Quentin Sampson selection endorsed by WI skipper Shai Hope as he bats for the former’s ball-striking prowess.
Quentin Sampson’s inclusion for the T20 World Cup has been attributed by West Indies skipper Shai Hope to his clean ball-striking, promise, and adaptability to subcontinental conditions. Sampson was uncapped in international cricket a little more than a week ago.
Hope added that they will deal with their dot-ball problems and difficulties against spin, which were crucial in their recent 2-1 series loss to Afghanistan, and that he will maintain flexibility in his own batting position during the T20 World Cup.
In August of last year, Sampson made his CPL and T20 debut. As Hope’s teammate, he scored 241 runs at a strike rate of 151.57 for the Guyana Amazon Warriors, who finished second.
“He’s shown that he’s had a lot of promise from the first few games that he played in CPL,” Hope said about Sampson, who played all the three matches against Afghanistan in Dubai. “[He is] certainly one of the cleaner ball strikers that I’ve seen in a long time… He also showed the ability to adapt to certain conditions, especially when there’s spin involved.”
“So, he’s one of those ones that I think can definitely play a role in these sort of conditions that we’re going to,” Hope said. “We saw in his debut game against Afghanistan, he negated the likes of Rashid Khan and some of the most experienced spinners across world cricket. When you’ve got the likes of Rovman [Powell] and the rest of the guys, who are power-hitters – you still have to have that depth. I think he’ll be one that can probably follow the likes of Rovman and those guys, who can finish the innings, and play spin in the middle period.”
Speaking on the broader issues of batting, Hope said: “Dot balls have been our Achilles heel for quite some time. And it’s important as batters, we limit those dot balls. And we’ve got power-hitters, guys who score freely and know how to get boundaries. So, if we can limit those dot balls with the boundaries, then we’re going to give ourselves the best chance of maximising runs and scoring big totals or chasing anything that teams put on the board.
“Spin would be a threat in those conditions [in India and Sri Lanka for the T20 World Cup]. Having said that, it could be completely different. It could be grass, fast and bouncy. Who knows?