Hard Road Ahead For West Indies Cricket

Tue, Dec 17, '13

According to New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum, the performance of their batsmen against the West Indies is an indication of how far they have come as a batting unit. Given the problems they have had in the past and the criticisms spewed in their direction, it is understandable that upon gaining his first test win as captain McCullum would be only too happy to latch on to any sign of team progress. But if he is really serious about measuring the advance of his team he probably should have waited until they confront India in February 2014.

For some years now the West Indies' has excelled in the art of making the opposition appearing to be better than they really are. Batting collapse has followed batting collapse as bowlers preened themselves with flattering figures against impatient and ill-equipped batsmen. Meanwhile, wayward bowling by bowlers who seem incapable of mastering even basic skills has allowed batsmen to run up huge numbers, almost as if they were stockpiling runs in a time of plenty because they knew a time of scarcity would come along soon enough.