Jamaican  opening  batsman  Brandon King  has  been  named  captain  of  the  West  Indies  team  for  the  three  match  T20  International  series  against  Afghanistan  which  starts  later  this  month  at  the   Dubai International Cricket Stadium in the United Arab Emirates . 

The series  which  will  be  played  from  January  19  to  22 will serve as crucial preparation ahead of the ICC men’s T20 World Cup scheduled to begin on February 7.

The final squad for the  World Cup  will  be  unveiled  ahead  of  the  West  Indies  three-match T20 international  series against South Africa set for January 27  to 31.

Meanwhile , regular  captain  shai hope, along with  Roston Chase, Akeal hosein and Sherfane Rutherford  are  unavailable for selection, due to commitments in the ongoing SA20 tournament.

Shamar joseph and evin lewis returns  to  the  squad………… both players successfully clearing return-to-play protocols after recovering from injuries sustained in previous series.

Alzarri Joseph, who was also sidelined by injury towards the end of  last year, has not been included at this stage as a precaution following medical review, while Quentin Sampson, the breakout player of the 2025 Caribbean Premier League, has earned his maiden international call-up .

He replaces Rovman Powell, who has been rested for the series alongside Jason Holder and Romario Shepherd as part of workload management

The  full  16 man squad  is  captain Brandon King, Alick Athanaze, Keacy Carty, Johnson Charles, Matthew Forde, Justin Greaves, Amir Jangoo, shamar Joseph, Evin Lewis, Gudakesh Motie, Khary Pierre, Quentin Sampson, Jayden Seales, Ramon Simmonds, Shamar springer  and Shimron Hetmyer. 

The squad will depart the Caribbean on January 14  for  the  opening  game  in  the  series  on  January  19.

Game  two  is  on January  21,  with  the  3rd  and  final  match set for the  following  day.