“Substance over hype”: Sammy discusses Joseph’s possible inclusion in World Cup team

West Indies white ball Head Coach Daren Sammy is setting Guyanese fast-bowling sensation Shamar Joseph’s Australia heroics aside and is looking to see what the breakout bowler can do in the shorter format, before making a pronouncement on whether he can secure a spot on the West Indian T20 team for the upcoming ICC Men’s T20 World Cup in the Caribbean and USA.
Sammy has openly admitted that he praised Joseph’s efforts Down Under that propelled him to international stardom. However, while responding to an inquiry on utilising Joseph’s particular skill- sets during a Cricket West Indies (CWI) press briefing on Monday morning, Sammy shared that he was not too eager to buy into the hype just yet without seeing the Guyanese compete in the T20 format.
The former West Indian World Cup-winning Captain shared, “In spite of his exploits in the Test series, again we speak of processes and the exposure and the guys that we’ve given those opportunities over the last year, especially from a bowling standpoint, in which to perform and you know, book their names for that World Cup squad; Shamar brings the pace element, what we watched in Australia, he was very consistent in his line and length which resulted in wickets and is something, in 24 balls, in the different stages of the game, that we are looking for.

“Ideally, Test cricket and T20 cricket, it brings two different dimensions and understanding, I’m not really one who look at the hype. Hype without the substance is still over-rated. We’ve had measures and processes that lead us to the World Cup, the main event that will be on the 2nd. Shamar Joseph is part of that, who fast-tracked his way by his performances and again, hopefully he gets to play T20s and we get to see what he’s capable of doing, under pressure, every single ball in T20 cricket, ‘cause that’s what it is. And we select from there,” Sammy went on to add.
The white-ball Head Coach also took the time to discuss West Indies’ T20 bowling as of recent, which he admitted that a talent like Joseph can bolster; revealing that bowling within the powerplay is a major concern for the team.
“One of the concerns throughout with our bowling, has been the powerplay bowling and because we were conceding, averaging about 10 runs an over in the powerplay, before 2023 and even during that period and the lack of taking wickets in the powerplay has affected the different stages of the game. again, that’s when I speak about the last two picks is to see which is going to be the final straw, you mentioned guys like Shamar Joseph, who I really hope he gets to play in the IPL,” the Head Coach divulged.
He continued, “When we’ve controlled the powerplay with the ball, that’s the beauty and excitement that it brings to me as a coach and the guys do understand, ‘cause it’s something we do discuss all the time. You control the powerplay both sides – bat and ball, you give yourself 70 per cent chance of winning matches. Our bowlers have been put under the pump, but so has every bowling team this year, in the world, in T20 cricket.”
This year’s Men’s T20 World Cup will run from June 1 to 29, bowling off in the USA and concluding at the Kensington Oval, Barbados. Currently, Baracara native Joseph is with the Lucknow Super Giants outfit for the Indian Premier League, but is yet to make his debut in the prestigious tournament.