The West Indies could upset Indian calculations
Colin Croft - 10 April 2002
Six months ago, when the Reverend Wes Hall took over as the
President of the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB), he said that
the re-elevation of the West Indies to the top echelons of world
cricket has always been his ambition. To achieve that, Hall said,
"We have to be competitive. We know there is an intestinal
resistance to change. It is a fact that people don't like change,
and they are not going to like this programme because it is not
the same old thing...so we have to change or perish, it's as
obvious as that. We have to look at this 'dinosaurial' syndrome."
The upcoming Indian tour of the West Indies, then, provides the
home team a chance to prove that they have overcome the
"dinosaurial syndrome."
The problem with the West Indies of late has been that they have
never learnt from their defeats. They seem to have developed the
losing habit, having lost 23 of their last 27 away Tests and also
the last home series they played - against South Africa in 2001.
They should have lost to Pakistan too at home, but for one of the
worst umpiring decisions ever. Debutant West Indian umpire Billy
Doctrove gave Courtney Walsh "not out" after the latter had
clearly hit the ball to short-leg, the West Indies just a few
runs away from victory.
Sports psychologists keep reminding us that losing is a habit,
just as winning is. The current attempts to help the team lose
the losing habit, then, are being directed at technique (not to
be ignored) rather than at the attitude of the players. Somehow,
the latter seems to be more necessary.
West Indies coach Roger Harper explained his views on the matter.
"There has been a myth going around that West Indian players are
strong technically. That is one of the greatest myths that has
been thrown around the West Indies for some time now. When we
look at our cricket, we realise that we have a lot of technical
deficiencies. So it is not a case of us having great technique
and not being able to execute, but our technique is not up to
Test-level."
He said that this did not happen earlier, as there were always
"old experienced players who took it upon themselves at the club
level to develop the young players, imparting technical knowledge
and sharing their experiences with their young players."
"After the 80s, that sort of thing did not happen," added Harper.
"The older players (former Test and first-class players) just
left the game, some migrated or because of economic reasons
weren't able to put in enough time at the club level with the
younger players."
"The youngsters were not brought on the same way as the players
were previously brought on. This means that they were coming
through without the proper background they needed to have when
they got to first-class level, much less international level,"
Harper emphasised, explaining why West Indian cricket has
suddenly taken a nose-dive.
Probably understanding this, the current training camp for the
players selected in the preliminary squad for the series against
India saw the unprecedented involvement of previous greats like
Sir Garry Sobers and Andy Roberts, among others. Sobers was
optimistic that the players, whom he had seen at the camp, could,
with the right guidance, do the region proud.
"What I have seen is a lot of good youngsters, and if they get
the right guidance, they will certainly help the West Indies in
the near future. There are just the technical aspects, and the
way of thinking that must be honed as cricket at Test level is
played from the shoulders up," Sobers said.
The man who was named as one of Wisden's Five Cricketers of the
Century said he was convinced the downfall in the last seven
years was caused as much by the deleterious change in attitude as
anything else.
"They must learn and enjoy reading the game, knowing what shots
should and should not be played in certain circumstances. That is
what I have been working on - looking at them in the nets, trying
to get them to buy into the best habits. They have been
listening, they are paying attention," he said.
Talking about the Indians, Sobers said, "They are coming to win.
This is where we will find out how much these boys have improved
or how badly their morale has been damaged."
He felt that the West Indies, for their part, needed a good start
after the morale-shattering defeats in recent times. "They need a
bit of insurance by having a good start in the series. They need
someone to talk to them, to make them realise the circumstances
of the game and boost their morale," he added.
Meanwhile, a keen sense of anticipation is building up in the
Caribbean ahead of the series, especially in Guyana and Trinidad
& Tobago, where about 45 percent of the population is of Indian
descent.
The pitches at most of the Test grounds should be helpful to the
two Indian spinners, Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh. The West
Indies batsmen will have to put on their dancing shoes if they
are to cope with the Indian spin twins. The Kensington Oval at
Barbados, which may lay claim to having the best pitch in the
country, and the Sabina Park Oval at Jamaica, where the third and
fifth Test are to be held, should still favour the quicks.
This is where someone like Adam Sanford, who might be the new
star on the West Indies fast bowling horizon, is expected to
thrive. He burst onto the scene in this year's Busta Cup after
encouraging fast-bowling performances for his native Antigua &
Barbuda during the Leeward Islands championship last year. He has
taken 37 wickets at 24.24 each.
Overall, the series between the two sides should be a very
interesting one that the West Indies would do well to win and
bring some pleasure back to the fans in the Caribbean. If Sanford
is selected and proves his mettle, and the rest of the batsmen
rally around Brian Lara, who seems fit to play, then the West
Indies could be more than competitive. They could actually
surprise all and win.
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