"The fundamental factor driving the current reality is the shift in the mindset and focus of the young and emerging players in the region."

ONE of my colleagues said in a commentary last week that the West Indies Cricket Board is sleeping.

Upon hearing that pronouncement, I contacted him immediately, telling him it was worse.

It is not just that the board is sleeping; West Indies cricket itself is in a coma. This conversation took place even before the regional team bowed and slumped to another predictable and pathetic innings defeat in the first Test match on the current tour of Sri Lanka.

Blaming a sleeping WICB for the continuous deterioration of our cricket is an easy way out, within which lies a covert denial of the actual gravity of the situation.

Many Caribbean fans continue to profess unconditional support for the West Indies team. Again, an attitude buried in a deep-seated denial of the rapid whittling away of the West Indies team and the very institution of West Indies cricket as we once knew it.

The many clichÈd rants about returning to the glory days and turning the corner are basically 'pie in the sky' dreams based on emotionalism, blind loyalty, and patriotism without any semblance of appreciation for the reality.

While the administrators of the regional board provide an easy punching bag for the state of our cricket, my retort to that is that the competence of our administrators is in no way significantly worse today than it was in the 1970s, 80s and 90s.

read the full article at Jamaica Gleaner

related article : Dr. Paul Wright; Woeful Windies

Full Story

I concur.

He makes the interesting point that when we were good that it wasnt due to WICB and that in fact players are better off now.

It is interesting that the Greatness
of West Indies Cricket was not due to the WICBC . I RECALL STATING THIS OVER A DECADE AGO IN THIS VERY FORUM .

Let me reiterate this fact ; Our Players became great because of the following things :

1 .THEY WERE FULL TIME CRICKETERS

PLAYING CRICKET MOST OF THE YEAR

WHEN NOT REPRESENTING THE REGION .

This meant , that their skills in all
facets of the game were finely honed . They were in superb physical shape

2. IN THOSE DAYS , WHEN TOURING E.G

ENGLAND , MATCHES WERE PLAYED

BEFORE & IN BETWEEN THE TEST

MATCHES .

This made the acclimatized to conditions of the Pitches ; and the Weather , apart from the fact that most of them were Playing Cricket in
England .

3. THE STANDARD OF CRICKET IN THE

REGION WAS MUCH HIGHER THAN THE

CURRENT PISS POOR STANDARD .


4. THE DETERIORATION STARTED WHEN

ENGLAND DECIDED TO LIMIT THE

NUMBER OF OVERSEAS PLAYING

CRICKET IN ENGLAND . THAT

CHANGED THE STATUS OF MOST OF OUR

PLAYERS FROM BEING FULL TIME

CRICKETERS TO BEING PART TIME

CRICKETERS .


My belief is that the limiting of
Overseas Players from playing Cricket in England was aimed mainly at our
Players , Players from other Countries were merely Co lateral
Damage .

Make no mistake , I have no hard feelings against England , because it is very disconcerting to have Players
from the West Indies making a living playing Cricket in England , and then
in the International Cricket Arena , kicking your Ass .

So when this happened , the WICBC probably believed that was an insignificant matter , Those in the
WICBC sat on their Asses , and did not
do a blasted thing .

That perhaps was due to their continuous :

5. LACK OF FORESIGHT & VISION , TO

UNDERSTAND THE IMPACT THE

DECISION BY ENGLAND WOULD HAVE

ON OUR PLAYERS OVER TIME .


6. AT THE JUNCTURE WHEN ENGLAND

LIMITED THE NUMBER OF OVERSEAS

PLAYING IN ENGLAND ; WE HAD THE

BEST TEAM IN THE WORLD .


This is why I will forever insist that the WICBC dropped the ball .

7. SPONSORS LOVE WINNERS & OUR

PLAYERS & TEAM WERE WINNERS .

IT WOULD HAVE BEEN VERY EASY

FOR THE WICBC TO FORM A REGIONAL

PRO OR SEMI PRO LEAGUE ; WITH

THE ASSISTANCE OF SPONSORS .


8. HAD THE WICBC DONE THIS THE

COMPETITIVENESS OF OUR PLAYERS

WOULD HAVE BEEN MAINTAINED . BUT

AS I STATED HISTORY INFORMS US

THAT THEY DID NOTHING .


9. SO SLOWLY BUT SURELY THE SKILLS

OF OUR PLAYERS STARTED

DIMINISHING .


So here we are with the Jackals of the WICBC howling about the fact that 3 years ago , the WICBC started a
Professional League .

