Two events marred last week, one about West Indies team, the other was about its past players!
Firstly, West Indies Cricket Board confirmed what I had previously mentioned; that the only Tests that West Indies would play in 2013 would be against Zimbabwe and New Zealand.
West Indies thrashed Zimbabwe last March.
According to reports from WICB’s meeting in Trinidad & Tobago, regular Test players, those who do not normally participate in T-20’s or ODI’s, must wait to December next, to play internationally again!
News came that Pakistan will tentatively tour West Indies in July-August, but only for ODI’s and T-20’s, due to scheduling grid-lock.
That is unfortunate.
It means that West Indies, while trying to improve its position in International Cricket Council’s Test standings from No. 7, of nine countries, will have played only four Tests in 2013.
Two were against Zimbabwe, a team not yet in the rankings, having not played enough Test cricket in the last year, and two will be v New Zealand, who are at No. 8.
How is West Indies to improve its position?
What happens to regular Test players like Windward Islands Shane Shillingford, Leeward Islands Kieran Powell, Trinidad & Tobago’s Shannon Gabriel or Barbados’ Tino Best?
West Indies present international cricketers fall into three, maybe four categories.
Some, like Shivnarine Chanderpaul and Shillingford, play Test cricket almost exclusively.
Several, like Dwayne Bravo and Darren Sammy, play all formats, while players like Kieron Pollard and Dwayne Smith almost exclusively play T-20’s, maybe ODI’s.
Others, like Denesh Ramdin and Chanderpaul, play County Cricket in England etc., or Champions League, for respective countries.
But what is a player like Powell, who only plays Tests, occasionally ODI’s, to do for that duration after ICC’s Champion Trophy in England in June?
Granted, it is a real tight rope for WICB, balancing international cricket, especially with lucrative T-20’s dominating world cricket.
Like everyone else, West Indies must cash in too! Nothing wrong with that!
I expect that upcoming Caribbean Premier League will, even from its inception in August, become as much a part of international schedules as Australia’s “Big Bash.”
However, as noted recently, Australia still manages to meet that balance well, making sure that outings in Tests, ODI’s and T-20’s, international and domestic, are sufficiently dispersed so that players get chances to fully produce in each relative format!
The second concern has been in the worry chambers even before I played Test cricket in 1976/7.
How, exactly, are past, present and eventually former, West Indies cricketers to be treated, once their professional cricketing careers are over and they move into “real life”?
Last week’s head-line in Jamaica’s Observer newspapers was eye-opening, even embarrassing: “Jamaica Cricket Association apologizes to Courtney Walsh!”
Former West Indies captain “Cuddy’ Walsh, a Sporting Ambassador too, was stopped, by security, from entering certain parts of Sabina Park, where his name is blazoned on one of its pavilions.
The security person was not wrong. The guy or girl was only doing his or her job, as directed; to stop anyone at all who did not have proper accreditation from entering specific enclosures.
I blame West Indies Players Association and West Indies Cricket Board directly. Secondarily, I blame Jamaica’s Cricket Association and all other Caribbean Cricket Boards too.
Either they are lazy or do not care! Or is it about ultimate power and control?
Many might think this is funny; even that it is no big thing. I disagree. This has soured communications of our cricket and our cricketers for ages!
No ex-West Indies player has suffered more stresses and abuse than I have had around the Caribbean as regards going into cricket grounds, even as I always have the correct accreditation.
Who knows, maybe I am hated most, for whatever reasons!
Bourda, New Garden Street, for a past New Zealand tour, even as I was 50 meters away, the security guard, in full uniform, screamed: “Kraff, if yuh ent gat a f…..g pass, yuh ent passin’ hey!”
Sir Gary Sobers was denied admittance to the stand at Barbados’ Kensington Oval which has his name.
I was in the company of another Knight, my own hero, Sir Everton Weeks, also at Kensington Oval, when we both completed media duties, when Sir Everton was asked for accreditation.
He had none, and was refused entry, even though the security person knew who he was: “Sir Everton, I kno’ who yuh is, but if yuh don’t ha’ a pass, you can’t come in hay!”
I cried that day!
We are “Heroes?” Yeah, right!
Most do not know stresses that former West Indies players get to attend games. Some have to beg.
Only about 400 played for West Indies. Not even 10 percent will attend at any one time.
This could be alleviated.
We are always treated better when we travel around the cricket world!
All that WIPA, WICB and respective cricket boards have to do is to have a master list of past players, issue each with a yearly pass, if needed, also providing positions to be seated.
Simple! But, common sense is not always common! Enjoy!
