The Independent Voice of West Indies Cricket

A Few Suggestions For The Development Of Windies Cricket

Sun, Jun 10, '18

by TONY BECCA

Commentary

West Indies cricket has come a long way. It has grown from the colonial days and the reign of the Englishmen with a Bible and a bat and ball in their hands.
In those days, the Englishmen brought the game with them, the natives learnt the game and learnt it well, and they practised diligently until they became good, very good.
In those days, cricket was the game of the West Indies.

Today, things have changed, however. Cricket is no longer the game of the West Indies, to the point that not even a Test match in the West Indies can be seen on local television anymore as is the case between the Windies versus Sri Lanka.

West Indies cricket needs help to revive the popularity of the game again so that it can hold its place in the general scheme of things and take it back to a place of pride.
Despite the performance against a weak Sri Lanka so far, West Indies cricket is in a parlous state: it also needs administrators and players dedicated to one thing, and that is, the development of the game.

It has been 20-odd years since the glory days and many years since West Indian cricketers were ranked among the very best who ever played the game.

It is hurting, not so much that the West Indies can no longer compete against a good team, and remembering that everything happens in circles, it is not so much that the West Indies have failed to compete, but that there has hardly been any effort to stop the bleeding, either by administration or by players.

For years now, ever since the slide started, the board, like the people, has been talking about development, but all that has been nothing but talk. The notes of all the retreats and all the meetings have ended in the dust bin somewhere.