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THE Cricket West Indies (CWI) men’s selection panel named three uncapped players in a 12-man squad for the first Test match against Bangladesh to be played at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua from June 16-20. The second match in the two-match series will be played in St Lucia from June 24.
The uncapped players are Antiguan wicket-keeper/batsman Devon Thomas, left-arm Guyanese spinner Gudakesh Motie and TT fast bowler Anderson Phillip. Thomas has played 21 One-Day Internationals (ODIs) and four T20 Internationals (T20Is). Motie has so far played one T20I and was a reserve for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup in the United Arab Emirates last year. Phillip was in the squad throughout the recent Apex Test Series victory against England, but has not made his debut to date. He has featured in three ODIs, including last week’s 3-0 series win against the Netherlands and is in the ODI squad for the ongoing ODI series in Pakistan. The Test squad also includes left-handed all-rounder Raymon Reifer who has one match on his record.
Experienced fast bowler Kemar Roach is to undergo a fitness assessment as he recovers from an injury sustained in the English County Championship with Surrey. If he is passed fit, he will be included as the 13th player in the Test squad. All-rounder Jason Holder is unavailable for selection as CWI has granted his request for a period of rest and recovery. He will therefore miss Bangladesh’s all-format tour of the West Indies. Batter Tagenarine Chanderpaul and fast bowler Shermon Lewis have been selected as reserves.
The selection panel also named the CWI President’s XI to face the visitors in a three-day warm-up match at the Coolidge Cricket Ground in Antigua from June 10-12. The team will be captained by all-rounder Yannic Cariah.
Lead selector Dr Desmond Haynes said, “Devon Thomas has been knocking on the door for quite some time. He has done extremely well in our franchise cricket system and we view this as a good opportunity to give him a go. You would notice that Raymon Reifer is also in the squad. He is another person that has done impressively well in the four-day competition and against England (earlier this year). So again, we are giving opportunities to guys who are performing. We think Gudakesh Motie is one of those guys who is also bowling well, and we think it will be a good opportunity for him to be involved.”
Haynes added, “We are looking to pick up World Test Championship points against Bangladesh which will be very important. It would be good for us to use our home advantage to win both Test matches and collect those points.”

TEST SQUAD: Kraigg Brathwaite (captain), Jermaine Blackwood (vice-captain), Nkrumah Bonner, John Campbell, Joshua Da Silva, Alzarri Joseph, Kyle Mayers, Gudakesh Motie, Anderson Phillip, Raymon Reifer, Jayden Seales, Devon Thomas

Reserves: Tagernarine Chanderpaul, Shermon Lewis
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