Guyanese batsman Shimron Hetmyer has pulled out of the three-match CG United One-Day International (ODI) series against New Zealand citing personal reasons.
The Cricket West Indies (CWI) men’s selection panel on Tuesday announced three changes to the squad for the series, which bowls off on Wednesday in Jamaica. The second and third matches – all day/night matches at Kensington Oval – will be held on August 19 and 21.
From the original squad, Hetmyer is unavailable due to personal reasons, allrounder Keemo Paul is ruled out with an injury and left-arm spinner Gudakesh Motie has failed to recover from the hand injury sustained during the CG United series against India last month.
The replacements are middle-order batter Jermaine Blackwood and leg-spinning allrounder Yannic Cariah. Blackwood is called up for the ODI squad for the first time since 2015. Cariah earns his first squad call-up for the West Indies after being promoted from the West Indies 'A' squad that has been playing against Bangladesh. Cariah captained the West Indies Emerging Players team that won the CG United Super50 Cup (then the Colonial Insurance Super50 Cup) in 2019. Odean Smith, the seam-bowling allrounder, has been added as a reserve.
CWI’s lead selector Desmond Haynes said: “Hetmyer has to attend to a family matter in Guyana. Unfortunately, Motie is not yet able to rejoin the squad and Keemo is struggling with an injury. However, it provides an opportunity for Yannic Cariah to get a chance. He is someone that has been performing well on the regional circuit and we feel now is the right time to integrate him into the senior team setup. Odean Smith has been added on the back of some notable performances in the T20 series. He has displayed the all-round ability to change games and we look forward to his continued development.”
The three matches are West Indies’ last remaining three fixtures in the ICC ODI Super League as West Indies aim to automatically qualify for the 2023 ICC World Cup in India. West Indies will be seeking to win the CG United ODI Series to secure one of the automatic qualification places reserved for the top seven teams in the ODI Super League table, excluding hosts India.
FULL SQUAD:
Nicholas Pooran (captain)
Shai Hope (vice captain)
Jermaine Blackwood
Shamarh Brooks
Yannic Cariah
Keacy Carty
Jason Holder
Akeal Hosein
Alzarri Joseph
Brandon King
Kyle Mayers
Jayden Seales
Kevin Sinclair
Odean Smith (reserve)