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see!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!Thats why you should have the youth play baseball, basketball, football. golf. So they can own a scholarship. These games are worldwide games. cricket is not. You cannot go anywhere in the world and play cricket.
What are you talking about. With 20/20 nuff young cricketers becoming millionaires.
The West Indies currently have around 15 players in the IPL right now making some serious money!!
With the newly designed caribbean 20/20 league more local cricketers can make some decent money. Right now UWI is awarding scholarships to young cricketers around the region.
Agree with Croftie
True word buss. Thanks for enlightening us… Keep them coming!!!
All well and good but what happens when the
“hero” does not have his accreditation on his person; he forgot it at home or lost it?
What hell cricket!!!! introduce BASEBALL or GOLF to the youth so they can have a chance to get scholarships and have a chance to become professionals to make millions to become somebody better and able to contribute more to their communities. Cricket does nothing for our children. How many cricket scholarships have you ever heard of,that have been given to any young persons in the last 100 years? It didn’t help our fathers, uncles. brothers in the past and still will not do anything for the younger generation. its just selfish old people just trying to force that old game that has no benefits to 99.9% of our youth, just because of their love for cricket. In those days you had no choice. but now there is better choices for the youth. baseball, basketball, tennis and the list goes on. Again I say to parents, government officials encourage our youth to play sports that will benefit them in the long run.
You are such an idiot. You must be living on Mars, to tell a West Indian country to forget the all important institution (not just a sport)of “Cricket” lovely cricket and to pick up an American sport! You love your sport of Basketball, play it, but your garbage has to be treated with the contempt it deserves! You idiot go to America and live, and stop insulting the only sport that brings Caribbean people together. Don’t shamelessly spew your filth to the Caribbean people. To the Caribbean folk, cricket is more than just a sport. The game is loved with a passion, to the extent that we quarrel for days when we know players can do better, but fail to do so.
It can earn the youths millions, millions, millions, millions, millions.
LOOK OUT FOR FOR THE CPL (Caribbean Premier League) this year. More millions for the young ones.
Are you lazy? Pick up a bat and go play some cricket.
Women play it, men play it, boys play it, girls play it, they all like it, I like it, he likes it, she likes it, the Caribbean adore it!
CRICKET LOVELY CRICKET!
@positive mind Dr Benjamin will help you free of charge.
Who knows, maybe I am hated most, for whatever reasons!
Let me see, maybe the reason that you are so hated is because you chose to go and play cricket in South Africa during the apartheid.
You will be forever labeled a ‘traitor’.
Mr Croft, I feel your pain, and have been in your situation, but try as we may this situation will never end,cause the World we now live in is one that every man or woman for themselves, our memories are conviently short to our demise, therefore, the mentality is “What HAVE YOU DONE FOR US LATELY? My take on this is, THE NEW BROOM SWEEPS WELL, BUT THE OLD ONES KNOWS ALL THE CORNERS!! REMEMBER THAT SIR!
“No ex-West Indies player has suffered more stresses and abuse than I have had around the Caribbean as regards going into cricket grounds, even as I always have the correct accreditation.
Who knows, maybe I am hated most, for whatever reasons!”
Well Croft I guess the security guard has not forgotten that you played in Apartheid South Africa.
I have not forgotten!!
Croft, you are right on with this article. Just imagine who is enjoying West Indies cricket now!!! How many of these individuals have sweat to build WI to what it is today? Yet today they are enjoying the fruits of the labour of the greats.
True say Croft … True say
This is s true. There is absolutely no respect for those who have represented their counties. And it’s not just in cricket. There is no respect for ports people. It’s like the athlete in the Caribbean is an after thought to those with degrees.
A doctor or lawyer can more easily get into the stadium in dominica than someone who has represented dominica. Shame, it is. Athletes are just as important as doctors and lawyers. We should respect all of our athletes at all levels.
Croft just get your accreditation! This article is useless.
I do not understand the point you’re making. Rules are for all.
I really feel for Shillingford, Chanders, Gabriel and young Kieron Powell. I love test cricket, maybe it is because I was raised in the era of this type of cricket, but it occupies the number one spot in my preference of all the versions of the game. I still firmly believe that the longer version of the game is what our young boys need, to properly develop sound cricketing techniques.
I guess money counts these days. Pollard is a star in the shorter version of the game, but has he played a test match?
Unless the cricketing bodies sit and talk this out, Newzealand, West Indies, Zimbabwe and Bangladesh will continue to languis at the bottom till eternity!
Wonder what Whycliffe Dave Cameron and Emmanuel Nanthan can do about that.