Johnson overlooked; Hamilton to lead CWI President’s XI

Despite four consecutive Professional Cricket League (PCL) Four-day title under his belt and an unbeaten start to this season, Guyana Jaguars captain Leon Johnson has been overlooked for the Cricket West Indies President’s XI leadership role against the touring England side.

The President’s XI will take on the Englishmen in two two-day warm-up games in Barbados, running on successive days, January 15-16 and 17-18. Leeward Islands Hurricanes’ wicketkeeper/batsman Jahmar Hamilton, who has limited leadership experience, will captain the President’s XI.

Johnson’s exemplary leadership of the Jaguars since the PCL started in 2014 has ignited discussions about the possibility of him leading the senior West Indies side. However, many argue that he would need to nudge the selectors with consistent run-scoring.

After topping the runs chart in the 2015-2016 season with 807 runs, the left-handed Johnson’s form has dipped somewhat in the ensuing seasons. In 2016-2017, he notched up 323 runs at 20.18, followed by 475 at 27.94 in 2017-2018.

Three games into the 2018-2019 tournament, Johnson has 112 runs at 28.00.

The President’s XI includes six players with Test experience, namely batsmen Sunil Ambris, Jermaine Blackwood and Vishaul Singh; all-rounder Raymon Reifer; and fast bowlers Alzarri Joseph and Miguel Cummins.

West Indies ODI player Chandrapaul Hemraj joins Singh as the other Guyanese in the squad.

FULL SQUAD: Jahmar Hamilton (captain), Sunil Ambris, Jermaine Blackwood, John Campbell, Bryan Charles, Miguel Cummins, Chandrapaul Hemraj, Chemar Holder, Alzarri Joseph, Raymon Reifer, Vishaul Singh and Devon Thomas.