Kraigg Brathwaite led the Test team in 39 matches.
The long-standing West Indies Test captain Kraigg Brathwaite stepped down from the post in March this year. Cricket West Indies (CWI) is set to announce his successor in the coming days as they prepare for the home season. As per the reports, a committee led by two former Test captains is conducting interviews for the role.
Brathwaite led the team in 39 Test matches between 2017 and 2025, winning 10 of those. He was handed the permanent captaincy in 2021 and did a pretty decent job. Under his leadership, the West Indies won the home series against England by 1-0 in 2022, defeated Australia at the Gabba in 2024, and drew a series 1-1 against Pakistan in Pakistan.
The 32-year-old will continue to play as a batter to help West Indies transition into a new leadership era. Their next Test assignment will be against Australia, hosting a three-match series from June 25.
As they begin their preparations, we take a look at four potential candidates who can take up the West Indies captaincy mantle.
The 26-year-old will be the front runner for the job. Since making his debut in 2020, Joshua Da Silva has been a constant feature in the West Indies Test side until recently. The wicketkeeper batter has played 33 Tests and has done a fairly decent job.
Da Silva averages just 24.76 with the bat but has played some important knocks when the team was in trouble. He has one century and five half-centuries in the format. Da Silva also has form on his side, recently averaging 64.77 in the West Indies Championship while leading Trinidad and Tobago.
That experience of captaincy in domestic cricket and age make him a good candidate.
The off-spin all-rounder has plenty of experience under his belt. He made his Test debut in 2016 and has played 49 matches. Roston Chase has been out of the team since late 2023, but could be brought back to lead the side.
Chase has amassed over 2,000 runs in the format at an average of 26.33. He has registered five centuries and 11 half-centuries. With the ball, he has taken 85 wickets at an average of 46, including four five-wicket hauls. These numbers aren’t particularly great, but the alternatives aren’t doing any better.
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Kavem Hodge doesn’t have much experience at an international level, having made his Test debut in December 2023. But the 32-year-old boasts of immense experience in the domestic circuit.
Hodge, a middle-order batter and left-arm orthodox spinner, has played 11 Tests since his debut. The highlight of his career was against England, hitting a maiden century at Trent Bridge. Hodge has shown great temperament in critical situations time and again, and that’s a quality you need in a captain.
Tagenarine Chanderpaul has long been touted as the future of the West Indies. Since making his debut in December 2022, he has played 10 Tests, averaging 32.94 with one century and a half century.
The son of the legendary batter, Tagenarine, has inherited all the great qualities, such as good composure and discipline. Following some poor returns, he lost his place in the West Indies side, but with most of the batters averaging in mid-20s, he might just be the guy to build the team around.
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