New Delhi: West Indies cricket has undergone a leadership change. Kraigg Brathwaite stepped down as Test captain while Shai Hope was named the new T20I captain. This transition comes ahead of a home series against Australia and the start of a new World Test Championship cycle. Kraigg Brathwaite stepped down as West Indies Test captain earlier this year informing Cricket West Indies before the team returned from a victorious tour of Pakistan. He had served as captain since March 2021. Kraigg Brathwaite who has led the West Indies Test team since March 2021 informed the Cricket West Indies (CWI) leadership of his decision earlier this year ahead of the teams successful tour of Pakistan. Brathwaite wanted to ensure the team had a period of transition before his departure. As a result he has submitted his resignation ahead of the home series against Australia giving the new leadership time to establish itself. This series will be particularly special allowing Brathwaite who is two matches shy of 100 test matches to double down on his batting without added responsibility” CWI confirmed in a statement. CWI extends its deepest gratitude to Kraigg Brathwaite for his years of service as captain recognizing his dedication to West Indies cricket and his leadership in guiding the Test team to significant milestones. A new captain will be named in the coming weeks the statement added. Kraigg Brathwaites captaincy tenure for the West Indies is notable for several significant victories. His leadership culminated in a hard-fought eight-run Test win against Australia in Brisbane in 2024 ending a 27-year drought of West Indies Test wins in Australia. Furthermore he led the team to a series-tying win in Pakistan earlier in the year their first Test victory there in 34 years. Under Kraigg Brathwaites captaincy the West Indies cricket team achieved significant victories including a home series win over England in 2022 and a 2-0 series win against Bangladesh in 2021 overcoming the difficulties presented by the COVID-19 pandemic. New era in T20I cricket Shai Hope has been appointed captain of the West Indies T20I team in addition to his ODI captaincy. He replaces Rovman Powell whose tenure saw a significant improvement in the teams T20 performance including series wins against India England and South Africa and reaching the Super 8 stage of the 2024 T20 World Cup. Under Powells leadership the West Indies rose from ninth to fifth in the ICC T20I rankings. The change in West Indies captaincy occurred just before their upcoming home Test series against Australia and subsequent white-ball tours of England and Ireland. This includes a three-match Test series versus Australia commencing June 25th.