Thaindian News

Bridgetown (Barbados), Sep 20 (IANS/CMC) West Indies coach Ottis Gibson feels his inexperienced side has to overcome two major challenges when it faces England in two Twenty20 Internationals this weekend at The Oval in London.

Prior to the West Indies squad leaving for England Monday, Gibson said the typically chilly end-of-summer weather and the atmosphere at the matches could be the two factors that seek to undermine Darren Sammy’s side.

“We had meetings where we spoke about what we can expect while in England,” said Gibson.

“This will be the first time playing in England for some of the players, so we plan to hit the ground running.

“We have prepared well, and now it is up to the players to take the opportunity and make the most of it.”

Both sides are missing a number of key players, and Gibson said this provided the West Indies a chance to match England.

“England are the WorldT20 champions and have been playing some very good cricket, and have some new players in their system,” he said.

“We also have some new players in our unit, so it will be great to see how the two teams play against each other.

“I have the belief that we will do very well, and all the players are clear in their minds what we want to accomplish as a team.”

West Indies departed from Barbados Monday, after an intense week-long preparatory camp at the High Performance Centre, which Gibson said went well.

He noted that the tour was the beginning of the one-year countdown to the World T20 Championship scheduled for September 2012 in Sri Lanka.

“We have these two matches as well as a few more to come,” he said. “The policy of the selectors has been to expose players.

“With the Trinidad & Tobago team away at the Champions League T20, it has given an opportunity for more players to get a look-in, and I hope they make the most of this chance to perform on the international stage.”

The two matches against England take place Friday, Sep 23, and Sunday, Sep 25.

–IANS/CMC
bs/dg