About U19 Tri-Series in West Indies
The Under-19 teams of West Indies, Sri Lanka and England will lock horns against each other in a 50-over Under-19 TriSeries in West Indies in December.
Significance of the Series
The tri-series is the last competitive test for the young players for all the three countries before the ICC Under-19 World Cup, which takes place in South Africa in January and February 2020. This series will also be the last chance for the players to show give performances which can give them a ticket to the Under-19 World Cup squad of their respective countries.
This series will expose all the three teams to strong and diverse challenges ahead of their main objective, the World Cup. With England and West Indies being drawn in the same group for the 2020 Under-19 World Cup, this series will be the perfect opportunity for these two teams to gauge their opponent.
Team News
England
England announced their 16-man squad for the series on 4 October 2019. Many of these players were also part of the squad which played in the tri-series against India and Bangladesh earlier in the summer. The squad will be captained by George Balderson with George Hill as the vice-captain.
England Under 19 Head Coach Jon Lewis that they have included some players who are relatively untested at this level of competition and will have a chance to force their way into England’s Under-19 World Cup squad. The team will be joined by Ian Bell as the batting coach and Nic Pothas as the fielding coach.
West Indies
West Indies will begin their Under-19 World Cup campaign against Australia on January 18 2020. West Indies, the champions of 2016, would be looking forward to repeating that success. As a part of their preparation for the ICC Under-19 World Cup, the West Indies Under-19 had undergone a ten-day camp in Antigua from September 13 to 23. The camp was also used to select the team to play against England and Sri Lanka in the tri-series. The camp aimed at establishing player roles and specific skills they will require to become match-winners.
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka will begin their 2020 World Cup against the defending champions India on January 19 2020. In the meantime, Sri Lanka Under-19 cricketers are being exposed to high-quality cricket with an opportunity to play against national and Sri Lanka A players. This will provide them with a chance to prepare for the upcoming World Cup and prove their worth and talent to secure their place in the squad.
Team’s head coach, Hashna Tillekaratne that he is also focusing on having a pool of five to six players in the pool for the World Cup in 2022. He feels that the tour to West Indies before the World Cup will help boost the confidence of the players.
