Test plays second fiddle to powerful Windies message
CRICKET’S longawaited return yielded centre stage to powerful messages from West Indies players past and present as the Black Lives Matter movement came to the Ageas Bowl.
Both sets of players took a knee before the rain-delayed start of the first Test, while the West Indians all wore a black glove and raised an arm — just as American sprinters Tommie Smith and John Carlos famously did on the podium at the 1968 Olympics.
Only 17.4 overs were possible on the first day of the three-match series, with England losing Dom Sibley for a duck, bowled by Shannon Gabriel, before recovering through Rory Burns and Joe Denly to reach 35 for one.
But the game played second fiddle to a devastating critique of attitudes to racism from West Indies fast-bowling legend Michael Holding, who suggested on Sky Sports that many people had been ‘brainwashed’ by society, and said the world was yet to deal with the ‘dehumanisation of the race’. He added: ‘History is written by the conqueror, not by those who are conquered. History is written by the people who do the harming, not by those who are harmed. We need to go back and teach both sides of history.’
Referring to the killing of George Floyd by a Minnesotan policeman in May, Holding said: ‘People could see life slowly ebbing out of the man, and could see the look on the police officer’s face and the other officers who were around, as if they did not care if this man dies. He is just another black man that we have killed.
‘If you don’t educate people, they will keep on growing up in that sort of society and you will not get meaningful change.
‘Don’t shout back at us that all lives matter. The evidence is clearly there that white lives matter. We want black lives to matter now as well. It’s as simple as that.’
Asked about the pre-match gesture, regarded in some quarters back in 1968 as a ‘Black Power’ salute, West Indies assistant coach Roddy Estwick said: ‘We wanted to make a statement, and do it differently from everyone else. It was our way of showing our support for the Black Lives Matter campaign.
‘For me, it was a good feeling. We have to make changes. If the gesture has brought awareness to what’s going on around the world, we’re happy. We were able to make a statement. It was wonderful to see England supporting us, too.’
Estwick also admitted Holding’s words had made an impression on the West Indian dressing room. He said: ‘It was good to see an icon of West Indies cricket come out and speak in such a strong and commanding way.’
His England counterpart Graham Thorpe, meanwhile, said it was ‘important to show solidarity with the West Indies’. He added: ‘The bottom line is we feel there is no room for racism in the sport. That’s a start from the England team. We’re proud to have done it.’
As for the cricket. What an anticlimax the first day of this groundbreaking first Test was. England were rendered inactive for 163 days since their last Test, including some of the hottest early summer weather in memory, and then what happened? Rain, of course.
Enough of it to turn cricket’s big return into a damp squib. And to frustrate Steve Elworthy and his ECB team after they put so much effort into ensuring the safe return of international sport to this isolated corner of Hampshire.
Under leaden skies in front of the empty stands, this was the most surreal start to an international season.
But we still should have had more than 17.4 overs. All the planning that went into staging this Test clearly did not include an infusion of common sense because cricket still doesn’t do itself any favours in bad weather.
Every time the players were forced from the field, their absence was extended by the obsession with always restarting on the hour, half hour or quarter hour. And then came the biggest sin of all when the umpires took the players off for bad light just before tea as the floodlights shone down.
To be fair to Richard Illingworth and Richard Kettleborough, rain returned soon afterwards but, honestly, cricket can’t afford such inflexibility.
The biggest drama before Holding’s powerful words came when Ben Stokes confirmed Stuart Broad and his 485 Test wickets were going to be left out of a home Test for the first time since 2012.
It may have been expected but this was a huge call from a standin captain and in keeping with Stokes’ promise to do the job his way while Joe Root stayed at home with new daughter Isabella.
What a statement this was to put together probably the fastestblack ever English combination in Jofra Archer and Mark Wood for the first time in Test cricket.
It would be foolish to write Broad off just yet. But this was not only an attempt to fight West Indian fire with fire but a nod to England’s Ashes future in 18 months’ time.
Whether Stokes got his other big decision right remains to be seen because the conditions were crying out for him to bowl first when he won his first toss and then almost broke the rules by shaking hands with Jason Holder.
It was another brave call because Stokes was backing his top order to come through a fierce examination of their mettle at the hands of the experienced and potent combination of Kemar Roach and Shannon Gabriel.
England looked like they might fail it when, after Rory Burns had narrowly survived a reviewed lbw shout from Roach, Sibley left the tenth ball of the day and saw the ball clatter into his off-stump.
But even though Burns and Denly had to continually stop and start again because of the weather, they batted well and to reach the close on 35 for one.
Now all we need is the weather to play ball for the next four days.