Will Sammy rest key players during sub-continent voyage?

That is the question coach and sole selector Daren Sammy will ponder as he selects his squads for the white-ball tour of India and subsequent Test team tour of Bangladesh.

In India, the West Indies will play three One-Day Internationals (ODIs) from September 27th to October 3rd, and five T20 Internationals from October 6th to 16th.

In Bangladesh, the West Indies will be involved in two Tests: October 28th to November 1st in Dhaka and November 5th to 9th in Sylhet.

Now, I am not a selector, nor do I claim to be one; but I do watch a lot of cricket, and I do have an opinion. So here are my squads for the trips to India and Bangladesh in all three formats.

This series will be of great importance as the 50-over team prepares for the 2027 ICC ODI World Cup qualifiers in March.

Following this three-match series against India, the West Indies will likely play three ODIs at home to Afghanistan in January. These are the games where Sammy will want to see who he can rely on for the World Cup qualifiers.

My squad for the ODI series against India would be: Shai Hope (captain), John Campbell, Justin Greaves, Keacy Carty, Amir Jangoo, Shimron Hetmyer, Sherfane Rutherford, Roston Chase, Gudakesh Motie, Keemo Paul, Matthew Forde, Alzarri Joseph, Shamar Joseph, Vitel Lawes, and Jayden Seales.

Even though India is renowned for its spin-friendly surfaces, the onus will be on Sammy to take a closer look at the quality of his pace-bowling options. This will stand them in good stead in the event that the team qualifies for the World Cup, which will be jointly staged in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia.

The unrelated Josephs and Seales should see themselves as the forefront of the fast-bowling attack, with Greaves as the fourth pacer. Paul and Forde will of course want to stake their claims for a starting spot.

The experienced Chase (off-spin), Motie (left-arm orthodox) and Lawes (left-arm wrist-spin) will be the slow-bowling options.

Campbell and Greaves will be the opening pair, with Jangoo as the back-up; both as the opener and the wicket-keeper. Meanwhile, Hope, Carty, Hetmyer, Rutherford, and Chase will battle for the middle-order spots.

There will be calls for Sammy to blood a few newer faces in the T20 series against India, but with Cricket West Indies (CWI) in dire financial straits, he may be pondering whether or not to carry a full-strength team in the hope of attracting at least one sponsor to boost the regional board’s coffers (far-fetched as this may seem).

My guess is that the team will be a full-strength one, and that the squad selection will not be much of a surprise to those who witnessed the home series against Sri Lanka.

My squad for the T20 series in India is: Shai Hope (captain), Brandon King, Jewel Andrew, Shimron Hetmyer, Rovman Powell, Sherfane Rutherford, Jason Holder, Gudakesh Motie, Matthew Forde, Shamar Springer, Romario Shepherd, Khary Pierre, Akeal Hosein, Alzarri Joseph, and Shamar Joseph.

Andrew will be the reserve wicket-keeper, and Pierre will possibly be the reserve spin-bowling option (with Motie and Hosein the preferred duo). Pierre can be included if Sammy wants a field a three-pronged spin-bowling attack.

Pace-bowling all-rounders Holder and Forde should start, both for their batting and their bowling variations, with Shepherd and one of the Josephs in the mix, too.

The West Indies are out of contention for a place in the 2027 World Test Championship final and could use this series to rest a handful of key players, particularly the ‘all-format’ ones.

My squad for the Test series against Bangladesh is: Roston Chase (captain), John Campbell, Brandon King, Tagenarine Chanderpaul, Kavem Hodge, Amir Jangoo, Justin Greaves, Joshua Da Silva, Joshua Bishop, Keemo Paul, Anderson Phillip, Kemar Roach, Jomel Warrican, Khary Pierre, and Jayden Seales.

The three players I will rest for this series are Hope and both Josephs.

Campbell, who missed the Pakistan home series due to injury, will return in place of Kirk McKenzie. Pace-bowling all-rounder Keemo Paul will come in for Hope, with Joshua Da Silva reinstated as the first-choice gloveman, and Pierre will replace Shamar Joseph.

Alzarri Joseph opted out of the Pakistan series, but I will be giving him this series off for workload management.

So that’s my take. What’s yours? Is this a time for rest and experimentation, or a time to build consistency? Over to you.