IT CONTINUES to boggle the mind why winds of division are blowing through West Indies cricket at a time when we should still be savouring an unprecedented treble and consolidating those gains.
Instead it appears to have gone horribly wrong since the capture of the Under-19 World Cup and the men’s and women’s World Twenty20.
Not so long ago I remember “all ah we” dancing to DJ Bravo’s monster hit Champion, a song that suited our achievements and the mood of the masses who seldom have much to celebrate in terms of cricket.
The feeling was that we had finally seen light and that we were landing on fertile ground.
It wasn’t that we had gained the whole world, but at least some self-belief had returned after endless years of drought and no silverware to add to the trophy cabinet.
Mysteriously, the wheels have come off the wagon and there appears to be civil war that can only disrupt the plot to get us back among the world’s elite in all forms of the game not only in T20.
Since glory in India, captain Darren Sammy was axed, there was the same fate for former bowling consultant Sir Curtly Ambrose and head coach Phil Simmons, and Courtney Browne replaced Clive Lloyd as chief selector.
Such movement so soon after huge success seems abnormal. There must have been a formula that was working to achieve such. Why fix it then if it wasn’t broken?
It would be an understatement to say that we have never seen so much tension and fallout between players and the board – at least not openly. It now seems to be a free-for-all. We simply await the next episode in what has turned out to be a soap opera.
The latest series starring board president Dave Cameron and senior batsman Darren Bravo doesn’t make for good watching or reading because it shows that we must find a better way to handle internal issues.
Cameron’s explanation on Sportsmax for Bravo being offered a lower contract and the player’s response have started a fire which might only be cooled or extinguished through litigation.
The fact of the matter is that since 2014 only Kraigg Brathwaite has scored more Test runs than Bravo, so if you want to cut the latter’s pay, you have to find another way to justify it, otherwise some might begin searching for an ulterior motive. After all, there would have to be other underperforming players during that two-year period, so how can you justify keeping them at the same level and demote someone else who has done better?
Questions would be asked and those who make the decisions on recommendations for contracts should be prepared to supply answers that appear to be transparent and fair.
Bravo’s tweeted response to Cameron breached the board’s protocol and can’t be condoned, but at the same time he is only human and must have been deeply wounded to see how he was treated in relation to the contract he was offered.
I’m not saying that two wrongs make a right, but we all have feelings. We can only contemplate how we would have handled the situation if we were wearing Bravo’s shoes.
We might also want to call out Cameron when he posted a negative tweet towards Chris Gayle during the last World Cup and say that as head of the organisation, he set a bad example for his subordinates. Grown men should act with maturity.
What is noteworthy is that West Indies cricket has become more polarised than ever and these cracks can only serve to undermine the few positives we gain occasionally. It’s like one step forward and two backwards and it’s occurring at strategic points. That’s what’s so baffling.
By now we should be able to solve issues before tours so that they won’t be allowed to linger and become distractions to the players who would have no excuses if they don’t deliver in the middle.
I won’t blame Dwayne Bravo and Kieron Pollard for statements in this regard in respect to the early part of the series against Pakistan. It was a situation where some players may have taken up the fire-rage of the sudden axeing of coach Simmons and when seeds of discord are sown, it’s bound to affect team performance. Which divided house can stand?
Unsurprisingly, the Trinidadians feel they are being targeted, and the latest controversy with Darren Bravo might serve to reinforce this view, whether it is true or not.
We must discourage them from harbouring the thought of going it alone because if it was given the green light by the cricket powers that be, I can’t see it being a success. Mighty Barbados challenged the Rest of the World and it didn’t work out even though we had no fewer than nine players who made up the ranks of the West Indies in the mid-1960s.
As a matter of fact, we should be aiming for mediation rather than litigation in the Bravo case, even as he seeks justice in having his matter resolved. It was reported that the West Indies Cricket Board has extended the proverbial olive branch to him and it’s a step in the right direction.
Lest we forget, cricket is the cord that binds us when others try to divide us. Just think back to India only a few short months ago.
• Andi Thornhill is a veteran sports journalist. Email andithornhill1@gmail.com
