Chris Gayle picked for ODIs against India

Chris Gayle picked for ODIs against India
Associated Press / Scott Heppell

West Indies cricket selectors on Friday renewed their faith in star batsman Chris Gayle by including him in the One-Day Internationalsseries against India.

This comes after Gayle, who had announced in February that he would retire from ODIs after the World Cup, made an about-turn during the tournament, stating that he would “definitely” play the ODI series against India.

According to ESPNCricinfo, Gayle is 12 runs short of Brian Lara’s tally of 10,405 ODI runs, the most by a West Indian batsman.

Gayle will get the opportunity to break that record in the ODI series against India.

Opening batsman John Campbell and all rounders Roston Chase and Keemo Paul, meanwhile, have returned to the 14-member ODI squad, ESPNCricinfo said.

It said Campbell, Chase and Paul were part of the West Indies’ squad for the tri-series in Ireland that preceded the World Cup, but were not considered for the big event.

Campbell had scored 179 in a world-record opening partnership with Shai Hope in Dublin before sitting out the rest of the tri-series injured.

From the World Cup squad, the selectors have omitted batsmen Sunil Ambris and Darren Bravo, offspinner Ashley Nurse, and fast bowler Shannon Gabriel.

Allrounder Andre Russell, whose World Cup ended prematurely with a knee injury, is also not included, though he is part of the T20I squad for the India series, ESPNCrifino said.

The ODI series will begin in Providence, Guyana, on Aug. 8, then move to Port-of-Spain, Trinidad and Tobago for the second and third ODIs on Aug. 11 and 14.

The West Indies ODI squad against India comprises: Jason Holder (capt), Chris Gayle, John Campbell, Evin Lewis, Shai Hope, Shimron Hetmyer, Nicholas Pooran, Roston Chase, Fabian Allen, Carlos Brathwaite, Keemo Paul, Sheldon Cottrell, Oshane Thomas and Kemar Roach.