West Indies, who once dominated the game for close to three decades, are in the doldrums once more. Two-time ODI World Champions will have to go through the ICC Qualifiers for a third successive time if they want to make it to the 2027 ODI World Cup. Caribbeans would have ideally wanted Ireland to win their five-match ODI series against Afghanistan with either a clean sweep or even a 4-1 margin.
That is not going to happen after the Afghans won the second ODI by 92 runs and the opening game was washed out due to rain. Had the AFG vs IRE series gone their way, the West Indians would have to win at least two games against India in the ODI series, which begins on 27th September.
As of now, South Africa and Zimbabwe have qualified as the hosts of the tournament. Namibia, who are third co-hosts, will also have to take part in the ICC Qualifiers if they want to play in the tournament. The cut-off period for direct qualification is 30th September 2026.
India lead the ODI rankings list, followed by New Zealand, Australia, and South Africa. Asian sides Pakistan and Sri Lanka are fifth and sixth, while England, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh are the next three teams in the ranking charts. With the West Indies tenth in the rankings, they are out of the top eight places that would earn them a direct spot in the 2027 ODI World Cup.
How can West Indies qualify for the World Cup?
The former World Cup winners will have to play a ten-team qualifier tournament which is slated to take place from 22nd February to 23rd March. The venue is yet to be decided. The team had to go through a qualifier in 2018, where they qualified for the 2019 event despite losing to Afghanistan in the final.
In 2023, the team led by Shai Hope were part of a ten-team tournament that also featured Sri Lanka. The Caribbean side finished third in Group A with two wins and two losses and progressed to the Super Six Stage. They finished fifth in the table with just one win from five games.
The team lost to Sri Lanka, Scotland, Zimbabwe, and the Netherlands, which ultimately sealed their fate and resulted in the side being knocked out of the race for the 2023 ODI World Cup. Their only win in the Super Six stages came against Oman, but that was merely a consolation.