Green West Indies victory opens eyes to possibilities
AN AUSTRALIAN gentleman called me for a work-related matter recently. I couldn’t help starting the conversation by asking if he had heard about the Test result from Brisbane.
By the end of that conversation, I felt that the West Indian victory against Australia was more special to him than it was to me. This scenario played out repeatedly while engaging people from all over the world, not to mention within the Caribbean itself. Once again, those latent West Indian supporters jumped in jubilation, lost sleep again, and had a general sense of a good feeling from that remarkable Test match win.
No doubt, the same resonated in me. Not because it was unexpected, not because the previous Test ended in a two-and-a-half-day loss, but more because this inexperienced green team that played simple cricket, sticking to the basics, produced an unexpected result. It was as much the brilliance of Shamar Joseph’s bowling as it was the catching that supplemented it. It was the fact that five wickets could fall cheaply and yet the West Indians could go on to score more than 300, with everybody chipping in. It was a hunger that was long lacking in a team that felt self-defeated, thus giving the impression that they would not overextend. It is the reply to the naysayers whose degrading comments obviously resonated in the hearts of the players, such that captain Kraig Brathwaite made mention of it in his post-match interview.
What came across by the end of that Test match is that the interest level in the region remains high, but expectations remain low. Coping mechanisms over years of defeat include ambivalence and distancing oneself and emotions from the West Indies cricket team. And fair enough, as the results were as dismal as the efforts of many cricketers who, in other circumstances, would be amongst the best in the world but resign themselves to being mediocre. Much of this West Indies team were making their debut with half playing for the West Indies A team in South Africa just two months ago. Some actually made their firstclass debut just last year. Such was the inexperience and lack of expectation that having won the second Test match, Shamar Joseph eloquently expressed the fact that it felt as if they had won the series. Indeed, they won their first Test match in Australia since 1997.
Equally pleasing was the fact that this was not an isolated result. In all formats of the game, the West Indian team has shown competitiveness and gotten some favourable results in the last two years. In spite of the debacle of not qualifying for the World Cup of cricket for the first time since its inception in 1975, the T20 team was able to win a series against South Africa away, and the mighty Indians at home, while the 50-over team drew with South Africa in South Africa. At the end of last year, they beat England at home in both the 50 over and T20 series. Now the Test team has also shown that they can deliver favourable results and look like they belong.
This just proves that there is talent in the region. No corner has been turned but with inexperienced players displaying maturity, the bend is visible with the hope that when we reach it, we can turn it. Youth cricket development suffered greatly in the region. The hurried professional franchise system for the top players was not properly thought out and there was no consideration for the detrimental effects at lower levels. At its inception, the franchise system which replaced national teams was designed so that it was funded to the tune of 60 per cent by the Cricket West Indies (CWI) with the remaining 40 per cent to be garnered by the local boards. Not having managed to secure sponsorship for their own competitions, CWI passed the burden to the territorial boards who used every last cent spent on the development of young cricketers propping up the franchise.
NO CAMP HELD
At that time, for example, the Jamaica Cricket Association would hold camps every weekend for their under-15, under-17 and under-19 teams over a three-month period prior to their competitions. Since the diversion of funds, no such camp was ever held. Monies that were used to hold local competitions dried up as well. First-class cricketers got an increase in pay, placing them amongst the highest paid sportsmen in the region, at the cost of development. While other funding channels of CWI dried up at that time, with little reduction in extravagant spending, it was clear that cricket development would be a major casualty.
With the financial status of CWI seeming to be stable if not improved, time has come to reinvest in the youth. The West Indies Academy setup is a good initial step, though it needs to grow. The inclusion of the Academy team balanced with the reintroduction of the Combined Campuses and Colleges team into first-class cricket and 50-over cricket is a laudable move ensuring that youngsters are introduced to the highest level of regional cricket as are as those who wish to pursue tertiary level education and play cricket.
More A-team tours are taking place, as well as camps for both male and female cricketers across the region. These moves are laudable but just a start towards building a cluster of competitive young cricketers.
What needs to be solved is how does one keep the cricketers within the folds of West Indies cricket and not have them lured by the riches of franchise cricket worldwide. Unfortunately, many of those cricketers who chose the latter before they reached maturity have withered on the world stage such that there are only a handful of West Indian cricketers left in the IPL, most of whom have been there for a while. Many of the youngsters who came are now gone.
With the CPL having a primary focus on ensuring that it is the best party in the region as opposed to a developer of young West Indian talent in that format of the game, one has to look to a local T20 competition to provide that structural support to the younger cricketers. In the end, a strong first-class system where proper technique, temperament and concentration are honed is the crux of future success. Extending the first-class season for the first time in many years is a positive move and one hopes that we will return to seeing teams playing in front of their home crowds in such matches.
What is clear from the West Indian victory in a sole test in Australia is that regional pride and national pride are fuelled when the team does well. Everyone seems to have one eye open on West Indies cricket but close it when unfavourable results come in. Not because they lose, but because the perception is that they do not try hard enough. Here is a start with a set of inexperienced players who seem to have gelled well and should be invested in for the future. Those who opt out of international leagues must know that their place is not secure when they return. If the effort displayed by this team continues to grow, many of the one-eyed fans will open the second eye and take further notice.
Cricket in the region cannot survive without local sponsors and public support but often it is attitude more than results that one is looking for. Congratulations to coach Andre Coley and his support staff as much as to the players for giving us momentary joy.