ENG vs WI: Lara questions Pooran's exclusion from squad

West Indian great Brian Lara has lamented star batter Nicholas Pooran’s absence from the squad as they are set to face England in a three-match Test series.

During a recent interview, the former batter raised concerns over pitching an inexperienced batting order against England at their home turf.

“Everyone would love to see Nicholas Pooran in a Test match. I don’t know if he was asked, I don’t know the situation. I’d love to see a Shai Hope back in the West Indies team. But we’ve got to play with what we have,” he added.

However, Brian Lara expressed hope that the squad picked for the series will be successful in their campaign.

“What we have is a group of young players that want to play for West Indies, that want to play Test cricket. Hopefully, their style will come out and they can be successful,” he said.

It is pertinent to mention that West Indies registered their first win in Australia in 27 years earlier this year on the back of Shamar Joseph’s destructive bowling spell in the match.

Brian Lara was of the view that West Indies’ bowling lineup will be up to the task having Joseph, Alzarri Joseph and Jayden Seales in their camp.

However, Caribbeans do not have an impressive record in England, having won their last series in 1988.

While they won the first Test in the three-match series in 2020, West Indies faced defeats in the remaining two games.

England and West Indies will go head-to-head on July 10 in the first Test at Lord’s, followed by the second Test scheduled for July 18 in Nottingham.

The two sides will play their last Test match from July 26 to July 30 in Birmingham.