Captain of the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) President’s XI Leon Johnson, said it was an honour to lead the side for the upcoming tour match against the Australians and expects a tough challenge from the visitors.
Johnson, who was dropped prior to the recent home series against
England, will lead a 13-man team selected by the board as the touring
Aussies open their account with the tour match against the Caribbean select team, prior to the official series against West Indies
which takes place shortly after.
Speaking on his appointment Johnson told Stabroek Sports: “It’s always a privilege to lead a regional side. My only previous occasion was captaining the Regional Youth Side in 2006, so being named captain of the WICB’s President’s XI is definitely an honour.”
Johnson feels that taking on the powerful Australian side will definitely pose a challenge for his team.
“Australia, who are currently ranked number 2 in the world in Test match cricket will definitely pose a huge challenge for us, but no doubt we will be putting our best effort out over the three days of play,” he said.
The 27-year-old left-hander, who was strangely dropped for the England series, following a good Test series in South Africa, is still optimistic about finding himself back into the team if he can perform well in the tour matches.
“This match would also give me an opportunity to perform well and get the nod from the selection panel for the two test series,” he declared.
West Indies teammate and vice- captain for the tour Carlos Brathwaite, Johnson’s fellow Guyana
Jaguars teammate Rajindra Chandrika, all-rounder Imran Khan, Shane Dowrich, Miguel Cummins and Jason Dawes and other rising starts from across the Caribbean will lock horns with the highly ranked Australia.
The first match will be played from Wednesday May 27 to Friday 29 at
the Sir Vivian Richards Cricket Ground, Antigua.
Squad
Leon Johnson
Leon Johnson (Captain)
Carlos Brathwaite
(Vice Captain)
Sharmarh Brooks
Rajindra Chandrika
Roston Chase
Miguel Cummins
Jason Dawes
Shane Dowrich
Imran Khan
Marquino Mindley
Jason Mohammed
Tyrone Theophile
Jomel Warrican
The team management unit will be named at a later date.
The contest will be Australia’s sole practice match prior to their two-Test series against West Indies.
SCHEDULE OF MATCHES
May
Wed 27 to Fri 29 Tour match – Vivian Richards Cricket Ground, Antigua
June
Wed 3 to Sun 7 1st Test – Windsor Park, Dominica
Thu 11 to Mon 15 2nd Test – Sabina Park, Jamaica
