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Ottis Gibson handed West Indies fast-bowling consultant contract; Sri Lanka series to kick off his one-year tenure

In early June, the West Indies will host Sri Lanka for three ODIs, three T20Is and two Tests, and that will be Gibson's first assignment.

Updated on: Apr 4, 2026, 10:48:55 IST
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Cricket West Indies (CWI) has handed former Caribbean fast bowler and head coach Ottis Gibson a one-year contract to work as a fast bowling consultant.

Ottis Gibson has been associated with Cricket West Indies in various roles over the years. (Cricket West Indies official website)
Ottis Gibson has been associated with Cricket West Indies in various roles over the years. (Cricket West Indies official website)

In early June, the West Indies will host Sri Lanka for three ODIs, three T20Is and two Tests, and that will be Gibson's first assignment. Gibson has been with the Caribbean cricket board in one capacity or another for the last several years now.

Gibson, in his playing days, was real quick, however, he couldn't play too many matches for the Caribbean team. All he got was two Tests and 15 ODIs. But then it was also a period where the West Indies boasted some of the fiercest fast bowlers of all time, like Curtly Ambrose, Courtney Walsh, Ian Bishop and many more, and sadly Gibson fell down the pecking order over time. After being appointed as the fast bowling consultant earlier this week, the 57-year-old made it clear he was eyeing improvements in all formats.

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"I’m looking forward to working with the various coaches and the very talented group of bowlers in the Caribbean, to assist in their development across all formats of the game,” the official website of Cricket West Indies reported him as saying.

West Indies director of cricket Miles Bascombe has welcomed the appointment of Gibson. The Caribbean team is really going to be busy this year, and Gibson will have his hands full.

“Fast bowling has always been central to West Indies cricket and remains one of our greatest competitive advantages on the global stage. As we prepare for an extended and demanding period of international cricket, it is critical that we invest in the strength, depth, and durability of this group. Ottis brings a wealth of experience, insight, and proven success at the highest level of the game, and his presence will be invaluable in guiding and supporting our fast bowlers to perform consistently at an elite level,” Bascombe said.

Gibson was part of unfortunate history too!

It may be noted that Gibson was briefly associated with the team in the same role last year when they travelled to Sharjah to play the Associate nation Nepal for the first time ever in a bilateral contest. The three-T20I series proved to be historic from Nepal’s point of view as they stunned the Caribbean side 2-1. They may not have been part of that history in the way they would have wanted, but they were part of it nonetheless.

  • Prateek Srivastava
    ABOUT THE AUTHOR
    Prateek Srivastava

    Prateek Srivastava is a senior sports journalist having been in the profession for two decades now. He started his print career with the India Today Group and later also worked for the Asian Age.   In 2009, sensing the wind of change, he switched to the digital media and joined Mobile ESPN. There, he covered the 2011 Cricket World Cup and 2010 Hockey World Cup as a venue reporter. He did plenty of voice-over work too, over there.   After leaving Mobile ESPN, Prateek went on to work for Cricketnext, Gocricket and Cricbuzz. At Gocricket (Times Internet Limited), he covered the 2014 T20 World from Bangladesh. There he also received a team leadership award, given at the end of the month.   Prateek has also covered the 2016 T20 World Cup in India, this time working for Sportz Interactive. He also worked for Chinese giants Alibaba over two years and led their ""Short News"" content team at UC Browser.   While cricket is Prateek’s expertise, he has also done a lot of golf. In fact, he has covered India’s first two European Tour events back in the late noughties. He has also done extensive writing on football having been associated with the Indian Super League for three seasons. Finally, Prateek is a literature aficionado and swears by Philip Roth and Gabriel Garcia Marquez, and when he doesn’t joke, he is usually quiet and at work.Read More

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