Alzarri Joseph has hit back at West Indies head coach Daren Sammy after he claimed the quick had declined selection for Pakistan Tests.
Sammy made the comments after Cricket West Indies announced their 15-strong squad for the two-Test series against Pakistan, with the board noting that Alzarri was “unavailable for selection due to personal reasons.”
But the head coach claimed that the quick had “declined selection” after he was initially picked and that was “a decision that is way over my head”. “I leave that with the directors to come up with whatever solutions where contracted players get to decline selection,” he added.
Daren Sammy's statement in itself is controversial, without context: Alzarri Joseph
The quick has now hit back at Sammy’s claims, saying he had a chat with the head coach and CWI before pulling out of selection. Having only recently returned to international action after extended time on the treatment table, Alzarri stressed that his “body was not ready to go into another Test series.”
“We had a chat, myself and the head coach, he said on the Good Morning Jojo Sport Show. “I’ve also had a chat with CWI and if you realize the statement CWI released said personal reasons. Mr Sammy, being around for a long time, he knows exactly what that statement would have done so to be honest, I have nothing to say to Mr Sammy in terms of his statement. Like I said, he knows exactly what that statement would have done and the narrative it would have pushed in the public.
“Obviously, I’ve been out for an entire year. I haven’t played at international intensity for so long after having a second stress fracture. We spoke about me playing the two Test matches here, playing five back-to-back ODIs and how my body was feeling and I knew to myself, my body was not ready to go into another Test series. So, the statement in itself is controversial, without context,” he added.
When quizzed whether the recent episode would affect his relationship with Sammy, Alzarri said: “I’m a professional, so I’m going to go to work. I am representing the West Indies. I’m not representing Daren Sammy, so for me, I’m neither here nor there in terms of a relationship. I don’t go there to make friends. I go there to work and do a job and represent the people of the West Indies.”
The quick was first ruled out of the two-Test series against India in October last year due to a lower-back injury, and also missed the subsequent tour of New Zealand and the T20 World Cup. He returned to international cricket in June this year with the ODI series against Sri Lanka. He also featured in both Tests of the two-match series against the Asian side, followed by a five-ODI series against New Zealand.
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