NORTH SOUND: England captain Jos Buttler won the toss and chose to bat first against the West Indies in the first one-day international of a three-match series at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua on Sunday.
In the aftermath of a disastrous defence of their World Cup title, England have predictably rung the changes with the likes of Phil Salt and Zak Crawley coming into the top-order, although there is no place in their team for a second spinner on a pitch expected to assist slow bowlers.
As bad as the tourists’ predicament appears at this time, West Indies are in an even worse situation with the hosts and two-time World Cup winners having failed this year to qualify for the event for the first tim.
Their team for this opening fixture reflects a desire to move forward with batsman Sherfane Rutherford making his ODI debut.
Teams: West Indies - Shai Hope (captain/wicketkeeper), Brandon King, Alick Athanaze, Keacy Carty, Shimron Hetmyer, Sherfane Rutherford, Romario Shepherd, Yannic Cariah, Alzarri Joseph, Gudakesh Motie, Oshane Thomas
England - Jos Buttler (captain/wicketkeeper), Will Jacks, Phil Salt, Zak Crawley, Harry Brook, Ben Duckett, Liam Livingstone, Sam Curran, Brydon Carse, Rehan Ahmed, Gus Atkinson
Umpires: Gregory Brathwaite (BAR), Chris Brown (NZL)
TV Umpire: Nitin Menon (IND)
Match Referee: Richie Richardson (ANT)
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