Keemo Paul has recovered from his ankle injury and has been drafted back into the West Indies squad straightaway for the second and final Test against India in Kingston, replacing Miguel Cummins, the man who had filled in for him in Antigua.
That was the only change to the squad for the first Test, which India won by 318 runs. Shai Hope kept wickets then, and might continue to do so with first-choice Test wicketkeeper Shane Dowrich back in Barbados continuing his rehabilitation from an ankle injury, even though back-up keeper Jahmar Hamilton is among the 13 in Jamaica.
Cummins didn’t have a particularly good time of it in Antigua, conceding 69 runs in 20 wicketless overs across two innings, as India piled up 297 and 343 for 7 declared while bowling West Indies out for 222 and 100 to earn 60 World Test Championship points.
While batting was West Indies’ weak link in the first Test, the bowling unit did let India off the hook somewhat after having the visitors down on the mat at 25 for 3 – Cheteshwar Pujara and Virat Kohli among the batsmen out – on the first morning. “We got the early wickets we were looking for but I thought that we tried a bit too hard, we didn’t stick to coming down the channel, we tried a bit too hard with the short-ball plan and stuff like that,” Roston Chase, the only spinner in the XI for the first Test, had said of that performance.
West Indies will hope that changes in the second Test. With Cummins out and Paul in, that might be a straight swap in the XI at Sabina Park, unless the conditions call for an international debut for Rahkeem Cornwall, the 26-year-old offspinning allrounder from Antigua. (ESPNCricinfo)
WI squad for second Test
Squad: Jason Holder (capt), Kraigg Brathwaite, Darren Bravo, Shamarh Brooks, John Campbell, Roston Chase, Rahkeem Cornwall, Jahmar Hamilton (wk), Shimron Hetmyer, Shai Hope (wk), Shannon Gabriel, Keemo Paul, Kemar Roach.
