The Jerome Taylor Injury Story

On the day that West Indies fast bowler Jerome Taylor was to be catching a flight to Barbados for the pre-series training camp, he was instead undergoing extensive testing on his muscles and bones. A release from the WICB later described the problem as "stiffening of the back which will prevent him from being able to perform at his best."

It means that, for the third time in his short international career, Taylor is out of competitive cricket due to injury. Periodic bio-mechanical assessments commencing even before Taylor was first selected to represent the West Indies in 2003, indicated a need for minor changes to be made to his bowling action in order to prevent injury.

Just prior to the start of the 2005 Carib Beer tournament, head of the WICB Development Unit Dr Michael Seepersaud and Territorial Development Officer (TDO) Philip Service presented the latest of these assessments to the Jamaica Cricket Association's selection panel. Their recommendation was to delay Taylor's return.

But it was not a directive, and could not be, for such is the structure of West Indies cricket that the WICB's Development Unit is powerless to tell territorial associations who they should and should not play.

This is not a story of "I told you so", for no one, least of all Taylor himself, can be happy at the current situation. Rather, the chronology of events surrounding the latest setback will show that changes must be made so that the WICB has more control over the territorial associations.

In 2002, when Jerome Taylor attended a fast bowling camp in Antigua, the bio-mechanical assessment of his bowling action was that it was an unsafe mixed action ? one which, coupled with his small frame, would make him prone to injury. While a student of the Cricket Academy in Grenada in 2003, it was again reported as such to the WICB Development Unit.

Then in September 2003, Dr Richard Stretch, the South African bio-mechanics expert, saw video clips of Taylor during a camp for coaches held in Jamaica. The verdict was that his mixed action needed "minor tweaks to the delivery stride to avoid strain on his lower back."

By then, the Jamaican fast bowler had played two Tests for the West Indies. Stretch's diagnosis and recommendations were passed on to the WICB coach at the time, Gus Logie. Young Taylor was about to go off to Zimbabwe. Was it a case of the cart being allowed to bolt before the horse, thus making the situation irretrievable?

The then 19-year-old was only able to last for 9.4 overs in the first innings of the first Test, this after previously bowling 35 overs in a tour match against Zimbabwe A.

The bio-mechanical problem, as explained by Dr Seepersaud in 2003, was that "he bends to the left when delivering the ball and the combination of a 'mixed' action and lateral flexion will lead to lower back problems. We are aware of this with Jerome."

From all reports, the rehabilitative work that was to be done after his return from Zimbabwe in late 2003 did not go according to plan. Much of the success of it required Taylor to be convinced that he needed to change. If he had been bowling like that all his life without serious injury, it would need a psychological strategy to get him to understand why he should make the minor changes necessary for him to have a long career at the international level. At that time, the JCA did not have a Sports Psychologist in its employ.

The player was alleged to have been non-cooperative at times, and his location in St Elizabeth, approximately two hours drive from Kingston, the home of Jamaica's cricket, did not help. In that situation, monitoring could not be done in a satisfactory manner. Much of it relied upon the player himself having the discipline and work ethic to follow the programme to the letter.

According to Dr Akshai Mansingh, head of WICB's medical panel, the bio-mechanics of running and bowling is one factor that can contribute to injury in bowlers. The second of three factors is the bowler's physical make-up. Prior to the Zimbabwe tour, WICB-certified coach Kenny Benjamin recommended that Taylor and the other "exciting youngsters" "need to get stronger to cope with the demands of Test cricket."

Benjamin's advice then was to leave them out of the 2003 limited overs regional tournament ahead of the Zimbabwe/South Africa tour. That advice was expressed to the media, but not to the JCA selection panel and so, instead of working to improve his muscular strength, Taylor played in four matches during the 2003 Red Stripe Bowl one-day tournament.

After returning to action during the third round of the 2004 season, Taylor again broke down with injury in the sixth round. He again did rehabilitative work and was re-introduced during the Supreme Ventures two-day competition during the fourth round in May. It is not clear if anything more than rest was recommended in the period following the domestic competition. If there was a programme, then it was not successful because Taylor was not selected for Jamaica's one-day squad for the October 2004 regional tournament as he was not sufficiently recovered.

