West Indies have announced a new set of captains in white-ball cricket as Shai Hope and Rovman Powell are set to lead in the ODI and T20I format respectively. Hope, the wicketkeeper/batter and Powell, the batting allrounder will take over from Nicholas Pooran, who stepped down from the positions last November following the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup in Australia.
First assignment against South Africa
The first assignments for both captains will be the upcoming tour of South Africa in March where the West Indies face the Proteas in three ODIs and three T20Is from 16 to 28 March, following two matches in the ICC World Test Championship. Each captain will be heavily involved in strategy and planning leading up to the next ICC World Tournaments.
In ODI cricket, the West Indies are likely to need to qualify for the 2023 ICC Cricket World Cup, with the qualifiers scheduled to be held in Zimbabwe in June. In T20I cricket, the West Indies will be hosting the next ICC T20 World Cup with the USA in June 2024.
“It is a tremendous honour and privilege to be appointed captain of any West Indies team. To lead a team that is of such incredible significance not only to myself and my teammates but to our legion of fans the world over, is something one dreams of as a child,” Hope said after being appointed as skipper of ODI side.
Hope is selected as ODI captain after demonstrating strong leadership on and off the field and experiencing the vice-captain role over a number of Series since 2019. He became vice-captain for a second time in June 2022 and played his 100th ODI for the West Indies against India in July last year. Hope has played 104 ODIs and was recently selected in the ICC ODI Team of the Year for 2022.
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“I’m truly humbled and grateful to be given this amazing opportunity to lead the West Indies. For me, this a huge vote of confidence and I see this as the greatest honour of my career,” added Powell.
CWI’s Selection Panel recommended Powell as T20I captain, referencing his demonstrated leadership acumen and tactical ability when acting as the West Indies T20I vice-captain and as captain for Jamaica in 2022 with double success in both regional competitions. He led Jamaica winning firstly the Caribbean Premier League with the Tallawahs in September before captaining the Jamaica Scorpions to the CG United Super50 Cup title in November.
