West Indies still in freefall

The success stories of cricket are nicer to read although the action stays in the southern hemisphere in the heart of the season rather than in India. International cricket in December-January would usually be a little more exciting out here because the winter weather would aid fast bowlers also and run scoring would usually be more challenging for the hoists as well as the visitors. The batathons or spin domination would usually follow as the climate got drier and the sun hotter. How things have changed with the march of time.

The new IPL teams have chosen their star players with old pals Dhoni and Raina, formerly of Chennai Super Kings, heading west, with the former to Pune for the Goenka group and the latter to Rajkot for a mobile phone manufacturer to join another Dhoni favourite in Ravindra Jadeja. An interesting new mix is in the offing with two teams replacing those old champions Rajasthan Royals of 2008 and CSK of 2010 and 2011. The cricket world moves on and that itself is something of a success story.

There are usually lesser problems to contend with in the southern summer where, however, the West Indies are hurtling further down into the abyss from which they have not risen for ages now ever since the Viv Richards era got over when he was unceremoniously left out of the squad for the 1991-92 World Cup in the Antipodes. But not until their pride in Test cricket was knocked from them later when the Aussies came to conquer the Caribbean in 1994 did the slide into oblivion begin.

The redeveloped Bellerive Oval is always a sight for sore eyes, nestling as it does with the sea as a backdrop, perhaps giving it a distinct Caribbean touch.

But the West Indians catapulted there too even though Darren Bravo was looking like a class act, driving with that imperious touch through the covers, very much in the Brian Lara style. The brilliance of an individual is no more capable of turning the fortune of the West Indies, once so formidable the cricket world despaired of ever taking away any of their crowns until India surprised them at Lord’s in 1983.

Today, the West Indian cricketers are at loggerheads with the WICB, as player-unfriendly a board as we are ever likely to come across in the modern era.

Money issues have so embroiled the game that its players don’t appear to be the professionals who used to be welcomed everywhere for their entertaining brand of cricket. Those in with contracts are getting paid better than before but there are always issues about payments and so on.

On this tour of Australia it appears the retired players who are in the country for speaking engagements and the like are likelier to make a better combination on the field. Michael Holding is one who seems to have opted out of the commentary box so that he can be in South Africa with the England tour rather than watch the carnage Down Under. Lara, Walsh, Simmons and Ambrose are in Australia, also Clive Lloyd who helped shape the Caribbean cricket team into that great combination fiercely motivated to beat the rest of the world.

The WICB was also at loggerheads with Tony Cozier who won an out-of-court settlement after challenging the Board’s assertion that his eyesight was too poor at his age to be a broadcaster. “I feel for young Jason Holder who seems to be out of his depth and without any conspicuous support,” is what Mike Coward wrote to me when he mailed in to check on Chennai floods and how we coped with it. In the 20 years since being toppled from the top of the Test totem pole never could West Indian cricket have been in poorer shape.