Jeremy Solozano, the Trinidad and Tobago left-handed opening batsman, is set to make his Test debut, after being selected to the 15 member squad to tour Sri Lanka from November 6 to December 4. The announcement came via a press release from Cricket West Indies (CWI) on Thursday, November 4.
Solozano impressed the selectors during the recently concluded Best V Best matches in preparation for the tour. They played the matches in Antigua at the Coolidge Cricket Ground.
Lead selector Roger Harper said, “Jeremy played for the West Indies ‘A’ Team in 2019 (against India ‘A’) with success and in the Best v Best matches he displayed a sense of application, patience, and composure while looking very comfortable against both pace and spin which encouraged the panel to invest in him at this point.”
Harper further added, “The Best v Best matches provided the opportunity for the players to spend some time in the middle honing their skills for this tour. The aim was to simulate as much as possible, the conditions that the team will likely face in Sri Lanka, so it was good to see the batsmen spending time at the crease while putting some scores together and the bowlers looking to build pressure and create wicket-taking opportunities.”
Kieran Powell and Alzarri Joseph are noticeably absent from the recent squad that faced Pakistan in the home series in August. West Indies played both Tests in Jamaica with the series drawn 1-1.
The West Indies will play 2 Test matches at the Galle International Stadium. However, before the Test matches, the Caribbean side will have a four-day warm-up match in Colombo from November 14 to 17. The Tests will follow on November 21 to 25 and November 29 to December 3.
FULL SQUAD
Kraigg Brathwaite (Captain)
Jermaine Blackwood (Vice Captain)
Nkrumah Bonner
Roston Chase
Rahkeem Cornwall
Joshua Da Silva
Shannon Gabriel
Jason Holder
Shai Hope
Kyle Mayers
Veerasammy Permaul
Kemar Roach
Jayden Seales
Jeremy Solozano
Jomel Warrican
MATCH SCHEDULE
November 14 to 17: Warm-up match in Colombo
November 21 to 25: 1st Test at Galle International Stadium
November 29 to December 3: 2nd Test at Galle International Stadium