Chris Gayle is back to Windies ODI team after 7 months

The matches will be played at Kensington Oval on Wednesday, February 20 and Friday, February 22

 ‘Universe Boss’ Chris Gayle is back in the Windies ODI side after a long gap of 7 months. The Cricket Windies (CWI), on Wednesday, named the 14-man squad for the first and second ODI against England, roping in Gayle and uncapped wicketkeeper-batsman Nicholas Pooran.

Chairman of Selectors, Courtney Browne stated that the upcoming five-match series will be a vital part of their preparations for the upcoming ICC Cricket World. At the same time, he explained that experienced batsman Marlon Samuels is unavailable due to treatment on his knees.

“As we continue our Cricket World Cup preparations, the upcoming series against the top-ranked ODI side is a great opportunity for us to gauge where we are as a team,” Browne said.

“We welcome the return of Chris Gayle who missed the last two series and Ashley Nurse from injury. We are pleased to introduce Nicholas Pooran to the ODI squad for the first time. Shannon Gabriel remains very much in our World Cup plans but with a heavy workload expected in the Test series he will be considered for selection later in the ODI series,” Browne added.

Gayle is the second most capped WINDIES player with 284 matches in his illustrious career. He is also the second leading runscorer with 9,727 runs in behind Brian Lara with 10,405 runs in 299 appearances.

Pooran is a 23-year-old left-hander is also a wicketkeeper. He has played eight T20Is so far with a strike rate of 152.57 and a highest score of 53 not out.

The first two ODIs will be played at Kensington Oval on Wednesday, February 20 and Friday, February 22.