Put your vision to reality”
Robert Nesta Marley, Wake Up And Live
Here wishing Shimron Hetmyer and Keemo Paul, speedy and total recovery from their physical issues. I trust Shimron Hetmyer will not suffer mental anguish and scars. Numerous batsmen never recover after being struck on their face and head. Batsmanship is really exhibited above the shoulders. Shimron Hetmyer could benefit from accounts of great West Indian batsmen rising regularly after being struck on the face and head. Roy Fredericks, Alvin Kallicharran, Clive Lloyd and Vivian Richards are perfect examples of batsmen who stood firm after receiving very painful blows on their heads and in their faces.
Nothing but the best for Hetmyer and Paul, going forward.
Administration
Have you access the survey at CWI website? Have you read the Wehby Report? The survey wouldn't accept Africa as place of origin. Hence, that ended this Mande's efforts to participate, therein.
It's clear the current administration is handcuffed by lack of access to capital - Rothschild males money supply. Although Cricket West Indies is a private company, it must seek subsidies and input from regional governments as well as other avenues, including US advertising and mass media etc.
What the CWI could offer the governments and peoples of the Caribbean in return for subsidies remain unclear. Of course, losing international cricket is unacceptable. Caribbean governments must step up their efforts to improve infrastructure, facilities, coaching, equipment and sponsoring competitions in various genres of the game at various levels in their respective territories. CWI must reduce its staff. Abolish every selection panel. The coaches must choose the squads. CWI must also replace the managers with the head coach. Coaches must earn the renumeration they receive. Coaches must be equipped with computers to monitor and improve performances - and to make recommendations respecting selection of squads and teams.
What are the qualities of dismissals achieved by bowlers in various situations and locations?
How does batsmen perform against particular bowlers in various situations and locations in various genres of the game?
Skerritt and Shallow immediately removed U19 regionals from Guyana. CWI held the tournament in St. Vincent. CWI should have given the U19 regionals to Berbice. That would have shown this CWI was about positive energy and vibrations. Berbice cricket Board has been very aggressive in promoting a revival of cricket in that country. The affiliated boards of the areholders of CWI must be given much wider roles and voices in the decision making process and voting in CWI.
It's also clear. There's no light in the tunnel. A few mirages, here and there, such as winning the U19 and T20 internationals in 2016, were impressive. Stakeholders and fans believed winning cricket was on the horizon.
Clive Lloyd began employing three and four man extreme fast bowling attacks in Summer 1976. However, since1995, no strategy has produced winning cricket.
Spinners are not major weapons in West Indies cricket in internationals. In 92 years of test matches, only four spinners, Ramadhin, Valentine, Sobers and Gibbs are impressive and iconic. But however, spinners have dominated the regional 4-days' matches. Permaul is the major wickets taker in recent years. He has not been adequately rewarded. Since the 1880s, when Africans were introduced into West Indies cricket there has been a preponderance of outstanding fast bowlers. Float Woods, Tommie Burns, George John, Archie Cumberbatch, George Francis, Herman Griffith, Learie Constantine, Leslie Hylton, and Manny Martindale, are iconic quicks, 1900-1950.
At Manchester, in 1939, Learie Constantine, Leslie Hylton, Manny Martindale and Floffie Williams became the original fast bowling foursome in West Indies internationals.
West indies cricket rose during the peek years of Ramadhin and Valentine, 1950-1957 and
Gilchrist, Hall, Griffith, 1957-1968,
West Indies cricket fell after the decline of those outstanding bowlers. Please note, Gilchrist was banned from internationals. In summer 1973, after a period of six years without a winning a series, West Indies cricket rose again in England during the caretaker period of Rohan Kanhai. Boyce, Gibbs and Sobers were leading bowlers. Fredericks, Kallicharran, Kanhai, Lloyd, Sobers, Julien and Murray acquitted themselves with the bat.
The period, 1974-2001, global cricket wittnessed the excellence of Roberts, Holding, Daniel, Croft, Garner, Marshall, Clarke, Patterson, Walsh, Ambrose and Bishop, West Indies were dominant 1975-1995.
Bowling
Are administrators so brain dead that nothing has worked to sustain a winning cricket in internationals, 1995-2020?
Why West Indies have not produced lethal quicks, since 2001?
