IND vs WI: West Indies recall Shai Hope and Oshane Thomas in T20I squad

Shai Hope hasn't played a T20I for the Caribbean side since February last year, while Thomas is in line for his first international 20-over contest since December 2021

The West Indies cricket team has recalled wicket-keeper batter Shai Hope and fast bowler Oshane Thomas for the five-match T20 series against India commencing on Thursday.

West Indies are currently hosting team India. The tour includes two Tests, three ODIs, and five T20I matches.

India won the two-match Test series. In the ODI series, the men in blue won the first match and the West Indies fought back well to win the second ODI. The third ODI will be played today to decide the winner of the series.

Hope is captain of the West Indies in 50-over cricket. He hasn't played a T20I for the Caribbean side since February last year, while Thomas is in line for his first international 20-over contest since December 2021.

The West Indies T20I team will be led by batter Rovman Powell and Kyle Mayer will be the vice-captain. Jason Holder, Nicholas Pooran, and Shimron Hetmyer also feature in the squad.

According to the official website of ICC, former West Indies player and now Chief Selector Desmond Haynes said, "The squad is selected with the next ICC Men's T20 World Cup in mind."

He added, "We are looking at various plans as we try to find the right combinations. As we prepare; we are looking to build a unit which we believe can do the job when we host the global event in just under a year."

Desmond Haynes said, "We have some match-winners in our line-up and we will look to have the right kind of preparation, starting here in Trinidad on Thursday."

The series switches to Guyana for the second and third matches following the series opener in Trinidad on August 3, with the final two games played at Broward County Stadium in Florida.

West Indies failed to qualify for this year's ICC Men's Cricket World Cup in India, this series will help them prepare for next year's ICC Men's T20 World Cup which they will co-host alongside the USA.

West Indies T20I squad: Rovman Powell (c), Kyle Mayers (vc), Johnson Charles, Roston Chase, Shimron Hetmyer, Jason Holder, Shai Hope, Akeal Hosein, Alzarri Joseph, Brandon King, Obed McCoy, Nicholas Pooran, Romario Shepherd, Odean Smith, Oshane Thomas.

India T20I squad: Ishan Kishan, Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Tilak Varma, Surya Kumar Yadav (vc), Sanju Samson, Hardik Pandya (c), Axar Patel, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Ravi Bishnoi, Arshdeep Singh, Umran Malik, Avesh Khan, Mukesh Kumar.