Like in 2018, the West Indies will need to participate in the Qualifier to secure a spot in the 2023 Cricket World Cup. West Indies is one of the prominent squads in ODI cricket and has the capability to make their spot in the top 2 teams. West Indies lifted the World Cup title in 1975 and 1979 and since then they have never been able to win the World Cup title.
West Indies are placed in group A along with Zimbabwe, Nepal, Netherlands, and the United States. They will play their first match against the United States at Takashinga Cricket Club, Harare on 18 June 2023. Then they will meet Nepal for their 2nd match at Harare Sports Club, Harare on 22 June 2023. The third match of the Windies will be played against Zimbabwe on 24 June 2023 and the last match of their qualifier round will be conducted against Netherlands at Takashinga Cricket Club, Harare on 26 June 2023.
West Indies Squad ICC World Cup Qualifiers 2023
- Shai Hope (captain)
- Rovman Powell (vc)
- Yannic Cariah
- Keacy Carty
- Nicholas Pooran
- Johnson Charles
- Roston Chase
- Shamarh Brooks
- Akeal Hosein
- Brandon King
- Jason Holder
- Kyle Mayers
- Keemo Paul
- Alzarri Joseph
- Romario Shepherd
Shai Hope was chosen as the captain of the West Indies for the upcoming tournament since he is the most reliable player in the batting line-up. He will also play the role of Wicket Keeper. Rovman Powell was appointed as the Vice Captain of the team. The former West Indies skipper, Darren Sammy will take charge as head coach. Shai Hope made his ODI debut against Sri Lanka on 29 November 2016 and since then he has performed in 108 matches where he scored 4488 runs with 14 hundreds and 21 fifties. These figures show that he has plenty of experience and awesome batting skills.
Jason Holder and Nicholas Pooran are important players too, but the team also has other talented individuals like Kyle Mayers, Roston Chase, Brandon King, and Alzarri Joseph, who can win matches for them. All-rounder Keemo Paul has come back to the squad with a surplus of confidence, aiming to guarantee a triumphant conclusion to their campaign. This 25-year-old player had two good matches against the UAE when he made his comeback in ODI cricket.
Since 1975, West Indies have appeared 12 times in the Cricket World Cup. In 1983, the West Indies had a chance to win the World Cup for the third time in a row. They reached the final but unfortunately lost to India. They had reached the final three times previously in 1975, 1979, and 1983, but after 1983, they only made it to the semi-finals once in 1996. In the last world cup in 2019, the team didn't do very well and finished second to last by winning only 2 matches out of 9.
As of June 2023, West Indies have played a total number of 80 World Cup matches where they achieved victory in 43 matches while losing 35 matches. Currently, West Indies is listed in the 10th position in the ICC ODI team ranking.