West Indies have recalled batsman Chris Gayle to their squad for the first two one-day internationals against England.
Gayle, who has not played for the Windies since the home ODI series against Bangladesh last summer, has been drafted back into the 14-man squad for the first two 50-over games of the five-match series this month against England
Gayle, who has hit a record 23 centuries for West Indies in one-dayers, will hope to impress as he eyes a place in the World Cup squad later this year.
Wicket-keeper Nicholas Pooran has been named in an ODI squad for the first time, as the Windies hope to feed off the positivity created by their impressive victories over England in the first two Tests over the past few weeks.
Chairman of selectors Courtney Browne said: “We welcome the return of Chris Gayle and we are pleased to introduce Nicholas Pooran to ODI cricket for the first time. “He is clearly a young player with undoubted talent and we believe he can add value to our middle order.
“As we continue our Cricket World Cup preparations, the upcoming series against the top-ranked ODI side is a great opportunity for us to gauge where we are as a team.”
Captain Jason Holder is also back in the squad after proving his fitness in the Test series following a shoulder injury, along with fit-again off-spinner Ashley Nurse.
Batsmen Marlon Samuels, Chandrapaul Hemraj, Kieran Powell and Sunil Ambris, and all-rounders Roston Chase and Carlos Brathwaite, have missed out while fast bowler Shannon Gabriel will be considered for the latter part of the series.
The first two ODI’s take place at the Kensington Oval on February 20 and 22.
