West Indies captain Shai Hope wants his players to use, the three-match One-Day International series against India starting today sto sharpen up for the upcoming World Cup qualifiers his team must play.
The first ODI bowls off at Thiruvananthapuram, with the second and third matches scheduled for Guwahati on Wednesday and New Chandigarh on October 3.
“We’ve got to go to the qualifiers, unfortunately,” Hope acknowledged yesterday.
“But playing India in their backyard is always a challenge.
It’s one that we definitely look to grasp and embrace.” West Indies finished outside of the automatic qualifying spots for the 2027 World Cup which will be held in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia.
Hope noted that he has seen encouraging individual and team performances from the Men in Maroon in recent years, but lamented that sustained positive results in the format have not yet come.
“Consistency is the biggest thing for us,” Hope said.
“We’ve seen bright sparks from different series and from different persons around West Indies cricket.
But it’s about repeating that; trying to get those performances rather than one or two games.
Extend that for two, three, four series.” That will require the batters to adapt to Indian conditions, with Hope stressing preparation and attention to detail.
For the bowlers, the spin of Roston Chase, Gudakesh Motie and rookie Vitel Lawes could be a major factor.
“The spinners that we have on this trip, the experience of Roston and Motie, they....
