Chief selector sees bright future for West Indies cricket

Clyde Butts, chairman of West Indies' selection panel, has said West Indies A's impressive show against India A in the unofficial Test series, which the hosts won 2-1, augurs well for the future of West Indies cricket.

West Indies A, who made a weak start to the series by losing the first game by two wickets, outplayed India A in the two matches that followed, winning them by comfortable margins. Butts said a strong all-round performance helped the team. "They were exceptional in all departments and deserved to win," Butts said.

"We want to develop our players and see them move forward but we also want to develop a winning mindset. In the 'Test' matches the players showed that they are developing into a very competitive unit and it was really good to see the way they performed against more experienced opposition and won the series."

Butts said the WICB had placed greater emphasis on the A-team programme in recent years. "The WICB has set out a policy of development and where we want to go. This series win and some of the individual performance were steps in that direction and we are confident that we are on the right path.

"We saw players stepping up and playing with confidence and assurance. Last year we also played some good cricket when the Bangladesh A Team came to the West Indies. The win in this series against India was a huge bonus."

West Indies A will now face India A in two Twenty20 matches on June 23 and 24 and three 50-overs games thereafter. Butts said the selectors picked the side for the T20 matches with an eye on the World Twenty20 in September. "We have the World T20 tournament in Sri Lanka coming in September, that's just around the corner, so we have selected a number of players who have represented West Indies in this format and others who have done well in the regional competitions.

"We had some players who featured in the 'Tests' but are not in the T20 side. We want to make it clear they have not been dropped or anything like that. This weekend we are focussing on the T20s and we have selected a few new faces to have a closer look at them against the Indians."