Ricky Skerritt is Out of Order

For those of us who continue to abandon sleep to watch the West Indies tours to Asia, we have had two near heart attacks in a few days for different reasons. We were finally coming to terms with our last-ball loss to South Africa when we realized that all was not well with Brian Lara in the match against Kenya.

He struggled early on in his innings and was lucky that the Kenyans are poor fielders. We celebrated his first ton since his career-threatening injury in Sri Lanka and were delighted that a clearly 'unwell' Brian demonstrated yet again that he is truly committed to West Indies cricket by producing his 15th ODI ton in most trying circumstances.

We didn't have a clue what was wrong but Lara does not usually send for water or 'Power bars' or lie on the ground grimacing during water breaks. Something was wrong with The Prince.

He did not take the field at the beginning of the Kenyan innings but we were not surprised because, while he did play some classic Lara shots as he approached his hundred, he never looked well. We were shocked out of our wits when an ICC release was read on television by the commentators and, I might add, 'wired across the world' which stated the following:

"Brian has been feeling below par for a couple of days but was well enough to take part in the game today. When he came in from batting he was in obvious discomfort and the doctor was consulted. The latest information is that Brian will spend the next 24 hours in hospital undergoing tests. At this stage the most likely diagnosis is Hepatitis, but this has yet to be confirmed," said West Indies team manager Ricky Skerritt.

Several thoughts came to mind, the first of which was why was the West Indies team Manager disclosing the nature of the tests? I thought this was very poor etiquette and indeed a breach of protocol. Several of my friends and fellow cricket fans shared the same view, including three doctors (one is an expert on infectious diseases). How could the West Indies Manager give the details of the tests to the ICC whose release then spread across the world like a wild fire? What about Brian's family? Were they informed about hospitalisation and tests ? let alone hepatitis?

Put simply Mr. Skerritt was out of order and needs to be told this in no uncertain terms.

However, the plot thickens since some unnamed 'official' in the hospital apparently confirmed that Brian did indeed have Hepatitis A. Mr. Skerritt is now "very upset" about this leak. Could someone please tell me why? Didn't he start the entire process of speculation? Is he upset because Brian has correctly let him know that he was out of order or has he received a phone call from the Caribbean telling him he behaved in a most unprofessional manner and should start writing that resignation letter.

According to Tony Cozier this morning:
"Brian couldn't understand why a likely diagnosis had to be mentioned before it was even confirmed. Hepatitis is a scary thing and he's had a lot of calls from family and other people who are obviously very concerned for him."

Lara's position was that if there was to be a media statement at all, it only needed to say that he had been taken to hospital for observation. Brian is absolutely correct ? all that was required was a media statement saying that he was admitted to hospital for observation.

I heard the President of the WICB on radio in Jamaica yesterday evening and he was not amused with the release of the nature of the tests or the concomitant speculation. I hope he lets Mr. Skerritt know this in no uncertain terms. Unlike others, Rev Hall made it clear that Brian?s health is the only issue here and whether he can or cannot play is secondary.

I then wondered who declared Brian Lara fit to play. If Brian was unwell for a few days, did he see a doctor? And if not, why not? You see if a doctor could simply examine Lara without undertaking tests and tell the 'moutha masse' manager that he suspected Hepatitis, then clearly Lara was showing very clear signs of jaundice before that match started.

Is Brian merely a run-machine for West Indies cricket or is his health the priority? Yes, Brian did want to play but why wasn't a doctor called before he took the field? Would Mr. Skerritt please answer these questions for the West Indian people, particularly the Lara fans, who are ballistic over these events. I'm sure more than a few parents of our young cricketers would like to hear his answers.

I thought one of the key responsibilities of the West Indies Manager was 'player welfare' but Brian's welfare does not appear to have been the primary consideration here. What about the welfare of the rest of the team and management? Has Mr. Skerritt arranged for all our players and management to be tested for Hepatitis A? Indeed, did he make the necessary arrangements before our team left the Caribbean to ensure that all persons travelling had the required vaccines and tablets recommended by the WHO?

The experts tell me that if our players had received their vaccines for Hepatitis A before leaving the region, then even if Brian had the virus at that time (which, given the incubation period, appears most likely) it might not have come to this.

By the way, could someone with knowledge please tell us what happened to the required medicals before tours? Something tells me that the way Brian's illness has been handled and our preparations for tours to Asia are simply 'not cricket'.

The team may well be improving but is there any chance we can drop the Manager for fumbling the ball?

Get well soon Brian and thanks for delivering a superb hundred when you should not even have taken the field.

* Dr Christine Cummings is a well-known West Indies cricket fan, based in Jamaica. She is a Lecturer in the Department of Government, UWI, Mona. Among her courses are Sports, Politics and Society and Media and Sport. Her primary area of research is The Politics of West Indies Cricket.