President Ali questions West Indies’ World T20 selections

Guyana’s President, Dr. Irfaan Ali has questioned the selection policy of Cricket West Indies, in particular, the omission of Guyanese all-rounder Romario Shepherd.

President Ali in a statement on his official Facebook page stated: “So Proud of this young Guyanese. Why [is he] not in the West Indies T20 World Cup team? His performance has been outstanding thus far in the CPL and there is absolutely no reason why this young All-Rounder is not in the squad.”

On Thursday, Cricket West Indies announced the West Indies World T20 squad of 15 players and four reserves. To date, Shepherd has made 108 runs at a strike rate of 168.75 and taken 15 wickets – third-most in the tournament.

Earlier in the year, the Guyana Cricket Board had questioned the selection policy of Cricket West Indies after no Guyanese was offered an international retainer contract.

CWI’s Lead Selector, Roger Harper, is a Technocrat Member of the Guyana Cricket Board. The other selectors are Head Coach, Phil Simmons, and Miles Bascombe.

Harper stated Thursday that Shepherd was considered for selection but “just missed out on a spot.”

Many cricket enthusiasts from around the region were shocked at the omission of Shepherd and Sherfane Rutherford from the squad and reserves.