ST JOHN'S, Antigua:

The West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) has sent best wishes to the West Indies men's and women's teams in Sri Lanka for the ICC World Twenty20.

"On behalf of the Board and all West Indies fans we wish the team, our regional cricketing ambassadors, the very best as they embark on this most critical world tournament," president of the WICB Dr Julian Hunte said.

"The Board has set as one of the important targets of the current five-year strategic plan for the men's team to win the World Twenty20 in 2014, but it is clear that the world has recognised that the West Indies Twenty20 has advanced significantly in a short space of time and are among the favourites to win this tournament," Dr Hunte noted.

"This is certainly as a result of a combination of factors - the advanced skills and proficiencies of our seasoned and experienced players; some young and exciting talents coming onto the international scene; the hard work of the head coach and team management in executing training and preparation; and the WICB secretariat in ensuring that the team is duly and properly prepared," Dr. Hunte noted.

"We look forward to the teams' always thrilling performances and the display of the flavour and charisma of the West Indian brand of cricket," Dr Hunte said.

"Our women team has been showing vast improvements and we look forward to them being competitive and exceeding their previous performance in this world tournament," Dr Hunte concluded.

The ICC World T20 tournament, which features 12 teams, will be played from September 18 to October 7. The West Indies have been drawn in Group B alongside Australia and Ireland and both first round matches will be at the R. Premadasa Stadium in Colombo.

Their opening match will be against the Aussies on Saturday, September 22 followed by a clash with the Irish on Monday, September 24.