T20 World Cup Preview | Out-of-sorts Windies face stacked odds with no Pooran, Russell, or Alzarri

When T20 cricket was still in its early teens, world cricket learnt an important lesson: never count out the West Indies. Now in its mid-T20s, the format has changed more drastically than even the pioneers of the modern style themselves could imagine. The Caribbean outfit has gone from being explosive in unprecedented and unpredictable ways to being explosive in precedented and predictable ways, even while their ability to hit big continues to be the envy of far too many nations. Even though the format and national teams have evolved enough since to punish one-dimensional outfits, the capriciousness of a 40-over fixture leaves all doors ajar still.

How did the Windies fare at the 2024 T20 World Cup at home?

Pretty much according to expectations. Even though the Windies had walked into the tournament having defeated India, England, and South Africa in bilateral affairs at home, they stood the risk of a group stage exit having been paired with New Zealand and Afghanistan. However, the side defended 150 against the Kiwis and humbled the Afghans by 104 runs after posting 218 in St Lucia to storm to the Super Eight unbeaten, having also beaten Papua New Guinea and Uganda. England handed them their first blow by chasing down 181 emphatically, following which a dominant win against the USA left them in must-win territory against South Africa. The hosts managed 135/8 on a tricky North Sound deck and had left the Proteas 12 runs to win in 23 balls with three wickets remaining, when rain led to a premature finish and knocked out the Caribbean outfit.

Notably, the Windies had five different players of the match in their five wins. Nicholas Pooran led the charts with 228 at a strike rate of 146.15, while no other batter breached even the 150 mark, but the bowling constituted a different story. Five bowlers conceded runs at under seven and a half, including two under run-a-ball (Roston Chase and Akeal Hosein). Alzarri Joseph scalped the most with 13, followed by Andre Russell (11), Hosein (9), Gudakesh Motie (8), and Chase (7).

Is it the same squad for the 2026 edition?

More or less, barring the leading run-scorer and two leading wicket-takers from 2024. While Pooran and Russell announced retirements, vice-captain Alzarri is missing with injury – that’s a loss of 237 T20I caps. The captaincy has also moved over from Rovman Powell to Shai Hope as the latter has established himself again in the T20I setup.

Pooran has been replaced by surprise pick Quentin Sampson, who made his debut less than two weeks ago, managing 35 runs in three T20Is against Afghanistan. The 25-year-old has been rewarded for a successful Caribbean Premier League season, where he averaged nearly 35 and struck at 150-plus for Guyana Amazon Warriors. Russell and Alzarri’s omission has made way for seamers Matthew Forde and Jayden Seales, the former earning a glowing reputation for his hard-hitting abilities while the latter has appeared in nine T20Is since his debut after the 2024 World Cup. Jason Holder and Brandon King have retained their place after being withdrawn last time with injury, their then-replacements Kyle Mayers and Obed McCoy not in the scheme of things.

West Indies’ squad for T20 World Cup: Shai Hope (c), Shimron Hetmyer, Johnson Charles, Roston Chase, Matthew Forde, Jason Holder, Akeal Hosein, Shamar Joseph, Brandon King, Gudakesh Motie, Rovman Powell, Sherfane Rutherford, Quentin Sampson, Jayden Seales, Romario Shepherd

Probable XI: 1 Shai Hope (c/wk) 2 Brandon King/ Johnson Charles 3 Shimron Hetmyer 4 Sherfane Rutherford 5 Rovman Powell 6 Roston Chase  7 Romario Shepherd 8 Jason Holder 9 Gudakesh Motie/ Matthew Forde 10 Akeal Hosein 11 Jayden Seales/ Shamar Joseph

Has their upward trend continued?

Unfortunately not. Having soared from ninth to third in the ICC rankings in a short span of time ahead of the 2024 edition, just three series wins in 13 bilateral affairs since has seen them drop back down to seventh. The team’s only successes came against a severely understrength South Africa (3-0) immediately after the World Cup, a rain-marred three-match series in Ireland (1-0), and an impressive clean sweep in Bangladesh (3-0). On the other hand, they became the first Test-playing nation to lose a series against Nepal, lost away to Sri Lanka, England, New Zealand, Afghanistan, and South Africa, and have failed to win their last four home series against England, Bangladesh, Australia, and Pakistan.

