Simmons still has Windies future, says Butts

BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, CMC – Chief West Indies selector Clyde Butts says Trinidadian batsman Lendl Simmons still has a role to play in the regional side, though the flashy right-hander has been repeatedly overlooked by selectors for the last year.

Simmons was left out of the 30-man preliminary squad for the World Cup starting next month in Asia, and has not played for West Indies since the one-day tour of Australia last February.

Speaking after the 15-man World Cup squad was announced on Wednesday, Butts told reporters Simmons was still in the selectors frame.

“Lendl Simmons is a player we have had a lot of time for. I feel that Lendl Simmons has a future in West Indies cricket. Lendl was in Australia with the West Indies team [in February] and we all saw what happened,” Butts said without elaborating.