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Carl Hooper and Floyd Reifer, who were both leaders of the West Indies, have been hired as assistants to the new white-ball head coach, Daren Sammy. This is in preparation for the West Indies’ three-match ODI series against the UAE and the World Cup Qualifier in Zimbabwe. James Franklin, a former all-rounder for New Zealand, has also joined the team as a coach.
Carl Hooper has worked as a teacher at different levels in the Caribbean and Australia, where he now lives.
He played in 102 Tests and 227 ODIs. During the summer of 2022–23 in Australia, he worked as an assistant coach for the Adelaide Strikers in the Big Bash League (BBL). He has also been an assistant coach for the Antigua Hawksbills and the Guyana Amazon Warriors in the Caribbean Premier League (CPL). He has also been a coach at the West Indies High-Performance Centre in Barbados.
“When Daren first told me about the possible opportunity, I told him right away that I was interested because I really want to help with the challenge and make a big difference,” Hooper said. “I’m sure that it’s time for West Indies cricket to get better, and I’m sure that my skills, knowledge, and experience can help.”
Reifer played in six Tests, eight ODIs, and one T20I. During the 2019 World Cup, he was also the West Indies’ temporary head coach. He has been a coach for the West Indies A team and the adult men’s team. He was also the head coach of the men’s under-19 team in 2021 and the Jamaica Tallawahs in the Caribbean Premier League.
Franklin was an all-rounder who played 31 Tests, 110 ODIs, and 38 T20Is for New Zealand. He has been head coach of the English county team Durham, assistant coach at Birmingham Phoenix in the Men’s Hundred, and defense coach at MI Emirates in the ILT20.
Andre Coley will be the head coach for test matches. Former West Indies players Kenny Benjamin, Stuart Williams, and Rayon Griffith, who was a fast bowler for Guyana, will be assistant teachers. Benjamin and Griffith were part of the coaching staff on the tours to Zimbabwe and South Africa earlier this year. Williams had worked as an assistant coach on past tours.
CWI said that all of the new assistant coaches were hired on a short-term basis and that their jobs would be looked at again “after the India series in August 2023.”
As they prepare for the World Cup Qualifier in Zimbabwe, the West Indies are in Sharjah for a three-game ODI series against the UAE, which starts on June 4.
The West Indies were put in Group A with the Netherlands, Nepal, Zimbabwe, and the USA for the ten-team qualifier. Their first game is on June 18 against the USA.
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