Daren Sammy, the West Indies head coach, doesn’t mind a trip down memory lane, and 10 years after he captained the West Indies to a sensational T20 World Cup triumph in India, returning to that country is something he will embrace, and he wants his players to do too.
“I can’t part with 2016 — it was a special year, with the U-19 men [winning the junior world cup], the girls [winning the T20 World Cup] and the men. It’s a place [memory] I go back to when things aren’t going well,” said Sammy.
The West Indies’ victory a decade ago, thanks to Carlos “remember the name” Brathwaite, who smashed three sixes off Ben Stokes in the last over of the final at Eden Gardens, provided one of the most indelible images of the T20 World Cup.
That West Indies team was loaded with greats, including Sammy, Chris Gayle, Dwayne Bravo, Marlon Samuels and Andre Russell. Known for their six-hitting, they revolutionised the T20 game, but Sammy believes it was because of the ball and not the bat that his side was able to win that year.
“Bowlers win you tournaments; batters can win you a game,” said Sammy.
It’s why his biggest concern for his side before this year’s tournament is its bowling — which, while made up of talented players, lacks experience. “In 2016 Samuel Badree was controlling the power play for us. We also won all the tosses and bowled first — what the bowling line-up did was to restrict the opposition to a par score, and with the batting we had then, we were always going to win.
“For us the ability to hit sixes is still there. The biggest difference from 2016, for me, is that when I look at the other squads, all the teams have caught up to us when it comes to boundary hitting,” said Sammy.
This year’s group of batters may not be as explosive as the 2016 generation, but as they showed in bashing 12 sixes in the weather-curtailed 10-over match at the Wanderers last Saturday, they are capable of inflicting damage.
Shimron Hetmyer was the leading run-scorer in the series against South Africa, and with Shai Hope, Sherfane Rutherford and Brandon King in the lineup, there is sufficient firepower to warrant respect from their opponents.
“The beauty of our batting is the experienced guys we have. They know the conditions; they play in the IPL, and they dominate there. I know the experience we have in the batting lineup can really make an impact for us,” said Sammy.
The bowling less so. But there were green shoots in that Wanderers fixture. Admittedly against a South African batting lineup going hell for leather with a required run rate of more than 12 an over, but Sammy was happy with how his bowlers performed, especially the left-arm wrist spinner Gudakesh Motie.
The 30-year-old suffered a crisis of confidence last year, Sammy explained, but after a protracted period doing plenty of technical work and time spent in the company of a South African left-arm wrist spinner, Motie found his mojo and picked up 3/17 at the “Bullring”. “He has maximised the time and the specific training he’s got,” said Sammy.
Tabraiz Shamsi was part of the West Indies coaching staff during the series, after calling Sammy, who he knows from time spent playing in the Caribbean Premier League. “It was good to have Shamsi. It allowed Motie to continue with the work he was doing,” said Sammy.
“I saw where it [having Shamsi] could add value — he knows the conditions and the bowlers I have, and he’s been a world-class spinner. Knowing he wants to venture into coaching after [his playing career], it’s something to have on the CV, and he was quite good with the guys.”
Shamsi, who last played for the Proteas in 2024, told Rapport he wouldn’t be with the West Indies at the World Cup, citing the need to spend time with his family.
The West Indies are in the same group as England, Scotland, Italy and Nepal. They face the Scots on the opening day of the tournament on Saturday.
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