Shai Hope was recently elevated to West Indies' white-ball captaincy
As the new cycle of World Test Championship (WTC) begins for the 2025-27 period, top teams are going through leadership changes. While the retirement of Rohit Sharma has put three players in the spotlight to be the next captain, Cricket West Indies (CWI) had a headstart and time on their hands to decide on Kraigg Brathwaite’s successor.
Brathwaite had stepped down from his role as West Indies’ red-ball captain in March, soon after their 1-1 series draw in Pakistan on spin-heavy tracks. The Windies don’t have a Test match scheduled until October this year when they tour India for two Tests.
Brathwaite has left behind a team of talented youngsters and few old-timers who have shown potential to excel in the longest format despite not coming close to qualifying for the WTC final in three editions.
At once, it looked obvious that Shai Hope, following his promotion from ODI captain to white-ball skipper, will be handed reins for all three formats. Hope, however, hasn’t donned the whites since December 2021 which is a significant gap.
Even though the eventual pick – Roston Chase – had fallen on the wayside for the selectors since 2023, it made sense because the spin-bowling all-rounder had been a Test specialist for the seven years of his career in the format.
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For all their internal battles between selectors, players, coaches and the administrators, West Indies still have a player who has the experience of 49 Tests.
According to a report by ESPNCricinfo, CWI had interviewed Chase alongside John Campbell, Tevin Imlach, Joshua Da Silva, Justin Greaves, and Jomel Warrican before making the decision.
The report had also said that the Board had been requested by Hope not to consider him as he needs to focus on his existing leadership roles.
“I am deeply impressed by the professionalism, objectivity, and strategic thinking that shaped the final decision. It sets a new benchmark for leadership appointments in West Indies cricket,” CWI president Kishore Shallow, said in a statement.
Making Hope the skipper for ODIs and T20Is by sacking of Rovman Powell as the T20I captain had not gone down well with legendary all-rounder Dwayne Bravo as he labelled it as the ‘worst decision ever.’
In all the three cycles of WTC, West Indies have finished second bottom.
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