By Brandon Corlette

The West Indies selection panel named a 13-man squad for the first Betway Test against South Africa starting on June 10 at the Daren Sammy National Stadium in St Lucia.

That squad features newbie Jayden Seales, while Test recalls were awarded to Kieran Powell, Shai Hope and Roston Chase, who missed the Sri Lanka and Bangladesh series in 2021. Darren Bravo and Shannon Gabriel missed out on selection.

Speaking to the media in a virtual press conference following the squad’s announcement, Lead Selector Roger Harper said, based on solid performances in the Best v Best matches, 19-year old Trinidadian Seales was selected.

Seales, who played one first-class match, has been selected ahead of other promising fast bowlers with good first-class performances.
Harper also said current form is important for selection, hence the inclusion of Seales. “I saw a young bowler perform in games where Test players and the best of our first-class players were playing. He performed well, better than a number of first-class players who have been playing for over a number of years. If he can perform well in those games, he has the potential to transfer that in the Test series,” Harper explained.

“At this point, we think that Seales is best placed among the fast bowlers to serve the purpose we are looking for at this moment,” Harper noted.
Meanwhile, Harper said the consistent Hope broke his way into the Test team based on strong performances and current form. “Shai was selected because of the form in the red-ball matches he played leading up to this point. That indicated he is producing in red-ball cricket,” Harper said.

West Indies squad for first Test reads: Kraigg Brathwaite (captain), Jermaine Blackwood (vice-captain), Nkrumah Bonner, Roston Chase, Rahkeem Cornwall, Joshua Da Silva, Jason Holder, Shai Hope, Alzarri Joseph, Kyle Mayers, Kieran Powell, Kemar Roach, Jayden Seales.