T20 sideshow in West Indies

Basseterre – West Indies and Afghanistan get a three-match T20 international series underway at Warner Park in St Kitts today with the visitors desperate to make an impression against the reigning T20 kings.

Yet the fact that the hosts are available to take on the Afghans in the T20 matches, followed by three one-day internationals in St Lucia, is an embarrassing reflection of their continuing decline.

Afghanistan’s historic first series against the West Indies is only possible because the 2004 Champions Trophy winners and twice-beaten finalists failed for the first time to qualify for a global event and are also in danger of having to go through a qualifying tournament next year in Bangladesh to get to the 2019 World Cup, also to be played in England.

Since the victory over England in the final 14 months ago in Kolkata, West Indies have won just two of nine T20 internationals. In sharp contrast, Afghanistan are on an 11-match winning streak although the achievement is tempered by the fact that 10 of those wins were also against associate member nations.

Ironically, the run of success was started against the West Indies at the World T20 in India where Afghanistan, in their first and so far only meeting at senior international level with the Caribbean team, sneaked a six-run win against a sloppy and clearly complacent foe who had already qualified for the knockout stage.

West Indies can afford no such luxuries this time around and captain Carlos Brathwaite (above), the hero on that memorable night in Kolkata, needs to recapture his most devastating batting form while expecting his senior players to also step up to the challenge.