Allrounder Stafanie Taylor has been appointed captain of the West Indies Women's side and will replace Merissa Aguilleira in the role. Taylor's first assignment will be a home series against Pakistan Women, comprising four ODIs and three Twenty20 internationals, which will begin in October.

Taylor, a top-order batsman and a part-time offspinner, has played 84 ODIs and 62 T20 internationals for West Indies Women since her international debut in June 2008 at the age of 17. With 3115 runs in ODIs and 1814 runs in T20Is, Taylor is the leading run-scorer for West Indies Women in both formats of the game. She has taken 104 wickets in ODIs and 56 in T20Is at an average of 18.26 and 16.37 respectively. She was adjudged ICC Women's Cricketer of the Year in 2011, and won the Women's ODI Cricketer of the Year award in 2012. Taylor has captained West Indies Women in one ODI and six T20Is so far.

Clive Lloyd, the chief selector of the West Indies Cricket Board, said the board was looking to Taylor as an inspirational figure who could lead by example.

"Merissa has been there for a long time and did a pretty good job, but we feel the time is right for a new leader and we have chosen Stafanie," said Lloyd. "She has done well for West Indies Women with bat and ball, and has led Jamaica Women successfully, so leading the team would not be alien to her.

"It's a change that we hope will bring new energy to the team and take it from strength to strength. We believe we can develop a pretty good women's team for the future and we see Stafanie as the person that could give us that impetus for the future. Stafanie has played quite a lot, she has been ICC Player of the Year and she will be able to lead by example."

Aguilleira, the longest-serving West Indies Women's captain, took over the leadership reins during the 2009 Women's World Cup in Australia. Under her captaincy, West Indies Women made it to the final of the 2013 Women's World Cup in India, where they eventually lost to Australia Women. The side also finished as semi-finalists in the Women's World T20 in 2010, 2012 and 2014.

Aguilleira has been picked in the 18-member training squad released by the WICB last week. Karishma Ramharack, the 20-year-old Trinidad & Tobago offspinner, was called up to the squad, while Kyshona Knight, Chedean Nation and Vanessa Watts were recalled to the team.

The squad will be encamped in St. Lucia for two weeks prior to the start of the series against Pakistan Women, which gets underway with the first ODI on October 16 in Gros Islet. The second, third and fourth ODIs of the series will be played as part of the ongoing ICC Women's Championship. While the ODI series will be played in Gros Islet, the three T20 matches will be played in Grenada on October 29 and 31, and November 1.

Training squad: Stafanie Taylor (capt), Shakera Selman (vice-captain), Merissa Aguilleira, Shemaine Campbelle, Shamilia Connell, Britney Cooper, Deandra Dottin, Afy Fletcher, Stacy-Ann King, Kycia Knight, Kyshona Knight, Hayley Matthews, Anisa Mohammed, Chedean Nation, Shaquana Quintyne, Karishma Ramharack, Tremayne Smartt, Vanessa Watts