Recently, one of the chief hitmen in the conquering arsenal of West Indies fast bowlers in the 1970s, Andy Roberts, voiced his concerns about the failed state of the region's cricket. Specifically mentioned by the Antiguan was the coaching crisis which has seen incumbent Australian Stuart Law quit the post, after a mere two years.
It was a period which saw less -than-meaningful improvement in the Test arena, where the team won two of six series, and those were against fellow lowly ranked Zimbabwe and Bangladesh. Eight limited-overs series were played and the West Indies lost them all. Law's announced registration makes four head coaches to have occupied the seat in nine years. To use this columnist's words, Roberts claimed that this rate of attrition was due to frustration, as the coaches were being given poor cricketers with whom to work. He went on to say that no longer in evidence was this "abundance of talent". The demon pacer should not have ended it there. There are reasons for the state of affairs which he highlights. One is sure that he is aware, and, as such, his respected voice should have also touched on them.
Teenager Prithvi Shaw is set for a Test debut in Rajkot after being named in a 12-member shortlist on the eve of the opening Test against Windies. India, not known for revealing their 11 or 12 in the build-up to a Test, left out Mayank Agarwal, Hanuma Vihari and Mohammed Siraj from their 15-member squad.
Shaw had forced his way into the Indian Test squad in England for the final two Tests following impressive performances in the domestic circuit and with the India A. Despite replacing Murali Vijay in the touring party, he didn't get a game in England with India preferring the more experienced KL Rahul and Shikhar Dhawan over the teenager.
St John’s, ANTIGUA – Cricket West Indies (CWI) has confirmed the central contracts for WINDES Men’s and WINDIES Women’s players for the 2018/2019 year.
Whilst the previous contracts expired on the 30th of September 2018, the new contracts will be backdated to the 1st of July 2018 and run until June 30, 2019, as CWI aligns all players on the same contract period (Franchise contracts used to expire on the 31st of July and WINDIES contracts on the 30th of September).
Chief Executive Officer, Johnny Grave, says “All WINDIES and Franchise players are now contracted from the 1st of July to the 30th of June, with their performances assessed from the 1st of April to the 31st of March. This will allow for a more efficient process of reviewing, renewing and awarded contracts within West Indies professional cricket and give everyone at least three months to plan for the season ahead. Our season will start each year with the Caribbean Premier League, followed by the Super50 Cup and finish on the 4-Day competition.” The decision to offer all format, red and white ball contracts, according to Chairman of Selectors, Courtney Browne, “allows for the better management of players as it relates to their development. At the time of recommending contracts in June some players would have developed in different formats after the process had finished, so their recent performances can’t be considered until the next contract cycle."
"Cricket West Indies should ponder the wisdom of wasting money in the hiring of these highly paid foreign coaches, without getting the commensurate returns." Andy Roberts
The narrative dominating the analysis of the performance of recently resigned head coach of the West Indies cricket team, Stuart Law, as it relates to improving the fortunes of the Test team, has been instructive, to say the least, in helping us to better understand the extent of the quagmire we find ourselves in.
Why is there even a debate whether a Windies cricket coach is a success when his record of guiding the team in 15 Test matches shows him winning six, losing seven, and drawing two, with an ordinary 40 per cent win ratio, and a 46 per cent loss ratio? The Windies are also still ranked an embarrassing number eight of 10 Test-playing nations, only above Bangladesh and Zimbabwe. Yet, Law's name is being mentioned in the same sentence as success, showing the desperate depths to which our standards have fallen.
Considering that the results and rankings of the Windies have plummeted in the other two versions of the game to all-time lows, all things considered, Stuart Law should be unceremoniously chased out of town as an abysmal failure, instead of being softly celebrated as some kind of success.
VADODARA, India (CMC) — Sunil Ambris made a strong case for selection for this week's opening Test against India, with an attacking, unbeaten hundred as West Indies drew their tour match against the BCCI President's XI here yesterday.
The right-hander, on his first senior tour since recovering from a broken hand on last December's tour of New Zealand, struck 114 not out off 98 deliveries to help propel the visitors to an impressive 366 for seven in their first innings.
He headlined a strong effort from the Windies batsmen as wicketkeeper Shane Dowrich carved out a breezy 65 from 69 balls while captain Kraigg Brathwaite, standing in for Jason Holder, chipped in with 52.
Left-handed opener Kieran Powell struck 44, Shai Hope got 36, and rookie Jahmar Hamilton made 23.
Replying to the hosts' 360 for six declared on Saturday's opening day, West Indies made a strong start to the day as Brathwaite and Powell remained unbroken at lunch with 96 on the board.
The right-handed Brathwaite faced 78 balls and struck nine fours, while the left-handed Powell hit a pair of fours and sixes in a patient 102-ball knock before both retiring at the interval.
