ST JOHN’S, Antigua (CMC) — Explosive all-rounder Andre Russell is set to feature for West Indies for the first time in 14 months, after being named in an 18-man provisional Twenty20 (T20) squad yesterday for upcoming series against South Africa, Australia and Pakistan.

The 33-year-old superstar has been plagued by injury in recent years, leading to sporadic appearances for the Caribbean side, and has featured in only five of their 38 T20 Internationals (T20Is) over the last 3 ½ years.

He last turned out for West Indies on the two-match tour of Sri Lanka last year when he excelled with the bat to emerge player of the series.

A 21-ball fifty and a five-wicket haul for Kolkata Knight Riders during the recently suspended Indian Premier League hinted at a return to his best form.

Left-hander Shimron Hetmyer and fast bowlers Oshane Thomas and Sheldon Cottrell, who have struggled with fitness issues in recent months, have also been included in the squad along with the aging pair of Fidel Edwards and Chris Gayle who have struggled for form.

Head Coach Phil Simmons said the squad, which will be again led by Kieron Pollard, was a blend of youth and “world-class match-winners” designed to ensure West Indies a successful defence of their T20 World Cup title later this year.

“These upcoming T20Is are crucial in terms of our preparation for the ICC T20 World Cup,” Simmons said yesterday.

“We have assembled a very solid squad with experienced, world-class match-winners and some exciting young, talented players ready to explode onto the global stage and do great things for West Indies cricket.

“We are at that point where we have identified those who we will look to be the core of the squad to defend our World Cup title, so we want to make sure the upcoming matches create that environment – the way we train, the way we plan, the way we execute and the chemistry within the group.

“We won five years ago, so the next few weeks and months will be major stepping stones on the road towards defending our title and being World Champions for a third time.”

The group will train in St Lucia in preparation for the five-match series against South Africa which bowls off June 26 in Grenada.

And with back-to-back five-match series following against Australia in July and against Pakistan in July/August, chief selector Roger Harper said his panel would be better able to determine the “best squad”.

“The provisional T20I squad was put together with all T20I home series matches against South Africa, Australia and Pakistan in mind,” he explained.

“This gives us the opportunity to continue to build towards the upcoming World Cup and to determine our best squad and our ideal eleven.”

Of the 14-man squad who faced Sri Lanka in March, only all-rounder Rovman Powell has missed out. He made a single appearance in that series — in the final game — making seven as West Indies won the decider.

Edwards, meanwhile, recalled at age 39 for the Sri Lanka series after a decade out of international cricket, has maintained his spot despite a lacklustre display in the first two T20 Internationals during which he sent down six overs before being dropped for the last game.

Gayle, 41, scraped 29 runs from three innings in the series and then also found the going tough in the IPL during which he averaged 25 from eight innings without a fifty for Punjab Kings.

SQUAD – Kieron Pollard (captain), Nicholas Pooran (vice captain), Fabian Allen, Dwayne Bravo, Sheldon Cottrell, Fidel Edwards, Andre Fletcher, Chris Gayle, Shimron Hetmyer, Jason Holder, Akeal Hosein, Evin Lewis, Obed McCoy, Andre Russell, Lendl Simmons, Kevin Sinclair, Oshane Thomas, Hayden Walsh Jr