Former West Indies fast bowler Ian Bradshaw believes that at the core of the failures of current West Indies team is the simple fact that they do not consistently do the “little things” well.

The 40-year-old Barbadian only took nine wickets in the five Tests he played for the West Indies between March and June 2006.

He made his debut against New Zealand in Auckland in March 2006 and played his final Test against India at Gros Islet in June that year but during his short time with the team, his passion and commitment to the team was never in question.

He is best remembered for scoring an unbeaten 34 in fading light at the Oval as he and wicketkeeper Courtney Browne mounted an unbeaten ninth-wicket partnership of 71 that lifted the West Indies from certain defeat to an unlikely victory in the 2004 Champions Cup.

Speaking on the Mason and Guest radio show in Barbados on Tuesday, Bradshaw expressed his frustration at the West Indies performance in New Zealand where they lost both Test matches by an innings and were swept by the hosts.

“Like every cricket fan I am really disappointed with the performance. We have not stood up and gave a good account of ourselves and I think that that is the most critical thing and it’s worrying the manner in which we lost the series,” he said.

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In reply to CaribbeanCricket.com

Excellent analysis by Bradshaw as usual. We fail to do things consistently well. One of the attitudes that has plagued us since the 1995 series loss, has been the acceptance of mediocrity. With the exceptions of lara, ambrose, walsh and Chanderpaul(to a lesser extent Jimmy Adams), nobody in the WI can say that they have lived up to their potential. Sarwan should have been averaging fifty+, he averages in the low 40s. Gayle was inconsistent in tests, 15 test centuries is testament to that. The less said about samuels and hooper, the better, because they were mediocrity personified. You can add Mervyn Dillon to that list. They were satisfied with one or two WOW performances and content to fail the rest of the time. That's not what you're being paid for. And Brathwaite and Hope are just the latest in a line of mediocre players. Bravo did very well prior to his exile but has not recovered since his return. Maybe he stills a bit of angst for the board but the time for that has past, Cameron is out of WI cricket, its time to move on. Or else he will find himself finishing his career just like Samuels

Great post, Jumpstart. Bradshaw was a sound regional player and a pretty smart guy who was selected perhaps when he was a little past his prime. It is a pity that he has not been offered a continuing role in WI cricket. Our guys just do not seem to have the willpower to lift their game. That is why I posted about Gabriel the other day that he is one of the few modern players who seems willing to put in the hard work to improve himself.

In reply to VoopsandOut

Would you say Jason Holder works on improving his game?

What about Blackwood?

In reply to imusic

Blackwood is very corageous.....and fortune favors the brave. Botham's 1981 ashes is a perfect example, especially the Headingley test. But technically he is still suspect. Would not last as long against starc and co. Holder has let the #1 ranking get to his head. He was mostly ineffectual when bowling and only showed fluency batting when the game was already lost. But that is a mental thing and could be corrected with the right degree of focus. Its not a technical problem so we should be happy

In reply to imusic

i say yes to both Holder and Blackwood as well. Except for the New Zealand series, no one could complain that Holder was not leading the bowling by example and effort. Blackwood has also shown development in blending his natural courage with a better technique and nous. This just shows that it is for the players to want to improve themselves as much as we need better administration, pitches, coaching etc

there is no way ian bradshaw is forty years old, he probally was not as naturally talented as other team mates but he was always a deeply comitted professional a lesson that can be learned from current wi cricketers

In reply to velo

Yes Bradshaw is 46 years old, I guess it was a typing error. but he was a good player, remind me of Peters( the invisible man ).

In reply to dayne


Braddie is about 46 , same as Shiv, was captain of the u19 team , he was a a super all rounder at the u 19 level, by spending 5 years away from the game at UWI hindered his progress to the WI team. he is a chartered accountant.

In reply to tc1
Do you think Kraigg or Jason speak with Ian? he is still playing cricket and is a member of the same club

In reply to openning


I assume that they do, too close him not to seek advice from him.

In reply to tc1

Are you implying they are not putting in the work?

"putting the work in" doesn't make you a truly professional athlete.

A lot of these guys are professional in name only, because they get a pay check to play the game. They don't work smart. They rarely improve on deficiencies in their game. They don't challenge themselves or learn from mistakes. They play an international sport and sporadically perform at an international level. There is little desire to be the best at what they do - just the knowledge that in the Caribbean, near enough is good enough.

West Indies would be one of the only international outfits in world cricket where players put more weight on after joining the squad.

What an exciting career Shannon Gabriel could have had if he was able to run out of sight on a dark night before he turned 28. How long will we wait for Oshane Thomas to discover that physical fitness is important to his trade? Does the shape that Shimron Hetmyer found himself in post-covid represent someone who is serious about his physical performance? Do I need to bring up Rakheem?

Too many players take short cuts. Too many a good decade behind other modern cricketers when it comes to expectations in the field, game awareness, pressure, tactics and performance.

I have a little faith in the future with guys like Alzarri, Chemar and Da Silva looking like young men that actually understand what's required.

The state of batting, in my humble opinion, has never been this bad. It is a disaster and there is no saviour coming from the under 20s to save the day. There are some long and dark days ahead with the willow, which is a tremendous shame, given the bowling is finally competitive and looks to have depth.

In reply to velo

deeply committed......played a big part in us winning the Champions trophy and reaching the final in ther nest edition

In reply to openning

If kraigg brathwaite is being dismissed the same way over and over again, you think he is putting in the work to tighten his technique?

In reply to CaribbeanCricket.com

The same could be said about the People
in the WICBC !!!!!!!!!!!!!!

"POT CANNOT CALL THE KETTLE BLACK" !!!!

It is this asinine attitude why :

" WE ARE RUNNING VERY FAST, BUT

FINDING OURSELVES IN THE SAME PLACE"

In reply to Jumpstart

It is so easy to say he is not putting in the work, is he working with a coach who will tell him the truth?
Is his mindset always to defend, or can he be taught to have some aggression, when he scored the double, the weather forecast was not that good, he went about scoring at a pace, which was out of character.

In reply to clokey

What about the role of the captain and management?

In reply to Headley

I've said many times Holder is not a great captain, but how can we really know when his team is so inconsistent?

Holder is the #2 All-rounder in the world (was #1 for more than a year) - he has been in the top 5 in test bowling rankings. In the last 3 years, he has won more tests as captain than the last 3 West Indian captains combined.

I don't like his tactics as captain, but you cannot deny that he leads from the front, has helped initiate some brilliant victories (England series at home, the first covid test stand out).

I think, after watching his batting lineup fail time and time again, he's scared of his own batting lineup and that only makes the situation worse, when you bowl first on pitches where you should be batting.

In reply to openning

He doesn't need aggression. He needs a tighter technique. Pujara is one of the least aggressive cricketers. So was Larry Gomes. You need a guy who the stroke makers can bat around, who takes the shine off the ball. Its a concept Carl Hooper never understood once lara started consistently out scoring him. There is no shame in being an anchor. Steve Waugh performed that role for a decade and a half(he was very aggressive early in his career until about 91).