Harper expects Shepherd to cement his place in WI team
By Brandon Corlette
West Indies Lead Selector Roger Harper and his selection panel are keen to see 27-year-old Guyanese all-rounder Romario Shepherd cementing his place in the West Indies team, and producing similar performances as he did in the 2021 Hero Caribbean Premier League (CPL).
CWI Lead Selector Roger Harper
In recent times, Shepherd’s performance has improved significantly, with him taking 19 wickets – the most in the CPL – and scoring useful runs with the bat. Shepherd has also shown his prowess in the Abu Dhabi T10 with both bat and ball while playing for the Delhi Bulls.
Speaking in a recent media interaction, Harper made this indication. “This is not Ramario’s first tour or first opportunity with the senior team in either format. He made his debut a couple of years ago while this panel has been in place. We look forward to him being able to grow with the team, cement a place for himself, and showcase to us at this level what he is capable of doing. We want to see him display the sort of performances that he has been giving to us at the CPL level.”
Although Shepherd has scored runs at the CPL and in the ongoing Abu Dhabi T10, Harper and his panel consider Shepherd’s bowling as his primary asset. Dwayne Bravo has also tipped Shepherd to be his replacement in the West Indies T20 team in the near future.
Romario Shepherd
“We still consider Romario Shepherd a bowling all-rounder; we still think that his bowling is his primary skill. It is great to see his batting coming along, and it is no surprise, because we (had seen) glimpses of this in the past,” Harper has said.
Shepherd, who played six T20I matches and seven ODIs for the West Indies, scored 109 runs in the 2021 CPL and had an economy rate of 7.6 with best figures of 3-15 in nine matches, at an average of 14.1 with his 19 wickets.
West Indies’ full squads to Pakistan are listed hereunder:
One-Day International squad: Kieron Pollard (Captain), Shai Hope (Vice Captain), Darren Bravo, Shamarh Brooks, Roston Chase, Justin Greaves, Akeal Hosein, Alzarri Joseph, Gudakesh Motie, Anderson Phillip, Nicholas Pooran, Raymon Reifer, Romario Shepherd, Odean Smith and Hayden Walsh Jr.
T20 International squad: Kieron Pollard (Captain), Nicholas Pooran (Vice Captain), Darren Bravo, Roston Chase, Sheldon Cottrell, Dominic Drakes, Shai Hope, Akeal Hosein, Brandon King, Kyle Mayers, Gudakesh Motie, Romario Shepherd, Odean Smith, Oshane Thomas and Hayden Walsh Jr.
Notes
Jason Holder is being rested for this tour, due to workload management. Fabian Allen and Obed McCoy are unavailable, owing to injury and rehabilitation. Evin Lewis, Shimron Hetmyer, Andre Russell and Lendl Simmons are unavailable, owing to personal reasons.
