West Indies Not Taking Ireland Lightly

Kingston: West Indies captain Darren Sammy says his side would not be taking Ireland lightly despite the underdog status of the visitors ahead of their three-match series at Sabina Park.

The two teams are slated to face off in two Twenty20 Internationals, that starts Wednesday, and a one-off one-day international Sunday, reports CMC.

The series, one of two before the West Indies depart next month to defend their ICC World Twenty20 title in Bangladesh, is set to bowl off Wednesday with the Twenty20s. The second is set for Friday.

Sammy returns to captain West Indies having missed the two defeats in New Zealand, while Gayle has said he expects to open with Dwayne Smith, back in the T20 side after more than a year.

Krishmar Santokie, with his unorthodox left-arm action, could win only his third cap, having impressed in last year's Caribbean Premier League, while Ravi Rampaul is also in contention to replace the discarded Tino Best.

Ireland coach Phil Simmons, meanwhile, says his team will enter the series as rank outsiders but they will be putting their best foot forward.

Ireland have entered a new era, without the retired Trent Johnston, and they are still working out how to balance their side - a situation not helped by the absence of experienced allrounder John Mooney, who left the tour due to a stress-related illness.

There will be a new face or two in the XI, with Andy McBrine, Stuart Thompson, James Shannon and Craig Young - all 23 or younger - competing to make an impression ahead of the World T20.

Teams from

West Indies: Darren Sammy (Captain), Samuel Badree, Dwayne Bravo, Andre Fletcher, Chris Gayle, Denesh Ramdin (wk), Sunil Narine, Ravi Rampaul, Andre Russell, Marlon Samuels, Krishmar Santokie, Lendl Simmons, Dwayne Smith

Ireland: William Porterfield (Captain), Alex Cusack, George Dockrell, Andy McBrine, John Mooney, Kevin O'Brien, Niall O'Brien (wk), Andrew Poynter, Gary Wilson (wk), Max Sorensen, Paul Stirling, Stuart Thompson, Craig Young, Ed Joyce, Tim Murtagh

Pitch and conditions
Sabina Park will conjure up mental images of pace and bounce but it is unlikely to be quite so intimidating, not least because of the surfeit of medium pace and spin likely to be on show.

Stats and trivia

This match will be the first T20 international held at Sabina Park.
In six international encounters, West Indies have beaten Ireland four times, with two washes out.

Match facts
Wednesday February 19, 2014
Start time 1400 local (1900 GMT)

Scores	Upcoming	Results
South Africa vs India - 4th T20I 2nd T20I - Australia v Pakistan - November 16, 08:00 GMT 4th T20I - West Indies v England - November 16, 20:00 GMT 3rd T20I - West Indies v England at St. Lucia England won by 3 wickets (with 4 balls remaining) 1st T20I - Australia v Pakistan at Brisbane Australia won by 29 runs

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