'But He Has Nothing On...'

"But he has nothing on."

One casual observation from a child. Yet, that was all that was required, in Hans Christian Andersen?s cautionary tale, to lay bare the nakedness of the emperor and the absurdity of the townsfolk. It is a particularly apt parallel to West Indies Cricket.

Some 18 months ago, our new emperor strode onto the scene bedecked in the most splendid attire. With a successful tenure at Queensland followed by a prestigious appointment to the Australian Academy it appeared as if this tough Australian had the qualifications to extract the most out of talented but raw West Indian cricketers, despite his own lack of international experience as a player.

However what followed was a decline in on-field results, more gradual in the longer form of the game but bewilderingly swift and depressing in the limited over format, more so when it is remembered that the West Indies had just won a high-profile international tournament immediately prior to King's appointment.

Yet through all that time the West Indian press, like the townspeople in Andersen?s fable, never ceased their admiration of Bennett King's finery. In article after article we were regaled with tales of how much more organized the training sessions had become, how hard the players were working and how positively they were responding to the challenges set forth by the new coach.

You could almost hear these journalists saying "Ooh, look at his new clothes, aren?t they beautiful" and "what magnificent colors, and see how the fabric catches the light." Any voice of opposition was dismissed as if it had indeed come from a small, insignificant child. Yet with each subsequent loss, a few more whispers are heard questioning whether our emperor in fact "has nothing on."

To be fair to Bennett King, he has had to deal with a number of circumstances outside of his control that have made his task all the more difficult. The effects of the contentious labor dispute still linger, most visibly in the flawed choice of the West Indian captain. Shivnarine Chanderpaul has always been a dependable batsman, but was and is uniquely unqualified for the position of West Indies skipper. He lacks tactical sophistication, has an inflexible and uncreative mindset and loathes public speaking. More importantly, after taking the opposite side to the overwhelming majority of his team-mates in the negotiations prior to the Sri-Lanka tour, he is the one captain that the rest of the side would not willingly follow.

Given the above it was perhaps inevitable that Chanderpaul would set new records in futility, previously unmatched by any captain in the long history of the West Indies, in not just one but both forms of the game. So it is that West Indies Cricket finds itself now just 11 months away from its opening match of World Cup 2007, without any seeming hope of hoisting that glittering trophy.

Their coach meanwhile continues his parade, flaunting his nakedness like a drunken reveler at "las' lap" Carnival, his imaginary train carried by an equally undressed captain.

This can not be allowed to continue. The whole world will be watching the World Cup and they will not be as easily duped as the simple townsfolk. The parade must be aborted. Change must come and it must be both bold and swift.

The realization that Chanderpaul can not continue in his current position is now universal, with influential journalist Tony Cozier the latest to join the chorus. However, what guarantee do we have that a new skipper could take the side from its current position of no-hopers and mold them into one of the favorites for the World Cup in less than one year? What guarantee do we have that the replacement would not disintegrate under the weight of the pressure like his predecessor? In cricket there are no guarantees, yet wise choices can make positive outcomes more probable. That being said let me present my recommendations:

1. That the only person with the experience of winning a major multi-national tournament be immediately appointed as skipper of the One-Day side. I am, of course, referring to Brian Lara, whose winning percentage of 47% compares extremely favorably with the incumbent?s 12%. It is too much to expect a young inexperienced skipper to turn around a side in less than a year in the form of the game in which just giving a bowler that one over extra can lose you the game. Far better to trust in one who has demonstrated that he can lead the side to success.

Lara?s tenure will only extend to the end of the World Cup campaign and at that time he will relinquish control of the side to his Vice captain, Ronnie Sarwan, regardless of results.

2. Ramnaresh Sarwan be immediately appointed captain of the Test match side. With full authority, Sarwan can grow into the leadership position without the additional pressure of a tight deadline for improvement. As desirable as immediate success in Test match cricket might be, the reality is that improvement will be a long term proposition. To restore the West Indies even to a middle position in the world rankings will take many years. Lara will be long gone by then and it is desirable to start the process now with one who can see it through to completion.

The concept of dual leadership while fairly rare is not exactly new. Australia utilized this approach in the passing of the torch from Steve Waugh to Ricky Ponting and was rewarded with a famous World Cup victory. From a West Indian perspective, the aim is for the two men to work closely together and it is hoped that the shared responsibility would ease some of the pressure off Sarwan and prevent the type of disintegration experienced by Chanderpaul.

3. The position of the coach remains problematic. However, it is unlikely that the West Indies can identify and recruit a suitable replacement and still allow him the time to develop the side prior to the World Cup. Gus Logie is probably the only one who could step into the breach seamlessly but he has contractual obligations to Bermuda. However, that should not mean that King?s responsibilities remain as at present. With the endless losses under his control, the Australian has forfeited the right to total authority that was entrusted to him. The rationale was to hold one man accountable and that man has failed. I therefore propose that the West Indies revert to a more traditional method of management where the coach takes the lead in training and provides tactical and technical advice but where the ultimate responsibility on the field of play resides with the Captain and Vice-Captain.

Returning to the tale of the Emperor, it should be remembered that even after he and the townsfolk came to the horrible realization that he was in fact, stark bloody naked, he preferred to continue his parade in the nude rather than accepting his error. Doubtless the poor fellow became a laughing stock after that, and an identical fate awaits West Indian cricket unless it rapidly realizes its own errors and moves to correct them.