Haynes’ Honeymoon Has Ended!

Just over a year and five months into his appointment as West Indies lead selector, the honeymoon period of The Right Honourable Desmond Haynes and his panel has ended.

On January 6, 2022, Cricket West Indies (CWI) named Haynes to take over the chairmanship as the replacement for Roger Harper, after his contract was not renewed. Since then, criticisms of Haynes’s selections have started to become more strident!

While the initial reaction to Haynes’ appointment was that mostly of optimism, there were some elements of doubt as to his suitability for the job.

Haynes is highly respected throughout the Caribbean for his legendary career as an opening batsman for the West Indies. He announced his entry into international cricket on his debut with a knock of 148 against Australia and scored a further 8500 ODI runs, including 17 centuries during his six-year career.

He also represented the West Indies in 116 Tests, scoring 7487 runs including 17 centuries. He spent the majority of his Test and ODI career as an opening-batting partner to the equally legendary Gordon Greenidge, his fellow Barbadian countryman. Together they formed one of the most successful opening partnerships in international cricket history.

Having also captained the West Indies in four Tests and been inducted into the ICC’s Hall Of Fame in June 2021, Haynes’ pedigree as lead selector, therefore, seemed to be beyond dispute. There was, however, still some prevailing sentiment at the time that he would have been much better suited as a replacement for the by-then-beleaguered West Indies head coach Phil Simmons.

Read more at Barbados Today