The Collision of Race and Cricket
Thu, Oct 30, '03
Two events occurred in Guyana recently which caused most of us who are interested in the field of cricket considerable mental anguish and concern for the future. I refer to the attack on Ronnie Sarwan by the Guyana Indian Heritage Association (GIHA) and the appointment of Shivnarine Chanderpaul as Captain of Guyana for the Red Stripe Bowl in preference to Sarwan.
But given the state of the country where almost everything is seen through a racial prism and the heavy politicized atmosphere which exists, most of us considered it unwise to air our views in the press. For the simple reason that it is so difficult to get an intelligent reasoned and structured response to legitimate questions and enquiry.
To put it in a most charitable way, if one, for example, asks about the suitability of a player for the West Indian cricket team or the Guyana cricket team for that matter, it is most likely that some cock-eyed propagandist might reply to say that my grandmother was once charged for stealing eggs! The idea is not to answer the argument but to kick the opponent in the shins. That is the national sport.
However, my despondency over these two events evaporated when I read Mushtaq Khan's excellent article under the title 'Leadership, Race and Ronnie Sarwan'. Mushtaq Khan is one of those people who is credible when it comes to the question of cricket and race. On both issues, he has practiced what he has preached. I have known him for the better part of forty years and have played under his captaincy at various levels, and I can therefore say without qualification or reservation that he knows a lot about cricket and there is not a racial bone in his body. In short, he has knowledge and integrity.
Mushtaq Khan has struck all of the right notes in this article. What is particularly striking, and I suspect this comes from his own knowledge and understanding of the way the Cricket Board works, is his conclusion that, in appointing Chanderpaul instead of Sarwan as captain of Guyana, the GCB had committed "an unfortunate error of judgement" and an "act of imprudence". This is true. It was mystifying to every sane person in Guyana why this should happen. The only possible explanation is that Ronnie Sarwan was sacrificed on the altar of the current ongoing conflict and struggle for power between the GCB and the DCB.
But this "imprudence" and "error of judgement" prevented the GCB from lending a helping hand in the development of Sarwan's ability to be a future captain of the West Indies. The Red Stripe Bowl was the ideal opportunity for him to practise his tactical and strategic skills on the cricket field. But the laws of nature, as our friend Plato said, is perfect. The West Indian selectors on the current tour to Zimbabwe has made Sarwan captain of the first game on the soil of that African country.
Mushtaq Khan has made a good case for the respective cricket and captaincy abilities of both Chanderpaul and Sarwan. There is nothing that he has said with which I can find disagreement. Those of us who have met and spoken to Sarwan know what a splendid and admirable young man he is; he is self-confident and knowledgeable about various aspects of the game of cricket. And he has a desire and a determination to play his part in ensuring that West Indian cricket once again rises to the pinnacle of the summer game. I suppose that it was the recognition of these qualities that made the West Indies selectors appoint him as Vice-Captain to Brian Lara, taking into account the future of West Indies cricket.
Shivnarine Chanderpaul is now one of the premier batsmen in world cricket. There is no doubt about that. Thrice on memorable occasions, he has demonstrated that he is capable of batting at the highest class as when he assaulted the greatest leg spinner in the world to score that splendid 76 in Australia and, as if to show the world, that he was not done with fine things yet, he scored the fastest Test hundred against the Australians here at Bourda. In that same series, he batted with a broken finger to score a century and set the stage for the historic win in Antigua. But I am not so sure that Shiv's batting abilities translated into the ingredients required for the captaincy. And it is here that I am in complete agreement with Mushtaq Khan that it would be in his best interest to concentrate on his batting and as one of the pillars of the West Indian team.
And now I come to an issue for which I give Mushtaq Khan the highest marks for raising, and for raising it frontally and honestly. Cricket must be what it has always been in Guyana. It must be a factor for integration and unity, and not an instrument for division and rancour. That is why Ronnie Sarwan's decision not to play the GIHA's Jahaji competition merits the highest praise and his remark that he is only interested in what unites Guyanese rather than what divides them should be inscribed in gold.
We have always known the game to be one which promotes tolerance, understanding and harmony. And there are so many stories which can be told of cricketers in Guyana who have struck up lasting friendships across the racial divide and so added a mead of improvement to racial understanding.
Let me quickly give you an example of what I am talking about. Leon Stewart, who played for Guyana in the 1960s and 1970s, became a good friend and colleague of Budhu Dwarka, who represented the East Indian Cricket Club (EICC) and Guyana in the 60s. At the height of the racial troubles in the 1960s, Leon Stewart was told by his secretary at the Deeds Registry that there was a gentleman to see him. On emerging from his office, Leon Stewart saw Budhu Dwarka who had traveled from the West Coast to find out if he needed rice and sugar, as he knew there was a shortage in Georgetown.
I can only end by saying that the day cricket becomes a weapon in the hands of the racists of this country, that will be the day that the social fabric so badly torn at the present time will be completed shredded. I hope that I am not around to see it.
* Ronald Austin is an ambassador in Guyana's ministry of foreign affairs.
