Sammy tells West Indies Test stars to attract better pay with better play

West Indies coach Daren Sammy said that performing better in the World Test Championship is the incentive to raise their financial well-being. Sammy has told the players that it will be their on-field showing that could reflect on better pay in the future.

Last month, Cricket West Indies (CWI) announced that the players have to endure a 25 percent reduction in retainer fees as part of a wide-ranging series of steps being undertaken by the board as part of "a comprehensive counterattack against all the challenges we face financially, developmentally and competitively".

Sammy said that the announcement hasn't affected the West Indies players currently touring the sub-continent, citing the performances in the ODI and T20I series in India. He said that he expects the red-ball team to respond in a similar way in Bangladesh, where they will play two Tests starting on Wednesday.

"If you look at the way we played in the India series when the news was put to the players, how they responded shows the drive, the passion, the willingness to help turn around West Indies cricket," Sammy said. "I think there's reality and there's understanding where you are as a professional, as a board, and there's no secret where we are, obviously financially.

"My word to the guys, especially this World Test Championship, you finish in the top five there's extra incentives. ICC has invested a lot of money in the World Test Championship in terms of prize money, and it's an opportunity for our boys to come up from the number eight that we have finished last two cycles.

"I don't think it's a conversation that's in the dressing room now, but we are aware. I have challenged the guys to put ourselves in a better position to negotiate and attract sponsors by the performances we put on the field. I thought the white-ball teams did that extremely well in India and hopefully we could do that as a red-ball team here in Bangladesh."

Sammy pointed to the fact that they haven't lost a Test series in 2026 as a sign of progress. West Indies have beaten Sri Lanka 1-0 and drawn with Pakistan 1-1 so far this year and go into their final series in the 2025-27 cycle hoping to make a splash.

"The expectations are always there," Sammy said. "The way we have played Test cricket this year, we have not lost a series this year. It's a long time we have gone through a year without losing a series, and this is our last series in the World Test Championship.

"The message to the guys: give it all. Ten possible days of Test cricket left in this cycle for us and just go out there and give it your all. Whatever motivates you, use that to go out and get performances. We have prepared really well.

Sammy believes that the red-ball team's time spent in Chennai preparing for this series, will give them a better chance to perform in the two Tests in Bangladesh. "It is something we as a board have really looked at, giving guys the best possible chance to prepare. We had the ODI team there and we thought Chennai has an amazing facility.

"We sent the batting coach across with the help of Sri (Sriram Krishnamurthy) from the Chennai Academy and kudos to the director, he approved that camp and that preparation. You prepare well, you give yourself the best chance of performing. So leading up to this series I could see the guys are well prepared and hopefully that preparation changes [translates] into performance," he said.