Will Chanderpaul Survive as Skipper?

Wed, Dec 7, '05

Shivnarine Chanderpaul's bleak performance as West Indies captain should come to an end immediately, if Trinidad Express columnist Fazeer Mohammed has any say in the matter.

In an op-ed piece that also appears on Wisden Cricinfo, Mohammed made it clear that the power brokers in West Indies cricket should take Chanderpaul out of his misery and turn the reins of the team over to a younger alternative.

Mohammed did not suggest a replacement but dropped a not-so-subtle hint as to his own thinking: "Bold decisions with an eye to the future have to be made."

"Has anyone at any level of influence in West Indies cricket decided what is the way forward for the regional team in the days leading up to the departure for New Zealand? Or is it going to be the usual vaille-qui-vaille modus operandi, a little training camp here, some boardroom horse-trading there, with the resultant patched-up compromise of a regional team expected to get the better of a side that even the greatest West Indies teams of all time have struggled to defeat on their home ground?" Mohammed asks.

He noted that supercoach Bennett King has opted to remain in Australia to spend the holidays with his extended family and asks: "[H]as the man with the most power and greatest direct influence on the West Indies team made it clear to his employers what his strategy is for 2006 and beyond?"

He continues: "Recent history suggests that even if he has, there will be obstacles in the way of real progress, obstacles in the shape of officials concerned more with showing their level of influence than trying to lay a solid foundation for the rebuilding of a once proud and universally admired-and feared - cricket team."

"All may be generally quiet for the next few weeks, but prepare for the inevitable parochialism and insularity when the issue of the captaincy comes up. Chanderpaul, the dedicated, determined cricketer that he is, is nevertheless no inspirational leader of men. Recognising that blindingly obvious fact and acting in response to that reality is one way of stepping out of the mire."

In the Trinidad Guardian, writer Vinode Mamchan interviews West Indies all-rounder Dwayne Bravo and gets a full dose of confidence-bordering-on-cocky quotes.

The article explains that Bravo has already begun to think of what he wants his career to look like when it ends and wants to achieve the landmarks set by celebrated legend Sir Garfield Sobers.

On his standout performances in Australia, Bravo said: "That century against Australia is really special. I got one earlier in my career against South Africa but the last one is the one that would bring respect."

"It was made against the best bowling attack in the world and in a very grave situation for my team. We were struggling at 146/6 and Denesh Ramdin and myself set about the bowling that gave our team a chance to dominate for a little while in an otherwise disappointing series."

Tony Becca column in the Jamaica Gleaner berates the performance of Jamaica's batsmen during the first two rounds of this year's Carib Beer first class tournament.

Noting that Jamaica should be "fairly satisfied" with leading the points standings after two rounds, Becca said the team should not be happy with the batting.

"They made 193 for nine against the Leeward Islands before squeezing through to first innings lead and 187 for nine chasing a victory target of 216 before the last pair piloted them to a draw. Then it was 204 and 188 for seven declared versus the Windward Islands," Becca wrote.

"Left to their batting alone, Jamaica could easily have been languishing at the foot of the standings on zero points."

The West Indies Cricket Board's (WICB) WindiesCricket.com Web site provides an early look at the Carib Beer Cricket series standings that shows Jamaica with a six-point lead over Barbados and the Leewards.

Jamaica has 12 points after two rounds while Barbados and the Leewards are tied on six points each. Barbados, Guyana (3 points), Windwards (3 points) and Trinidad & Tobago (3 points) have only played on match.

The Guyana Chronicle reports that Guyana's upcoming game against the Windward Islands has been postponed without an explanation.

The game was originally scheduled for the Albion Community Development Centre but was shifted to Anguilla because of rainfall and flooding in Guyana and was due to begin this Friday.

However, that match was postponed and although an official of the Guyana Cricket Board (GCB) confirmed the postponement, no reasons were offered.

Guyana manager Carl Mooresaid the touring party were due to travel on Tuesday night but got a call around lunchtime with the news that the match was postponed with a possibility of a replay in January but no venue was named.