In November 2004, WICB's Coaching Manager at the time, Darren Holder, analysed recent video clips of Taylor's bowling action and developed a detailed remedial plan for him to follow. He was left under the supervision of national senior team coach, Robert Haynes. This was because it was at the start of Jamaica's preparation for the 2005 Carib Beer series. This was not the ideal time for a young bowler to be doing seemingly mundane things like walking up the wicket and not delivering, while his colleagues were ripping away at batsmen.

Again, the monitoring has been called into question, as well as Taylor's strict adherence to the programme. There is not a clear picture of the role of Philip Service in team preparations and so there is little, if any, collaboration between the TDO for Jamaica and the coaching staff. This is a weakness in the structure of West Indies cricket. The TDO's work must be complementary to that of the JCA and information must be shared. At the moment, reporting is infrequent.

Workload is the third factor that can lead to injury problems in bowlers. In this year's Carib Beer series, Taylor bowled, on average, 20 overs in each of the first three matches. After the third game against Barbados, he complained of 'tightness' in his back, and did not play until the rain affected match in the seventh round against Guyana, where he bowled 12 overs. In his next match away to Trinidad & Tobago, he was made to bowl 40.3 overs ? twice as many overs as he had bowled in each of the first three matches.

Was this workload excessive? Could it have triggered the injury that has forced him out for four to six weeks? What compromise had the selectors and WICB Development Unit reached on how to bowl Taylor when it was clear that they were powerless, and the JCA was not entertaining their recommendation to delay Taylor's return?

Chairman of Selectors Ruddy Williams said they discussed using Taylor in short spells, the same as what was done when he played in the preparatory matches before the start of the series, and was in line with [Darren] Holder's programme. Williams also said that the panel relied on both a medical opinion from Dr Mansingh, as well as feedback from the physical trainer and from the player himself. Williams also said that the WICB Development Unit said it could not guarantee that if Taylor sat out for six months, injury would not occur. This may have further influenced the selectors' decision to disregard their 'recommendation.'

"We would have preferred this youngster not to play at all this year," said Dr Seepersaud. "what is this rush?"

The Development Unit felt that not enough progress had been made on the technical side, although Taylor had improved his muscle strength considerably.

Dr Mansingh said that these sorts of injuries have high recurrence rates and early treatment and management tries to prevent the player's absence from the game for too long a period.

So Jerome Taylor will start another round of rehabilitation work soon. How long will he be made to sit out of competitive cricket this in order to adhere to the programme that will be prescribed for him? More importantly, who will monitor his rehabilitation? Most importantly, when the final assessment is done after the remedial work is completed, who will have the final say as to when Taylor returns?

This is the crux of the matter. Philip Service believes that it should be a pre-determined panel, put together by the WICB, and including medical and technical personnel, along with the coach and selectors. This removes much of the subjectivity which might currently be perceived. Territories all want to see their players make it to the Test team, and anyone who comes along and tries to prevent that may be seen as impeding a youngster's career. In addition, those who do not understand how bio-mechanics affects performance will treat such recommendations with scant regard.

There is also the issue of money. If Taylor doesn't play, he doesn't earn. Without retainer contracts, players don't have another source of income, unless they have personal contracts or another job. The WICB's continuing foot-dragging on this issue has greater impact than it seems to have on the surface.

Jamaica won both titles in the 2005 Carib Beer tournament, but Jerome Taylor is not better off. Thus the West Indies team has lost the use of a bowler who could have made an impact during the 2005 home series.

One indication that it might be different this time around is that it was at Taylor's own request that it was decided to undergo treatment and delay his availability for the West Indies team. "He himself has opted out of the game," confirmed Dr Mansingh.

This time, two things are certain. There can be no shortcuts in the remedial work, and the WICB must have teeth so it, and not selectors, can have the final say.