West Indies Twenty20 World Cup Team

West Indies Team - Twenty20 World Cup Twenty20 Cricket suits the traditional strengths of West Indian cricket. This was evident at the 2009 World Twenty20 where the West Indies reached the semifinals before bowing out to Sri Lanka.

In 2010 the West Indies will field a number of rising stars of the game, including explosive batsmen Adrian Barath and Andre Fletcher. The pace attack is also not short of venom, with a number of speedsters, like Tino Best, Nelon Pascal and Kemar Roach, set to tear into opposing batsmen.

Twenty20 World Cup History

West Indian cricket hit new lows at the 2007 Twenty20 World Cup. After failing to reach the semifinals of an World Cup of Cricket held in front of their home crowds, the West Indies slumped further in South Africa, failing to make it past the first round of the tournament, and losing to Bangladesh in the process.

The only silver lining on the West Indian cloud was the emergence of Chris Gayle as a world class Twenty20 batsman. During the West Indies match against South Africa Gayle scored the first ever century in international Twenty20 cricket, hitting 10 sixes in a breathtaking innings. Unfortunately the West Indian bowlers conceded 28 extras during the South African innings, helping the Proteas reach their target of 205 with overs to spare.

In 2009 the West Indies team produced a much stronger showing. The West Indians finished second in Group C behind Sri Lanka, then went on to take second place in Group E during the Super 8s. The side was unfortunate not to make the final of the event, as a batting collapse saw them lose by 57 runs to the Sri Lankan team.

Strengths and Weaknesses

West Indian cricket has improved steadily since the disappointments of 2007. Thanks to a famous victory in the final of the Stanford Twenty20 for $20 million tournament, a significantly wealthier West Indian team are no strangers to high-pressure Twenty20 games, and have proved they can rise to the big occasion.

Despite the presence of several class players in the squad, the West Indian team is still struggling to function as a cohesive unit, and dramatic collapses remain the order of the day. Greater discipline and focus should go a long way towards helping the West Indies claim their first major tournament title in a decade.