Will Jacks (R) and Ben Duckett (L) of England take part in an England Net Session ahead of the fourth T20 International at Queens Park Oval on 18 December 2023 in Port of Spain, Trinidad And Tobago
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England’s players arriving in Trinidad ahead of their T20 match against West Indies were sequestered in their hotel under high alert after a man was shot dead on Sunday on the road where the building is located.
The two cricketing teams are staying in Port of Spain for the final two T20s of the series this week. England’s players were told ahead of arriving in Trinidad that leaving the Hyatt Regency hotel was prohibited, except for cricketing reasons and a prearranged round of golf, reported PA news agency.
England’s first match in Trinidad in 14 years on Tuesday is not in jeopardy and a team spokesperson confirmed there will be no change to their security arrangements.
Police on the island said an investigation was launched following the killing of a man on the Wrightson Road, which is where England’s hotel is located.
Trinidad and Tobago has the sixth-highest crime rate in the world. The UK government’s travel advice states: "Gang-related attacks and shootings are increasing around the city centre of Port of Spain."
Amid the safety concern, the English team wants to have more of a decisive influence on proceedings in a bid to overturn a 2-1 series deficit in a region which is co-hosting next year’s T20 World Cup.
The Windies were on course to snatch the series at the earliest opportunity after racking up 222 for six thanks to Nicholas Pooran’s 82 off 45 balls and belligerent cameos from Rovman Powell (39) and Sherfane Rutherford (29).
Phil Salt’s maiden T20 century and Harry Brook’s nerveless batting at the death helped England reel in a mammoth 223 as they breathed fresh life into their series against West Indies.
The tourists arrived in Trinidad on Sunday with hope renewed and Brook believes a pair of wins this week could do wonders for them a few months out from the T20 World Cup in the region.
Brook likened England’s predicament to last year’s series in Pakistan, where they came from behind to win 4-3 before sealing T20 World Cup glory.
“We’re a fair way away from the World Cup but these two games can make a big difference, especially getting the experience of these pitches and these crowds,” Brook said.
“We had it against Pakistan before the last T20 World Cup where we needed to win the last two games and we just tried to play them all like finals. We’ve got to do that for the rest of this series.
“We can take a lot of confidence from that win. You’ve got so much clarity chasing a big score like that, you know you’ve got to get out the blocks quickly.”
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