ST JOHN’S, Antigua (CMC):
Cricket West Indies (CWI) will allow expanded squads for the opening week of the Regional Super50 due to the availability of international players following West Indies’ early exit from the Twenty20 World Cup in Australia.
The two-time former champions were eliminated in the qualifying series, failing to qualify for the Super 12 main draw for the first time.
As a result, the squad – minus those players who will feature in a two-Test series Down Under starting next month – will return to the Caribbean in time for the Super50 campaign, which begins on Saturday.
“The players will now be available for the tour on their return to the Caribbean on October 25, while some of the Test players will remain in Melbourne to prepare for the upcoming Test Series against Australia,” said a release from CWI on Sunday.
“Due to the returning contingent of the T20 World Cup, the CWI will allow larger squads than the 14 players initially determined,” the board said in a statement on Sunday.
“However, this will only be applicable for the period before the departure of the West Indies Test team on November 8, when franchises must be reduced to just 14 players.”
With the T20 World Cup expected to end on November 13, members of the West Indies squad were not expected to feature in the Super50, which runs until November 19.
However, Nicholas Pooran’s side suffered shock defeats to Scotland and Ireland in two of their three qualifiers to finish bottom of Group B and miss out.
This year’s Super50 Cup will feature six franchises – reigning champions Trinidad and Tobago Red Force, Barbados Pride, Guyana Harpy Eagles, Jamaica Scorpions, Guyana Jaguars, Windward Islands Volcanoes and Leeward Islands Hurricanes – joined by the Academy of West Indies and Com Campuses and Colleges.
