By Rajiv Bisnauth

WEST Indies have already failed to qualify for the 2017 Champions Trophy in England, and the declining fortunes of the regional side can further slide if they fail to automatically qualify for the 2019 World Cup.The disqualification from the Champions Trophy is the first time that the two-time World Cup winners have failed to qualify for any global cricket tournament.
However, they begin the quest for the final automatic qualification spot today when they play Pakistan in the first of three ODIs in the UAE.
The West Indies, champions in the first two World Cups in 1975 and 1979, need to avoid a clean sweep to maintain their current eighth spot, while Pakistan, the 1992 champions, need to win the series 3-0 to rise one place from ninth.
Restricted to the world’s top eight-ranked sides, the cut-off time for the automatic qualification is September 30, 2017.
After which, the bottom four teams in the one-day rankings will be joined by six Associate sides in a 10-team qualifying round in 2018 from where two teams will qualify.
Both Pakistan and West Indies will also play in three one-day matches in the Caribbean next March.
Pakistan also have a tough five-match series in Australia early next year but West Indies will be hard-pressed to play England and India before the cut-off date.
The West Indies had shown recent form, having beaten South Africa twice and world number one Australia once in a tri-series on home grounds in June before losing the final.
Shockingly, they were beaten 3-0 in the recent T20 series by Pakistan.
Once the most dominant force in world cricket, West Indies have struggled in recent years, plagued by chaotic mismanagement among other issues.