Cricket West Indies (CWI) has announced its 15-member squad for the two-match home Test series against Pakistan. This series will run from July 25 to August 6 and is a significant part of the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) 2025-27.
Cricket West Indies (CWI) has announced its 15-member squad for the two-match home Test series against Pakistan. This series will run from July 25 to August 6 and is a significant part of the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) 2025-27.
Most players who recently won the Test series against Sri Lanka by 1-0 are retained in this squad. Veteran all-rounder Roston Chase will lead the team. Left-arm spinner Joshua Bishop is included in the Test squad for the first time this time.
The 26-year-old Bishop has had an impressive domestic performance; he has taken 116 wickets at an average of 23.90 in only 25 first-class matches. Additionally, he has scored 1046 runs at an average of 30.76 in first-class matches. Bishop has also secured 79 wickets in 54 List A matches and 12 wickets in 16 T20 encounters.
25-year-old opening batsman Kirk McKenzie has returned to the Test team. He last played during the England tour in 2024. McKenzie performed excellently in the previous season of the West Indies Championship, scoring 323 runs in six innings with an average of 64.60, leading to his return to the team.
However, opener John Campbell has been dropped from the team due to a hamstring injury. He sustained the injury during the ODI series against New Zealand recently. Furthermore, West Indies will not have the services of their main fast bowler Alzari Joseph in this series, as he has declared himself unavailable for personal reasons.
The first match of the Test series between West Indies and Pakistan will be played at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy in Tarouba between July 25 and 28. The second and final Test match will be held at the Queen's Park Oval in Port of Spain from August 2 to 6.
The West Indies squad includes Roston Chase (Captain), Jomel Warrican (Vice-Captain), Joshua Bishop, Tejnarayan Chandrapal, Joshua Da Silva, Justin Graves, Kevon Hodge, Shai Hope, Amir Jangu, Samar Joseph, Brandon King, Kirk McKenzie, Kimo Paul, Kemar Roach, and Zaden Seals.
The president of the South American confederation, CONMEBOL, Alejandro Dominguez, has once again promoted the idea of increasing the number of participants in the 2030 World Cup from 48 to 64 teams.
Dominguez noted that the 2030 World Cup will be held in Uruguay, Argentina, and Paraguay, and believes that hosting the tournament with 64 teams would be an excellent opportunity to mark the 100th anniversary of the competition.
Previously, FIFA president Gianni Infantino stated that the issue of increasing the number of participants in the 2030 World Cup to 64 teams would be reviewed by the relevant committees. However, a final decision regarding the expansion of the tournament format has not yet been made.
According to the current plan, the main part of the tournament is scheduled to take place in Spain, Portugal, and Morocco. In connection with the 100th anniversary of the World Cup, the first centenary meeting will be held in Uruguay, Argentina, and Paraguay. The first World Cup was held in Uruguay in 1930.
The 2026 World Cup became the first in history to feature 48 national teams. If CONMEBOL's proposal is approved, the number of participants in the 2030 tournament will increase by another 16 teams.
