WICB continues to flail wildly

Keeping the standard suitably low in the puerile exchanges between the WICB and the WIPA, the board is now trumpeting the fact that it has issued letters to all the players taking part in the current "strike action" informing them that they are in breach of its Code of Conduct.

The section in question states that "players and team officials must not at any time engage in behaviour unbecoming that could bring the game of cricket into disrepute or be harmful to the interests of cricket" and presumably it does not apply to the board itself.

While it is unclear how players without contracts can be in breach of them, those players who do have retainer contracts have also been informed that their payments have been "suspended immediately... until such time as you indicate in writing to the WICB your resumption of obligations under the contract."

A recent editorial suggested that the show of chest beating coming from the WICB offices might have more to do with upcoming board elections than anything else. If this is true, it would go some way to explaining such utterly poor judgement on the part of the board's ruling cabal, excessive even from a group well known for such behaviour.

Even so, a price will have be paid for these actions, as whichever faction comes to power will have to deal with the legacy of player resentment and mistrust which continues to be built by every successive regime. There is a bigger if less obvious cost as well, which is the growing apathy among West Indians towards an institution which was once a source of regional pride.

It has been said so many times before, but the WICB in its current form is utterly obsolete and serves no purpose. Someone, anyone, needs to put it out of its misery. It is long past time where the regional cricket boards, and possibly regional governments, need to meet outside of the auspices of the WICB, and create a new entity -- one in which directors are hands off, and competent management is hired to fulfill the mandate in a professional and businesslike manner.

The longer this is put off, the less likely that West Indian cricket will have enough relevance to make it even worth the effort.