MARTIN SAMUEL: WHY TOURISTS DESERVE AN APOLOGY
West Indies excluded from cricket’s top table …so play fair in future
First of all, what needs to be said is thank you. there might not have been much cricket at southampton yesterday, just 17.4 overs of it, but what little got played was down to the willingness of the tourists.
to be present; to look past the headlines when Britain was the sick man of Europe; to take a personal risk; to see a bigger picture and the broader good of the game.
What should then be said, but won’t, is sorry. For the way international cricket has turned out; for the way three nations have come to rule it at the expense of others; for leaving the rest to wither; for all the tiny betrayals and sell- outs that have reduced the West indies to the poor relations of the test game.
the players who enforced the tightest of grips on England’s top order when allowed yesterday did not resemble cricket’s second tier, its left-behinds.
Kemar roach’s opening spell of six overs for two runs was the most economical to be bowled in England in 10 years. shannon Gabriel took the wicket of Dom sibley with a ball that swung so viciously, he was out shouldering arms. Joe Denly almost went the same way soon after.
England are a tough team to beat on home territory but this looks as if it could be a very interesting test and a very interesting summer. And we have the West indies to thank for making it so.
All the more reason, then, to do what is right by them in future. All the more reason to remember who our friends are, who we owe for the continued popularity of the long form game in this country; a fascination built, not just on the visits of india and Australia, but on a succession of Caribbean teams and players who have captured the imagination like few before.
there is a generation of cricket lovers who grew up, not so much on the Ashes, but captivated by the challenge of overcoming the fastest bowling line-up in history, and some of its greatest batsmen.
the reason there is a movement to rename the Wisden trophy — the prize awarded at the end of a test series between these nations — is that West indies cricket has contributed too much not to be recognised. Yet renaming a bauble is the easy part. Michael Holding came magnificently off his long run yesterday to spell out exactly what confronting racism really meant. He didn’t get into the literal cost of it, though.
Yet what West indies, and other nations who have been excluded from cricket’s top table require is their fair share: of revenue, of opportunity, of cricket’s future, whatever it may look like.
in 2018, the West indies Cricket Board presented a paper to the iCC titled The Economics of
Cricket. it had been written by Dave Cameron, a former WiCB president.
in a nutshell, here is what it said: 20 per cent of broadcast revenue to the touring team. Not much, is it? One test, in a five test series — not that the West indies get them from
England any more — or 60 per cent of the revenue from a single test this summer. Put it another way: 80 per cent of the revenue from a domestic series would still go to England, or Australia, or india — cricket’s all powerful triumvirate.
And what happened? it was laughed out of the room. Not even treated as a serious suggestion, really. Just one fifth of the broadcast money. Enough to make test cricket more competitive, to finance investment and resurgence or development of the sport. it was treated as a joke.
And this is not just about England’s powerbrokers, of course.
The Economics of Cricket also argued that a share of revenue from the iPL should be used for the greater good of cricket globally. West indies do not have the money to pay their players like some other nations, so lose many to the short-form game, as guns for hire.
it does not help, either, that the iPL coincides with the part of the Caribbean season in which Australia or England sometimes visited. Cameron proposed a share of the spoils to compensate. the BCCi, india’s cricket board, could barely keep a straight face.
‘they all say we love the West indies but when things come to paper to make adjustments for the economy you get nothing,’ said Cameron. ‘it’s not a hand-out to the West indies; we deserve it.
‘We made test cricket when nobody watched it.
‘We are not demanding 100 per cent or 60 per cent of commercial revenue, but there has to be equity. there must be some return so that i can come and tour your country. if you do not keep other teams competitive and commercially strong, how will the game go on?’
On the day players from England and the West indies expressed support for equality, it seemed a particularly ironic position. Black lives matter in gestures and slogans, on shirts and banners, and princes feel empowered to lecture the working class on Britain’s problematic history, but in the here and now, little changes.
the ECB paid for private planes for the tourists and covered expenses, but wealth generated by this tour stays with the hosts.
All the West indies can hope for is a little more fairness in future, a favour returned. Pakistan the same.
Colonialism is alive and well, but trading under a different brand these days. throw another statue in the river to show how much we care.
Colonialism is alive and well, trading under a different brand