'Worst U-19 Tourney I've Ever Seen'
Thu, Aug 28, '03
Guyanese broadcaster Sean Devers, who has been following regional youth cricket -- as player and journalist -- since 1984, believes this year's TCL Group Under-19 tournament is the "weakest I've ever seen."
"This is the worst standard of general cricket I've ever seen at this level. There are some good players here and there but, in all my time following youth cricket, this is the most disappointing," Devers declared, citing sub-standard wickets in Guyana as one of the main reasons for the declining standard.
In an interview with CaribbeanCricket.com, Devers said most of the wickets used in year's tournament have been "low and slow," making batting an adventure throughout. "There is just no bounce in the wickets, especially at the out-of-town venues. Batsmen can't hook and pull because the ball is rolling most of the time. Batsmen can't bat with confidence. It's a distressing situation," Devers declared.
The former youth off-spinner, who is covering the tournament on radio and for the Stabroek News newspaper, said the blight of poor pitches combined with general indiscipline to cast a pall of gloom over this year's competition.
"We can't develop cricketers on these pitches. It's as simple as that. Something has to be done. Some of the good batsmen have not been able to play through the line and play shots." Devers added.
It is a reality not lost on the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB). Chief cricket development officer Dr Michael Seepersaud, who witnessed a portion of the tournament, confirmed the poor quality of wickets was to blame for the low scores throughout the tournament, including the semi-finals when four of the better teams were on display.
"The pitches were pretty bad throughout. Except maybe for the DCC wicket which had nice bounce, the youths had to deal with some irregular batting wickets. We really have to do something about getting quality wickets or we will continue to see low scores," Seepersaud told CaribbeanCricket.com.
Seepersaud plans to recommend that the WICB's grounds committee take control of pitch preparation for youth tournaments that are held in one territory. "It worries me because all the work we've been doing on the coaching side is useless if we don't get the pitches to develop the talent. I think the WICB needs to take responsibility for the preparation of wickets for regional tournaments. We should have somebody on location to avoid situations like we had in Guyana this year," Seepersaud said.
"We can't leave it up to the local groundsmen anymore because it's affecting our cricket. Guyana has a lot of grounds with a greater variety of pitches. But, all the groundsmen are using different preparation techniques. At DCC, where they used the old method of soaking and rolling while the wicket was wet, we got a wicket with nice bounce. Bowlers could get assistance and batsmen could play their shots. But, at the other venues, they are using another technique and the ball is rolling and keeping low.
The numbers tell the entire story. In the semi-final round, the team totals read like weekend fete matches -- 96 & 172 (Guyana); 140 & 129-7 (Windwards); 172 & 143 (T&T) and 94 & 103 (Barbados). And those four teams, according to Devers, were "clearly the best teams in the competition.
In addition to the low, slow wickets, Devers said the batsmen?s' inability to negotiate spin bowling also led to disappointing totals. "It's been a problem throughout regional cricket and we are seeing it here again. Some of the good batsmen just can't play spin bowling. We've seen some average spinners just keep the ball on a tight length and batsmen are throwing away their wickets."
With the exception of Trinidad & Tobago's Ravi Rampaul, who Devers reckons is "definitely the real deal," the bowling throughout has been below average. "We've seen some steady bowling, particularly from the spinners but nothing exceptional. If a spinner bowls two or three maiden overs, you can expect a wicket to fall at any time. The batsmen just get frustrated and get themselves out. That's the quality of cricket we have seen here."