Darren Sammy to take over Windies' Test team, becomes all-format head coach in 2025

St. Vincent (The Uttam Hindu): Former West Indies captain Darren Sammy is all set to take over as head coach of the Test team too, adding to his responsibilities as the coach of the ODI and T20I teams. Sammy, who was part of the West Indies squads that won the Champions Trophy in 2004 and the T20 World Cup editions in 2012 and 2016 in his illustrious career, has been appointed as the head coach of the West Indies team across all formats. Cricket West Indies announced his appointment as coach of the Test team on Monday.

The announcement was made by CWI Director Miles Bascombe during the Quarterly Press Conference held in St. Vincent. Sammy, a two-time ICC Men’s T20 World Cup-winning captain, has been head coach of the West Indies’ white-ball teams since May 2023. From April next year, he will assume the responsibility for the Test side as well. Sammy replaces Andre Coley as the Test head coach after the end of West Indies’ current World Test Championship cycle.

West Indies are currently last in the WTC25 standings, with a 24.24% point percentage, and are out of contention for the finale at Lord’s next year. They still have a two-match series against Pakistan away from home to be played between 16-28 January 2025. "It’s an honour to represent the West Indies in any capacity and with the new role he has mapped out the new direction," Sammy said at a press conference following the announcement. “I am really excited about the added responsibility and the new journey, one that I think myself and my team will be prepared for," he added. Sammy's immediate challenge will be to improve the team's performance in all three formats of the game.