Jason Holder, Alzarri Joseph to return home early from World Cup Qualifier to manage workload ahead of India series

Already eliminated from the ODI World Cup qualification race, the West Indies have withdrawn all-rounder Jason Holder and pacer Alzarri Joseph from the ongoing Qualifier in Zimbabwe to manage their workload ahead of the all-format series against India at home, starting 12 July. Two-time champions West Indies will miss the ODI World Cup, to be held in India later this year, for the first time in the tournament’s 48-year history. The Caribbeans still have two Super Six matches to play in the Qualifiers — against Oman on Wednesday and Sri Lanka on Friday. “Jason Holder and Alzarri Joseph will depart early from the ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifiers. They will miss the last two Super Six matches as they return to the Caribbean,” Cricket West Indies (CWI) posted on its Twitter handle. “This is with the view of managing their workloads ahead of the Test Series vs India.” Lead men’s team selector Desmond Haynes said Holder and Joseph are key players for the West Indies and the decision was taken in the best interest of the side. “Jason and Alzarri are two of our leading bowlers in all formats,” Haynes said in a statement. “We have a full schedule for the upcoming series against India, where we begin the new ICC World Test Championship, then followed by the ODIs and the five T20Is. Therefore, we had dialogue, and it was felt the best move at this time is to have two of our leading bowlers return early from Zimbabwe.” The series against India will start with the two-match Test series starting in Dominica on 12 July, followed by the second game in Port of Spain on 20 July. The Test matches will be followed by three ODIs and five T20Is, the last of which will be played in Lauderhill in the USA on 13 August. Read all the Latest News, Trending News, Cricket News, Bollywood News, India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.