Cricket West Indies has added wicketkeeper-batter Amir Jangoo to its T20I squad in India as injury cover for Jewel Andrew, the young gloveman who hurt his finger taking a catch in the deciding ODI of the just-finished series. The move comes just days before the two sides begin a five-match T20I series in Lucknow on October 6, with West Indies still buoyed by a stunning, if ultimately consolation, win in the final ODI at New Chandigarh. Andrew remains with the touring party and has not been ruled out of the white-ball leg of the tour, but the board’s decision to fly in reinforcements underlines how seriously it is treating thin wicketkeeping stocks ahead of a marquee five-match assignment.
How the Injury Happened
Andrew was hurt in the 36th over of India’s innings during the third ODI at the New PCA Stadium in New Chandigarh, injuring a finger as he completed a catch at cover to help remove Naman Dhir off the bowling of Gudakesh Motie. He played no further part behind the stumps and, more significantly, was unable to bat as West Indies chased down a target of 352, the fielding side’s primary gloveman missing out on what became a historic run-chase for his own team. X-rays taken afterwards showed no fracture, and Cricket West Indies has described him as being monitored by the touring medical staff rather than definitively ruled out, but the uncertainty was enough to trigger a call-up.
Jangoo’s Timely Form
The reinforcement arrives in the form of a player in the best run of his career. Jangoo, 29, has played only seven T20Is since debuting in December 2024, managing 163 runs at a strike rate of 120.74 in the format, modest numbers that undersell the form he has carried into this tour. Across the three ODIs against India he scored an unbeaten 58 in the opener, followed it with 114 in the second match, and then added 67 in the decider, finishing with 239 runs in the series, among the leading run-scorers on either side. He arrives in the T20I squad on the back of an even bigger year domestically, having struck 213 runs for the Antigua and Barbuda Falcons in their CPL 2026 title run, including an unbeaten 57 in the final.
A Series That Got Away, Then Didn’t
The call-up cannot be separated from the context of the ODI series that preceded it. India won the three-match rubber 2-1, but West Indies closed it out in style, with captain Shai Hope compiling an unbeaten 162 to drag his side to the 352-run target at New Chandigarh, the highest successful run-chase in West Indies ODI history and the second-highest score ever by a captain in a winning chase. That the tourists head into the T20I leg with some momentum, despite losing the series, is part of why the board is keen to protect its wicketkeeping stocks rather than risk being short-handed for the format switch.
Two Ways to Read the Call-up
Within West Indies cricket circles, the move has been read two ways. Those backing the decision point out that modern touring squads cannot afford to travel one injury away from an empty gloves slot, especially on a long, five-city hop across India that includes Lucknow, Ranchi, Indore, Hyderabad and Bengaluru, and that Jangoo’s white-ball form makes him far more than a like-for-like stopgap. The more cautious view is that parachuting a 29-year-old with only seven caps into a high-pressure series against the world’s top-ranked T20I side, on short notice and without extended training time in Indian conditions, is itself a gamble, and that the real test will be whether Andrew’s finger clears him to keep wicket in Lucknow regardless of who else is in the squad.
India’s Own Reshuffle
West Indies are not the only side adjusting personnel before the opener. India have also tweaked their squad for the five-match series, with Naman Dhir brought in to replace Washington Sundar, a change that keeps the hosts’ middle-order hitting options flexible as they look to carry their 2-1 ODI series win into the shorter format. Both squads will have barely 48 hours to regroup after a physically draining one-day series before the first ball is bowled in Lucknow.
What to Watch From Here
The immediate storyline is simple: will Jewel Andrew’s finger hold up well enough for him to keep wicket in the series opener, or will Jangoo be handed his T20I debut inside days of joining the squad? Cricket West Indies has given no firm timeline beyond continued monitoring, which means the medical staff’s assessment in Lucknow this week will likely decide the matter. Either way, the broader takeaway from the past fortnight is that West Indies’ white-ball depth, so often questioned in recent cycles, has produced both a record-breaking series-ending chase and a replacement keeper in form, giving the touring party genuine options as it chases a shot at upsetting India across five T20Is running through to October 17 in Bengaluru.
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