presents will be a litmus test, and how they manage it this time around will be vital on whether they go all the way or not in the competition.
As has been pronounced on in this space prior, Roston Chase’s place in the starting 11 should be a no-brainer. There should no debate on his role as he is by far the team’s most impactful bowler of all, in international T20 competition and must be the number one spinner. His economy rate of 6.55 runs per innings supersedes everyone else and even though his 13-match career is short, having 11 wickets to date, he out bowls his teammates in almost every game of late. Not to mention his batting which has come on leaps and bounds of late in the game’s shortest format.
Gudakesh Motie has developed as a consistent wicket-taker and has been far superior to the squad’s other left arm spinner Akeal Hosein, who’s performances have regressed in the last three series and should as a result miss out on the final cut.
Shamar Joseph is a work in progress as a T20 paceman as his debut series against South Africa suggests and with the unavailability of Jason Holder, the Guyanese’s natural gift for producing destructive spells should squeeze him in ahead of Obed McKoy.
Shepherd is a naturally talented bowler and with the exposure the World Cup brings, he can only get better as he has all the requisite skills of yorker, seam movement and slower ones in his repertoire.
He should be the other fast bowler in the 11 along with seasoned campaigner Alzarri Joseph.
Thus, the final 11 should King, Charles, Pooran, Powell, Russell, Rutherford, Chase, Shepherd, Motie, A. Joseph and S. Joseph. We can’t go much wrong with such a balanced lineup, in the quest for that hat-trick of title wins.