WI post the 2024 T20 World Cup: W 14 L 27 NR 2

Why the downfall?

The loss of Pooran and Russell has left a big hole in the West Indies’ batting unit that has struggled for consistency. Post the 2024 event, the Maroon brigade has the fourth-worst batting average (21.62) and strike rate (135.1) amongst all full members participating in the upcoming event. Their middle-overs numbers emphasise the impact of the duo’s departure, where they lost a wicket every 22.79 runs – comfortably the worst on the list and over 15 runs off chart-leaders India with 38.44. All of this has culminated in the Windies being a terrible chasing side any time the score ticks past 175. In 13 attempts, they have claimed just three wins, once each against the Proteas, Lions, and Three Lions.

However, the drop-off in bowling quality has been their biggest nemesis, with the loss of Russell exacerbated by poor run of forms for other primary picks such as Alzarri and Motie. Since the last World Cup, West Indies have the second-worst economy (9.10) and average (28.98), ahead of just South Africa (9.33 and 30.14) respectively. Of the eight bowlers to have taken 10-plus wickets for them in this period, Hosein is the only one to concede at less than eight an over (7.22 as compared to next-best Forde with 8.37) and average less than 25 (22.13 versus Holder’s 25.28). Consequently, a collective economy of 9.81 for their pace attack is again the worst of all teams under consideration. And like their batting, the middle-overs are a particular cause for concern, with their economy of 9.21 and 23.56 balls per wicket both placing them at the bottom of the respective charts. As a result, the Windies have posted 180 seven times in the last year and a half but won just once, after posting 256/5 against Ireland in June.

Anything else to worry about for this particular World Cup?

Oh yes, considering the tournament is being co-hosted by India and Sri Lanka. West Indies have played 12 matches in Asia since July 2024, all against teams ranked lower than them, including the likes of Nepal and Afghanistan, and have still ended up with an equal record of six wins and as many losses. In this period, they have lost a wicket to spin every 18.47 runs around the globe – Australia is the next team on the list with an average of 19.67. Their strike rate against spin of 128.35 is also only better than Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, and Pakistan, and in a different galaxy from the Indian benchmark of 160.49.

Is there any saving grace?

With the West Indies in T20 cricket, there always is. Few gave them a chance with their crazy ways in 2012 and 2016. Both times, they proved there was a method to their madness and clinched the World Cup in a manner that revolutionised the sport. All of a sudden, the focus was not on dot balls or anchoring knocks anymore. Six-hitting was the future of T20s, a prophecy that has continued to hold true a decade later. This era-defining renaissance took place under the watchful eye of Darren Sammy, the tactically erudite skipper, who is now the head coach of the team. And the West Indies remain right at the cutting edge of the art, even if other teams have at times caught up or even surpassed them. Since the 2024 World Cup, the West Indies are one of only four teams to smash more than eight maximums per batting innings. They clear the boundaries every 12.4 balls per average – only Australia (12.2) and India (11.7) clock better in this regard. 

Moreover, the West Indies’ tournament schedule means six-hitting is guaranteed to play a big role in how their contests end up. The team is slated to play two group stage matches each at Eden Gardens and Wankhede – two of the smaller Indian venues with a penchant for producing flat batting havens. In fact, if the Men in Maroon qualify for the Super Eights, they will play their three fixtures at Ahmedabad, Wankhede, and Eden, thereby avoiding duels on the slow and spin-friendly Lankan surfaces altogether. The Windies’ best bet for racking up wins has to be explosive batting performances, and with the dew on their side, who knows what magic they can conjure up.

Verdict: Super Eights a must, semis maybe a dream too far

West Indies begin their campaign against Bangladesh’s replacements, Scotland, in Kolkata on February 7, which must already be a big relief considering their recent track record against the Tigers. The Caribbean outfit then takes on Nepal and England in Mumbai, before closing out the group against Italy in Kolkata. Regardless of how they fare against the English, a victory in the remaining fixtures should assure them a passage to the Super Eight. They’re likely to be grouped with three favourites in India, Australia, and South Africa, which sounds like a hurdle too tall for this squad to cross.