West Indies to face Zimbabwe in group stage of ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup qualifiers

ST JOHN’S, Antigua:

West Indies have been drawn alongside the Netherlands, Nepal, United States, and hosts Zimbabwe in Group A of the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup qualifier tournament.

The ICC has unveiled the two groups, match schedules and venues for the 10-team tournament from June 18 to July 9. All matches will start at 9 a.m. local time (3 a.m. Eastern Caribbean Time/2 a.m. Jamaica time).

Group B features Sri Lanka, Ireland, Scotland, Oman and United Arab Emirates (UAE). The 10 teams will be competing for the two remaining places at the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup which will be played in India in October and November later this year.

West Indies face the USA in the opening Group A fixture on Sunday, June 18 at Takashinga Cricket Club, followed by Nepal on Thursday, June 22 at Harare Sports Club. West Indies meet hosts Zimbabwe on Saturday, June 24 at Harare Sports Club. The fourth preliminary match will be against the Netherlands on Monday, June 26.

Each side will play the other teams in their group once with the top three from the groups progressing to the Super Six stage from Thursday, June 29 to Friday, July 7. The teams each play three Super Six matches against the sides they did not meet in the group stage.

All points won in the groups will be carried over to the Super Six stage, apart from those gained against the bottom two from each group. The final will be played at Harare Sports Club on Sunday, July 9. The two finalists will progress to the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023.

West Indies Head Coach Daren Sammy said: “We know what’s at stake and the singular focus is to secure one of the two spots for the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023. We trust in our preparation and, now that we know the matchups, we will plan accordingly. These are exciting times ahead for this confident bunch of young men. Our duty is to also make our fans proud and we intend to do exactly that.”

WEST INDIES SQUAD

Shai Hope (captain), Rovman Powell (vice captain), Shamarh Brooks, Yannic Cariah, Keacy Carty, Roston Chase, Jason Holder, Akeal Hosein, Alzarri Joseph, Brandon King, Kyle Mayers, Gudakesh Motie, Keemo Paul, Nicholas Pooran, Romario Shepherd