The Independent Voice of West Indies Cricket
Financial trouble at one of Barbados' main tourism promotion
agency agencies has trickled down to former West Indies opening
batsmen Gordon Greenidge and Desmond Haynes.
According to a newspaper report, money troubles as Gems of Barbados
mean that it could not pay $192,000 owed to the legendary openers
for work done to boost the Caribbean island's sports tourism
profile.
The second day of the Mumbai test started with Tendulkar and
Dravid at the crease. If West Indies were to have any hope of
staying in the match, Tendulkar's was the wicket they wanted. The
master batsman was on 34 and in ominous form on his home ground.
The stage, seemingly, was set for another dominant innings from his
punishing blade.
If that was the script the crowd in Mumbai hoped the game would
follow, Mervyn Dillon caused them huge disappointment by removing
Tendulkar after a mere three runs had been added to the overnight
score. Beginning the day's proceedings, Dillon seemed to find an
extra yard of pace, and immediately seemed a different bowler. As
Dillon bent his back, Jacobs found the ball fairly thudding into
his gloves, the slip fielders were brought to their their toes and
the batsmen felt the pressure.
It's a hard job bowling in limited overs cricket. Especially
these days, when three inches wide of leg stump is declared a wide.
Which means the bowlers have very little margin for error. Cricket
is a batsman's game, more so one-day cricket, where the emphasis is
on restricting the flow of runs.
I have often wondered what must be going through a bowler's mind,
when he has so many elements loaded against him. At least the one
bouncer an over rule in the ODIs, has to an extent, curbed the
lesser batsmen from going on to the front foot and slamming the
ball.
Hard though it is to believe today, there was a time, not too long ago, when the West Indies was a team feared for it's explosive ability to turn Test matches around in one session. It was not just that the players were talented, but also the fact that the team management never seemed to believe in half-measures. There were no medium pacers to bowl a line and length and hope the batsmen made a mistake, nor was there any question of holding back when it came to exploiting the slightest weakness of the opposition.
Trinidad and Tobago and West Indies left-arm spinner, Dave
Mohammed, is expected to appear Friday before a Magistrate in a St
George's Court in Grenada, as the preliminary inquiry into a rape
charge against him is set to begin.
The former T&T youth player was detained on June 29 earlier
this year, at the South St George?s Police Station, after a
complaint was made against him following an altercation in the wee
hours of the morning.