Bridgetown, Barbados – Nevisian opener Kieran Powell has been named in the West Indies squad for the Third Digicel Test at Windsor Park in Dominica.
The 21 year old left hander, a student of the Sagicor High Performance Centre replaces out-of-form right handed Guyanese middle order batsman Ramnaresh Sarwan.
There are no other changes to the 13 man squad from the Second Digicel Test which resulted in a draw. India hold a 1-0 series lead in the three match rubber.
Powell has played two ODIs for the West Indies, once against Bangladesh then against India. He is the Leeward Islands opener and a regular member of the West Indies A Team.
Windies Squad for Third Digicel Test
Darren Sammy – Captain
Adrian Barath
Carlton Baugh
Devendra Bishoo
Darren Bravo
Shivnarine Chanderpaul
Fidel Edwards
Kirk Edwards
Kieran Powell
Ravi Rampaul
Kemar Roach
Marlon Samuels
Lendl Simmons
"Ramnaresh is having a difficult time and it is best for him to make way and allow a player in better form to contribute to the team totals," Clyde Butts, Chairman of the Selection Committee said.
"We have no doubt about Ramnaresh’s class as a batsman, he has proven himself countless times in the past and we are certain that he will return stronger in the near future," Butts added.
"Kieran is young but has been on the First Class circuit for some time and is a former Windies Under 19 World Cup player. He did well for the West Indies A and scored an impressive hundred against England Lions in the WICB Regional 4 Day Tournament but got injured subsequently," Butts said.
"We believe he has bright future and this is an excellent opportunity for him to show his worth on the international stage," Butts added.
Powell has been working for the past several weeks at the Sagicor High Performance Center in Barbados under Head Coach Andre Coley and Batting Coach Carl Hooper.
The Third Digicel Test will be played Windsor Park from Wednesday July 6th to Sunday July 10th. It is the first time Windsor Park will host a Test match.
First ball is 10am local time (9am Jamaica time).
Fans can follow the match live on television and radio (check local listings for details) or on Twitter (http://www.twitter.com/westindies) and Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/windiescricket )
Match photos are also available from Digicel at http://www.flickr.com/photos/digicelcricket