New Delhi. West Indies have named in-form opener Johnson Charles in place of injured spinner Gudakesh Moti in their squad for the Cricket World Cup Qualifier. Charles was part of the West Indies XI that became the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup champions in 2016. This year, he has caught everyone’s attention with his strong performances with the bat. Charles played a strong inning of 118 runs in 46 balls against South Africa in March, which included 11 sixes and 10 fours.
After the suspension of Devon Thomas, he got a place in the Indian team for the three ODIs against the United Arab Emirates (UAE). He grabbed this opportunity with both hands and scored 63 runs in 47 balls in the second ODI. Delivered. Charles scored a quick 24 runs in the first ODI as well. Charles will replace spinner Gudakesh Motie in the 15-member Indies squad, who is yet to recover from a lower back injury.
Charles has scored two centuries in ODIs
Johnson Charles has now played 50 ODIs for the West Indies and has scored 1370 runs at an average of 27.40 and a strike rate of 85.78. He has scored two centuries and five half-centuries in ODIs. He also has 971 runs (one century) in 41 T20 matches at an average of 24.27 and an average of 130.86. He is counted among the best white ball batsmen of the West Indies. West Indies chief selector Desmond Haynes said, “Charles has experience in international cricket and will prove useful to the team in this important tournament.”
Cricket World Cup qualifier matches will be held from June 18
The Cricket World Cup qualifiers will be played in Zimbabwe from June 18, the same day the Indies team has to face USA. The Indies team has to face Nepal on June 22, Zimbabwe on June 24 and Netherlands on June 26. The top two teams of the World Cup qualifiers will get a chance to participate in the World Cup to be held in India this year.
West Indies Team: Shai Hope (Captain), Rovman Powell, S.J. Brooks, Yannick Karih, Casey Carty, Jonathan Charles, Roston Chase, Jason Holder, Akil Hussain, Alzarri Joseph, Brendan King, Kyle Mayers, Keemo Paul, Nicholas Pooran and Romario Shepherd.
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Tags: Cricket, West Indies Team
FIRST PUBLISHED : June 09, 2023, 09:31 IST