Focused planning for WI cricket can’t be put on hold
BACK in 2012 after West Indies had cruised past touring New Zealand 2-0 in a two-test series, many downplayed the triumph, arguing that the visitors were behind the hosts in the ICC Test rankings.
At the time West Indies were ranked seventh, New Zealand eighth.
But hard work and meticulous planning are central to the New Zealand mindset.
Sure enough, when New Zealand returned to the Caribbean two years later for a three-test series, they had revamped, reorganised — introducing fresh blood — and upset their hosts 2-1 in Tests.
Six of those who played the first Test of that 2014 series now form the centrepiece of the squad which thrashed the West Indies 2-0 in the just-ended Test series in New Zealand.
Focused planning and hard work mean New Zealand are now second in the ICC Test rankings. They swept powerful India 2-0 in early 2020 just before the novel coronavirus interrupted international cricket
It’s not accidental that the Don Wehby-led task force, which earlier this year recommended sweeping changes in the governance structure of West Indies cricket, held up New Zealand’s structure and approach as a pattern to follow.
Just as New Zealand worked and planned over the last several years to get to the stage they are now, so must West Indies, if they are to recover much-talkedabout lost glory.
To begin with, empty talk and preaching won’t help. The West Indies Test team is ranked eighth in the world because it is weak, and the supporting structures are weak. The same is true of the One-day International and Twenty20 teams as well as the Women’s teams — although quirkily, the T20 men’s team, their female counterparts, and the Under-19 team all won ICC Cricket World Cup titles in 2016.
If nothing else, those astonishing accomplishments four years ago showed the region and the world that talent is not the problem. What’s needed is focused planning and hard work, with everyone walking in step.
Because West Indies cricket involves separate nations, walking in step is not easy. It never was, even in the days when the regional team ruled world cricket on the field.
The good thing is that the current Cricket West Indies administration, led by president, Mr Ricky Skerritt, has pledged to lead a transformation to a more professional, accountable, transparent methodology involving cricket and the development of cricketers, front and centre.
Crucially, the Skerritt administration has sought — successfully so far it seems — to mend fences and heal wounded relationships with elite players as well as regional governments.
Unfortunately, the coronavirus has thrown a huge spanner in the works. Grass roots development, training academies and the like, require money and material support from governments and corporate partners — all of which will very likely be on hold for now.
But focused planning — short-, medium- and longterm — with everyone walking in step can’t be put on hold.
Also, elite West Indies cricketers will know that in any endeavour, morale is essential. Difficult though the new norm is with Covid-19induced biosecure environments and so forth, they will have to be at their very best for the tour of Bangladesh next month in order to inject badly needed vibe and energy. To put it simply, they need to win in Bangladesh.