FACTOR IN ALL the “if onlys” and the three-match One-Day International series against England wasn’t a bad effort at all by West Indies.
From dropping catches all over the place, to be being neck-and-neck with ten overs to go in the first match in Antigua, to having the tourists 102 runs away from victory with only four wickets left in the second fixture of that double-header, there is enough evidence to suggest that the final 3-0 scoreline is a gross misrepresentation of the balance of play.
That is, of course, if you happen to be disconnected from reality.
There is an infuriatingly delusional tendency among us to deny the blindingly obvious. From the wide assortment of what-could-have-been’s (“Man dis look like it was gine be Carlos day”) to what-used-to-be’s (“You think they coulda bowl that $%#! to Sir Garry?!”) to what-could-be’s (“I not bias at all, but they hadda stick with these Bajan boys to build a champion team”), there is little room for a proper reality check.
To point out that the West Indies’ lowly ranking is no aberration but reflective of a record of just four wins in 20 ODIs since the last World Cup is to invite condemnation for being pessimistic. Observing that the top order was being dismissed in the same repetitive manner in this series is to be accused of not giving the players a fair chance.
Daring to suggest that the results contradict chairman of selectors Courtney Browne’s faith in the nucleus of this squad is to be confronted with something along the lines of: “If the results was different you woulda be singing a different song, not so?”
Which brings us back to the disconnection from reality thing.
Leaving the Vivian Richards Stadium after the second ODI last Sunday, Jeff Dujon was confronted by an irate Antiguan violently arguing in favour of countryman Rahkeem Cornwall and berating the former wicketkeeper-batsman-turned-commentator for suggesting that the all-rounder’s lack of mobility worked against seriously considering him for senior West Indies representation.
For all his success and continuing improvement over the past six years with his off-spin and lower-order batting, just imagine Cornwall with his present physique in a keen limited-over contest at the highest level. So much for sharp singles when batting, and where in the field do you place him if you can’t afford the luxury of a slip?
But Rahkeem’s steadfast defender needed to vent his spleen and Dujon endured the tirade with admirable restraint.
With the visitors in the process of mopping up the final couple of wickets to complete a 186-run series-sweeping demolition last Thursday afternoon at Kensington Oval, former England batsman Robert Key, in the midst of a spell of television commentary, suggested that the West Indies didn’t compare favourably with the opposition in the matter of intensity of training when he observed the two teams’ practice sessions leading up to the match. Previous coach Phil Simmons took serious exception to a similar comparison when the West Indies were in Australia 14 months ago.
We await a like-minded backlash from Simmons’ successor, Stuart Law, now that his work has been so publicly disparaged.
Unless West Indians stop dancing around unavoidable issues because of inherent biases or preoccupation with protecting various turfs, there will be no real turnaround in our cricket. Look how quickly the lustre of the historic triple triumphs of a year ago has faded.
To see thousands of pink Brits singing, dancing and wining (well, as best as they could anyway) to the tune of their team’s annihilation of the West Indies at the former fortress continues to be a galling experience, even if it has become commonplace since Alec Stewart’s twin centuries in 1994 at the old Kensington ended the era of invincibility.
At least it helps the Barbados economy, so try and swing another visit next year and the next and so on, with the promise of sun, sea and a shellacking of the natives with the nameplates of the greats on the stands looking down on the carnage once more. Who wouldn’t want to get on board?
Look, two decades languishing in mediocrity – save for the occasional sparks of brilliance – won’t be transformed overnight into an efficient winning machine. But the process can’t even start, no, the decline can’t even be slowed first if there is no willingness to honestly acknowledge the many ills at managerial, operational, playing, media and spectator level that contribute to this unsavoury callaloo.
Losing to England so badly is not the end of the cricketing world. It is, though, another signpost that, like the innumerable signposts of a near-generation, is likely to go unheeded amid the crabs-in-a-barrel insecurities which render us incapable of making bold, selfless decisions . . . in cricket, as in life.
Doing the right thing shouldn’t be so hard.
Fazeer Mohammed is a regional cricket journalist and broadcaster who has been covering the game at all levels since 1987.
