THE West Indies will prepare for the International Cricket Council (ICC) Twenty20 (T20) World Cup in Bangladesh in mid- March with the first in a pair of matches today against minnows Ireland at Sabina Park in Kingston.

Regional T20 captain Darren Sammy, speaking to reporters after a training session at Sabina yesterday, said his unit will be motivated despite the glaring gap in quality between the teams.

“We won’t take them for granted. When you play against teams where you are expected to beat them, you tend to get a little bit complacent, but we as a group realise that and it’s just about us going and doing a clinical job,” he said.

While the West Indies are T20 world champions, the Irish, who are affiliate members of the ICC, have to play-off to book a place in next month’s showpiece.

After today’s encounter, the teams will clash in another T20 match on Friday, also at Sabina Park, before closing the tour with a One-Day International on Sunday at the same venue.

Sammy, as well as premier batsmen Christopher Gayle and Marlon Samuels, is returning from injury will form the backbone of a strong starting 11 that could include outstanding off-spinner Sunil Narine and crafty left-arm swing bowler Krishmar Santokie.

Ireland are likely to rely on captain William Porterfield, his opening partner Niall O’brien and young spinner George Dockrell.

The Irish have been in the Caribbean for several weeks and were invitees to the Regional Super50 tournament. And though they did not advance from the zone stage, they did pull off a surprise win over former champions Windward Islands.

Ireland’s head coach Phil Simmons, who is a former West Indies player, accepts the underdog tag, but is hopeful of a miracle. “We try and play good cricket, so we have a chance at winning if they slip up.

Our confidence is a lot better, so we are making sure we are sharp enough for the three games,” Simmons said.

Sammy, the tall all-rounder, while noting the glossy look of the batting surface, stressed that also significant is the opportunity for players to get match-sharp ahead of the showpiece in the Asian subcontinent.

“Obviously we come in as defending champions in this format, so we have to go out and play like defending champions. All this is preparation building up to the T20 World Cup.

“It (the pitch) looks like a very good wicket. It reminds me of a few years ago when I came here and it looked shiny and you could put runs on the board. We are just trying to build for the main event, which will be the World T20,” Sammy reiterated.