They are now doing what should have been done in the mid 1980 . So while
Cricket in the Region has Regressed ,
Bangladesh & Zimbabwe are making Progress .

In reply to POINT

I don't believe anybody anywhere ever believed the WICB was responsible for the greatness of the team. I think too you give England too much credit for developing our players. Most of them were good before they came to the notice of the counties, and while county cricket did help them to develop their game I'm convinced players like Roberts and Richards would've been great wherever they played.

My take is that Cricket in the Region
is beset by a Cancer , and to survive
that Cancer must be removed . That cancer is the WICBC ; which must be excised .

It has not only made itself a Laughingstock in International Cricket , it has forever tarnished the Rich & Successful History of West Indies Cricket .

NONE of its members have shown that they care about West Indies Cricket .
Dr. Wright was kind in his remarks ,
There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that Cameron & Hinds engineered a Coup that resulted in WIPA becoming
a Branch of the the WICBC .

In reply to spider

In England Our Batsmen quickly learned
how to play Cricket with the ball moving about by middling the ball or perish .

Our Bowlers learned the art swing bowling . BTW , you did not mention the fact that the skills of Our Players were enhanced by not only playing Cricket in England , but that was augmented by the fact that the played more than half of the English
Counties when on Tour .

Playing Cricket in England taught our
Players what being a Professional Cricketer entails . You made no mention of the fact that they became accustomed to playing in cold weather .
I recall Tony Cozier being very critical of our Players some years ago , when they played most of their matches in the northern part of England in early Spring .

Cozier wittingly or unwittingly forgot that some of the Players on that Tour had never played in England professionally , He bemoaned the fact that some Players were fielding with
their hands in their pockets .

Obviously if they had played Cricket in England that would not have happened . The Elephant in the Room to me is this :

WHY DID THE WICBC SEND THE TEAM TO

PLAY IN ENGLAND IN EARLY SPRING WHEN

IT KNEW THAT SOME OF ITS PLAYERS HAD

NEVER PLAYED CRICKET IN ENGLAND ????

My belief is that playing Cricket in England enhanced & honed their skills in all facets of the game . The standard of Cricket there , I believe was higher than the standard in the Region .

In reply to POINT

You don't seem to realize that the WI have little power in world cricket. We are beggars and since beggars cannot be choosers we have to take what the big powers give us.

Later this year we will be playing in Australia. Well many people in Australia and elsewhere are already saying that boxing day test should have been reserved for a more worthy side. I know an up and coming journalist who was happy to get a press pass to cover the WI series. But he said he was only able to get it because it was the WI that was touring and so there was not as much media interest.

And I did say there cricket was developed for having played in England.

In reply to spider

WE are Beggars because we have Bad Management . WE have a Paucity of Financial Sponsors , and that aint going to improve when the WICBC is lurching from Crisis to Crisis .

This happens because the people in the WICBC are accountable to NO ONE ,
but themselves ; and they are only interested in the Structure remaining the same .

They do not give a damn about Cricket . Frank Worrell if he was a live would be sad about their
governance of Cricket in the Region .

In reply to POINT

Did we have good management when we had a good team? I don't think so. We still managed to find good players then. We are not finding them in anything like the same numbers now. We need to find out why. One reason I think is that we have a much smaller pool of players and we don't play as much cricket as we used to. I used to play every day when I was a boy. That does not happen anymore.

In reply to spider

We probably did not have good Management , however what ever incompetence there was was masked by the success of our Players & Team .

Look at what happened to Kenroy Peters , who was a better bowler than
James Anderson at the U-19 Level ;
while Anderson was nurtured , enhanced & honed ; Kenroy Peters was cast aside until last year to play 1 test match in South Africa .

My take is that the onus is on the
Regional Boards & the WICB to do innovative things to attract youngsters , I dont think that Recklessly cancelling the Tour in Indian or firing Simmons will attract youngsters .

I know for a fact that there was Kiddies Cricket in all the Islands ,
I have no idea , what happened at the next stage of those who played Kiddies Cricket .

I would readily agree that young
people are attracted to other Sports . I know of no impediment that prevents the Regional Boards & the WICBC from doing something regarding this problem .

The fact that so far they have done nothing reinforces my perspective that they just dont care about Cricket in the Region .

Only a competent, assertive, consistently (CAC) leads from the front captain will be the elixir; done.

In reply to spider

WE cannot have power when our Players & Team are Bottom Dwellers . That is the nature of things .

In essence , those who are powerful
always have the most power . This is precisely why India ; Australia & England decided that they must get the Lion's share of the ICC Profits .