Shimron Hetmyer, who hasn’t played for the West Indies since the T20 World Cup, made himself unavailable for the Netherlands and Pakistan tours due to personal reasons.
Shimron Hetmyer last played an international game in the T20 World Cup and since then hasn’t been part of the West Indies team due to either personal reasons or fitness issues. West Indies remain hopeful that the left hander will be available for the future tours.
Hetmyer returned to India for the final stages of the Indian Premier League following a short leave to be present for the birth of his child. But he made himself unavailable for the upcoming tours of the Netherlands and Pakistan to be with the family.
“We got the email from Hetty saying that he is unavailable for selection because of the birth of his child. We had considered him for selection and the note stated he was unavailable,”
Desmond Haynes, West Indies’ lead selector, informed earlier this month when the squad was announced.
Roddy Estwick, the assistant coach of the West Indies, said Hetmyer will be missed on these two tours after what he has shown in the IPL. Hetmyer has had an outstanding season for Rajasthan Royals, scoring 297 runs in 12 innings at an excellent average of 59 and strike rate of 163.
“If someone like Hetmyer’s not playing, you’re obviously going to miss his talent. He’s having an outstanding season for Rajasthan Royals. He will be missed, but at the end of the day, he’s not there. He’s asked not to be selected for this tour so we have to get on without him and we hope that he will make himself available for future tours.”
Estwick confirmed that West Indies players playing in the IPL will fly straight to the Netherlands once their respective franchises’ campaigns are over. Nicholas Pooran and Romario Shepherd from Sunrisers Hyderabad will leave after the group stage while Kyle Mayers (Lucknow Super Giants) and Alzarri Joseph (Gujarat Titans) will stay back for the playoffs. Rovman Powell’s plans depend on their last league fixture against Mumbai Indians.
West Indies are slated to play three ODIs on the Netherlands tour on May 31, June 2 and 4, while the tour of Pakistan includes three ODIs in Rawalpindi on June 8, 10 and 12.
