West Indies all-rounder Andre Russell has been ruled out of the last One-Day International (ODI) set for today at Warner Park, St Kitts, with the hosts looking to tie up another impressive series win.
The Jamaican has since had treatment to his knee and should be fit for selection for the three-match T20 series. Bangladesh and Windies are currently locked in a 1-1 state heading into the final match on Saturday, following two brilliant games at Providence.
Windies will be sweating the loss of the power-hitter, but have drafted in Russell’s countryman, left-arm pacer Sheldon Cottrell, who will play in the last game.
Cottrell, who was injured back in March and was replaced by Guyanese Keemo Paul in the Windies squad, made a strong return bagging wickets in the Global T20 Canada Cup where his franchise, Vancouver Knights, were crowned champs.
Guyana lit up over the past few days with the return of international cricket after
Andre Russell
nearly a year. The touring Bangladeshis racked up a big win in Sunday’s opener thanks to Tamim Iqbal’s 10th ODI ton and a solid 97 from Shakib Al Hasan.
It was, however, the tag-team of skipper Mashrafe Mortaza, returning to the side for the first time since 2015 and Mustafizur Rahman who bagged four and two scalps each to seal a good win.
Young Shimron Hetmyer was the star in a losing effort with a vital fifty, but soon turned the tides on the Tigers during Wednesday’s epic day/night game. In a match where skipper Jason Holder defended seven from the final over, Hetmyer smashed the highest score by a Guyanese (125) on the track as well as rack up the honours of being the youngest West Indian to top score at Providence.
The Caribbean side almost encountered a scare when Tamim, Shakib and Mushfiqur Rahim hit resurgent fifties during the 280-run chase. While the bowling has not clicked fully for the hosts, it is left to be seen what combination they will go for in Basseterre.
Bangladesh, on the other hand, will be eyeing gold after they suffered a 2-nil hammering in the Tests. Prior to the tournament, Mortaza was relishing the fact that his side had been making huge strides in limited-overs cricket and as such, had predicted a more dominating ODI series compared to the Tests. With the batting coming on strong minus huge contributions from Mahmudullah and Sabbir Rahman, it is still unlikely that the Tigers will change their batting combo.
Change is also unlikely in the Tigers bowling unit, which has been the better of the two sides to date in the ODIs. Mustafizur, Mortaza and Ruben Hossain have been making steady inroads while the spinners, most notably Mehedy Hasan Miraz, have been doing their job well.
Play at Warner Park is set to bowl off from 09:30h on Saturday, July 28. Meanwhile, the three-match T20 series will start in St Kitts on July 31 with the last two matches being played at Central Broward Regional Park in Florida on August 4 and 5.
Full Squad: Jason Holder – Captain; Devendra Bishoo; Chris Gayle; Shimron Hetmyer; Shai Hope; Alzarri Joseph; Evin Lewis; Jason Mohammed; Ashley Nurse; Rovman Powell; Sheldon Cottrell; Keemo Paul and Kieran Powell.
(Clifton Ross)
