Sarwan, 27, fell awkwardly on his shoulder during the Headingley Test last May and subsequently missed the rst of the tour. He then injured his ankle and had to miss the tour of South Africa. Even before this sequence he broke a toe in Pakistan and broke his thumb weeks before the 2007 World Cup.

Although his hapless streak meant he has not played as much cricket as he would have liked, the time allowed him breathing space to reflect on his career, which began for West Indies in 2000.

“When I couldn't play I realised how much I was missing the game and it gave me time to think about what I need to do,” Sarwan, who was man of the series against Sri Lanka, told reporters.

“I've been out for ten months, players tend to mature around 26, 27 and then it carries on till they are 33, 34 and I hope that is going to be the case for me,” he added. “I've certainly gained a lot of experience and I think I can use that.”

His skipper Chris Gayle, who was appointed West Indies captain after impressing in the job in Sarwan’s absence, is certainly pleased to have him back in a middle-order that has been far too fragile without him.

“Missing Sarwan really hurt us and it is good to have him back out there,” Gayle said. “He showed how important he is at number three.

“It is good to have him back, he looked the part and I have to give him credit. I hope he can build on this and capitalise on his good starts and get those hundreds - big hundreds.”

Sarwan will look to take his form into the teams’ three-match one-day series that begins this week, followed by the Indian Premier League and then a home series against world champions Australia.