Thiruvananthapuram, Sep 24 — West Indies head coach Daren Sammy believes the upcoming three-match ODI series against India will provide his team with a valuable opportunity to test themselves against the world’s No. 1 side and end their 24-year wait to get the taste of success on Indian soil.
The three ODIs will be played in Thiruvananthapuram on September 27, Guwahati on September 30, and New Chandigarh on October 3.
Sammy acknowledged the significance of facing India in their own conditions, saying the series would offer a clear indication of where his side stands in world cricket.
“Playing in India is always a great series to take part in. India being the number one team,” Sammy said in a clip shared by Cricket West Indies ahead of the ODI series against India.
“For us to come out here, it’s been 24 years; we’ve not won a series here in India. So it’s a great opportunity for us as a team to come out here and challenge ourselves and measure up to where we are in the world in one-day cricket,” he added.
West Indies have made progress during the ODI qualification cycle but fell six points short of automatic qualification. They will have to take part in the qualifiers next year. Sammy said the team had come a long way from being significantly behind in the standings. “Starting from where we were back then, which was, I think, 19 or 20 points behind, and accumulating those points, I thought we made a lot of strides in making a claim to automatic qualification,” he said.
The India series will also allow West Indies to assess players ahead of the qualifiers, with Sammy stressing the importance of giving the squad opportunities to perform in different roles. “Heading into the qualifiers in February, our number one focus is continuing to fine-tune the team so that when we go to the qualifiers, we put ourselves in a position to book our ticket to South Africa,” he said.
Sammy highlighted the progress made by the batting unit, with Shai Hope and Keacy Carty forming an important partnership, while other players have also contributed with hundreds. “Our batting has come a long way during this period. Shai Hope is not the only one scoring hundreds. We’ve gotten hundreds from different players,” he said.
The coach also pointed to the return of Alzarri Joseph, who was part of Antigua’s CPL title-winning campaign, while young players including Jewel Andrew are set to get opportunities. “Everybody will be getting an opportunity. Because after that, I think this is probably our last ODI series. It is our last ODI series of the year,” Sammy said.
The West Indies ODI squad, led by Hope, includes John Campbell, who returns after missing the final two ODIs against New Zealand due to a hamstring injury. Jewel Andrew replaces Ackeem Auguste, who is recovering after surgery, while Shimron Hetmyer has been rested from the ODI leg and will join the team for the T20Is.
The India tour will continue with five T20Is from October 6 to 17 in Lucknow, Ranchi, Indore, Hyderabad and Bengaluru.
The West Indies squad departed the Caribbean on September 21 and arrived in Thiruvananthapuram on September 23 ahead of the opening ODI.