Daren Sammy Archives

Sammy voices frustration as West Indies stuck in India

KOLKATA: West Indies head coach Daren Sammy has issued a plea to return home following his side delayed exit from India due to travel disruptions linked to the Middle East crisis.

Sammy took to X account and shared his frustration over the delayed departure.

“I just wanna go home”, he wrote.

“At least an update, tell us something. Today tmw, next week. It’s been 5 days,” he later posted.

West Indies are one of the teams stuck in India due to the crisis in the Middle East. As per the report, the International Cricket Council (ICC) had initially informed the West Indies that efforts were underway to arrange a charter flight to London for the team’s return to the Caribbean.

It is believed the plan was for the team to depart from India mid-week, though no exact date was specified. Despite this, the West Indies team remains in Kolkata, where they lost to India in the Super Eights on March 1.

On Wednesday, Zimbabwe’s first group of squad members departed Delhi for home following the ICC’s changes to their travel plans.

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Similar to West Indies, Zimbabwe played their final T20 World Cup match on March 1 in Delhi against South Africa, confirmed by Zimbabwe Cricket.

The Chevrons were initially set to leave on March 2, but that plan was cancelled.

“Zimbabwe Cricket confirms that the Zimbabwe senior men’s team participating in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 are on their way home from India after the ICC secured alternative travel arrangements following recent transit disruptions,” Zimbabwe Cricket said in a statement.

“Due to flight availability and revised routing, the squad will return to Harare in batches. Zimbabwe’s original travel route was via Dubai on an Emirates flight but it had to be altered. It has been learnt that Zimbabwe are now travelling to Harare via Addis Ababa, Ethiopia,” it added.

South Africa was eliminated after losing to New Zealand on Wednesday night and now awaits their return schedule. If England loses to India in the second semi-final on Thursday, their travel arrangements will also need to be planned.

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Daren Sammy hopes to repeat 2016 script in India T20 World Cup clash

KOLKATA: West Indies coach Daren Sammy believes history can repeat itself as he aims to mastermind a T20 World Cup victory to end India’s hopes, just as he did when captain 10 years ago.

Sammy led his side to a T20 World Cup semi-final win against India in Mumbai in 2016 and went on to lift the trophy as they beat England in the final in Kolkata.

It is on that same Eden Gardens pitch that Sunday’s clash will play out in front of 68,000 partisan fans.

Although it is nominally a Super Eights game, it is in reality a straight shootout — the winner will move on to the semi-finals and the loser go home.

“In order to win this tournament, you have to go through India at some point,” said Sammy. “Tomorrow is that day for us.”

“History could repeat, though it’s a different venue and two different teams.”

The West Indies have not reached the semi-finals since lifting their second T20 World Cup a decade ago.

But Sammy said earlier in the tournament that he believed “something special” was going to happen with his group of players, captained by Shai Hope.

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“Because of the focus I saw in the team, the mindset, the attention to detail, the attention to their preparation, I still believe that,” said Sammy. “Let me see if my words come true tomorrow.”

West Indies skipper Hope has at his disposal a potent spin attack, seam bowlers with variety and incredible batting power. His side have already blasted 66 sixes, a record for a T20 World Cup.

India are next on the list, 63, which sets up the possibility of a high-scoring slugfest on Sunday.

“It’s a knockout,” said Sammy. “You win, you go through. You lose and then you start thinking about all the what-ifs.”

“That’s what makes an athlete, that’s what makes competition, that’s what makes a World Cup the pinnacle of your sport.”

Awaiting the winner should be a semi-final against England in Mumbai on Thursday.

The final is in Ahmedabad on Sunday, March 8.

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West Indies wary of Zimbabwe’s ‘X-factor’ Muzarabani

West Indies coach Daren Sammy said Sunday his side had plans to counter Zimbabwe’s giant quick bowler Blessing Muzarabani, while admitting the 2.03m (6ft 8in) beanpole had the “X-factor”.

The West Indies will open their Super Eights campaign at Mumbai’s Wankhede stadium on Monday against tournament surprise packages Zimbabwe, who topped a group including Sri Lanka and Australia.

Muzarabani was one of the revelations of the group phase, taking nine wickets and 4-17 in the upset of Australia.

“We plan for every single player. Not only him. He’s an X-factor,” Sammy told reporters Sunday.

“You’ve got to respect the opposition. We know the threat they bring against us but we also know what we have to do in order for him not to be threatening against us.”

The Super Eights were pre-seeded before the tournament, so the top eight seeds knew in advance where they would be playing in the second phase. Only one, Australia, did not make it and were replaced by Zimbabwe.

The format, though, has come under fire after all four group winners — India, South Africa, West Indies, and Zimbabwe — were pitted against each other in the second phase.

The four group runners-up — Sri Lanka, England, Pakistan, and New Zealand — are all in the other Super Eights group.

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The format has brought accusations of a lopsided second phase of the tournament, with two of the group winners certain to miss the semi-finals.

Daren Sammy played a straight when quizzed about the fixture list by reporters, saying the format gave certainty to teams and fans.

“If you take the logistics that comes into it, trying to give the fans who travel an opportunity to plan ahead, that’s the big thing for most people,” said Sammy.

“Zimbabwe came out of the group. That means somebody did not come out. Zimbabwe did what they had to do.

“I do understand from the logistic standpoint, trying to give the fans the surety, flights, whatever.”

Sammy indicated that all-rounder Romario Shepherd, who took a hat-trick against Scotland, could return after being out for the past week.

“He practised well yesterday,” Sammy said of the right-arm seamer and power hitter, who had strapping on his right knee during training on Sunday but looked in no discomfort.

“Bowled quite well, you know, hit the ball very, very cleanly.

“The good thing for us is that everybody is available for selection.

“So I’m glad to know and happy to know that all my soldiers are ready to go out to war.”

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‘I’m not surprised’: Daren Sammy on Nicholas Pooran’s shock retirement

West Indies head coach Daren Sammy has shared his thoughts on Nicholas Pooran’s unexpected retirement from International cricket, stating that he is not surprised by the decision.

A day earlier, former West Indies white-ball captain Nicholas Pooran had stunned cricket fans around the world with his retirement from international cricket at just 29 years of age.

The left-handed batter, who had become a vital part of the West Indies’ limited-overs setup, shared the news through an emotional statement on his social media accounts on Monday, bringing the curtain down on an international career that spanned eight years.

Daren Sammy, who revealed the insights behind Pooran’s decision, was already expecting this kind of decision.

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“My instincts told me something like that would happen,” Sammy said on Tuesday, following West Indies’ defeat in the third T20I – their sixth consecutive overall on the tour.

“Nicholas sent me a text message, and so did I have a conversation with his agent as well… When we first spoke about the UK tour and the conversation I had with him, I did ask him, ‘Are you unavailable for the UK tour only, or indefinite?’ And from that response, I just knew I had to start preparing for the worst case,” he added.

He emphasised the decision of Nicolas Pooran, citing that more players will follow due to the spread of T20 cricket around the world.

“Surprised? No, I’m not surprised. “I’m pretty sure more will follow in that mood, in that direction,” he said.

“That’s the way T20 cricket is now, and especially coming from the West Indies, with the challenges that we face trying to keep our players motivated to play for the crest, so I wouldn’t be surprised.

You saw everybody talk about Heinrich Klaasen, Quinton de Kock, these guys who’ve retired. It’s out of our control,” Daren Sammy concluded.

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