Gabriel, Roach, Joseph and Holder are not outstanding bowlers. James Anderson mastered the art of .reverse swing. Gabriel, Roach, Joseph, Holder, and Thomas and others have not exhibited the wickettsking treath of swing bowling often enough as to influence batsmen to endure sleepless nights. Thomas seems to be this era's Uton Dowe. He all pace and little or nothing else. Joseph has not made the leap as the wicket-taking threat he was at U19 2016. Perhaps, Chemar Holder is ready for internationals. How about Harding? Perhaps, Paul, Joseph, Shepherd, Holder, and Pestano and other useful lower order batsmen should be restricted to ODIs and T20s.
Batting
Gordon Greenidge and Alvin Kallicharran made two outstanding observations regarding batting in international areanas which influenced my thinking. Greenidge said he and Fredericks were about creating freedom of movement at the crease for the succeeding batsmen. He was referring to their game plan of scoring in dominant exhibition of stroke play off of as many deliveries as possible, often from the first delivery.
Kallicharran said at the international level cricket is played above the shoulders. Successful performance is obtained whenever adjustments are made to counter what others are offering. Greenidge initially had issues with confidence against extremely fast bowlers in hostile environment. Richards and Greenidge overcame their flaws. Richards and Greenidge had long and successful careers. Thus, perhaps, Hope, Hetmyer, Bravo, and Blackwood, will sort out their issues and blossom into dominant batsmen at the international level for an extended period. Pooran and Hope should have been in the test team. Hope should have been an opening batsman. It worked for Richards in Australia in 1976. Harper said Hope is a piece for the future. Yet he omitted Hope in favor of the lesser talented with no future. Campbell, Brathwaite, Brooks, and Chase are not building blocks Campbell, Brathwaite, Brooks and Chase are not capable of lifting West Indies to heights attained by prior generations of outstanding batsmen. Campbell, Brathwaite, Brooks and Chase are mediocre. None of them, are equipped to give bowlers second thoughts much less, sleepless nights.
Options for opening batsmen are extremely limited. Lewis and Simmons seem to have no interest in test match cricket. Ambris, King and Hemraj haven't shown any hints they can pass muster in internationals. Gridon Pope has failed to progress from U19 cricket. Perhaps, Carlos Brathwaite pointed a way forward when he opened with Hetmyer and Hope in T20 match. Perhaps, that makeshift combination ought to be tried in a test series. Blackwood is another option to try at the beginning of innings.
The selectors must replace Campbell, Brathwaite, and Brooks, even Bravo and Chase. Hope, Hetmyer, and Pooran ought to be the first three choices. The selectors must introduce Carty to international cricket in January 2021. Perhaps, Rutherford, Alick Athanaze, Kimani Melius and Anderson are years away at best. Rutherford ought be given an opportunity soonest.
If the choice is win series now. Then the T20 cavilers ought to be selected whenever they are available.
Captaincy
The skill set of Jason Holder has not improved in the four primary phases of the game. He is incapable of playing captain's innings whenever the opportunity demands. His bowling is unlikely to force West Indians and others to compare him to Joel Garner and Curtly Ambrose. His deliveries lack wicket taking horizontal and vertical movement exhibited by Garner and Ambrose. He is not as capable as Garner in the field. He is sloppy at best. His captaincy suggest he is incapable of leading from in front. Imran khan he is not. It's clear, Holder is about propping and padding his performance statistics. He ought to be focused on winning cricket instead of personal performance numbers.
Perhaps, Pollard ought to be approached to be a caretaker test match captain. A bridge to the next long term captain must be put in place, as soon as possible. Perhaps, Hope, Hetmyer and/or someone else will be worthy of being groomed to be the next major test match captain. Holder, and Chase are not the answers.
Probably Long Term Solution
Guyana and the other affiliated boards are guilty of trying to win regional competitions instead of nurturing players to dominate the international competition. Guyana keep trotting out players who have no potential of becoming dominant internationals, and/or supporting cast to winning West Indies cricket.. Enough already with Johnson, Barnwell, Griffith, Beaton, Joseph, Chanderpaul, Lewis, and Riefer. The selectors must make way for Smith, Motie, Nedd, Anderson, Sinclair and other young players. CWI ought to require affiliated boards satisfy selection conditions, such as players who are likely to be selected for West Indies A, West Indies U 19, and current test teams and no more than four players who are beyond 28 years old and past consideration for any West Indies teams. CWI should increase the pool of players, beginning with two or four more teams in the 50 overs competition. Perhaps, an adequate number of fans could consistently support multiple games concurrently, in jamaica, Trinidad and Guyana. Berbice, Demerara and Essequibo Cricket boards ought to be seeking franchises for the CPL and Super 50 competitions. The emphasis must be dentifying attacking batsmen who can alter the course of a match favorably and fast bowlers who can strike at anytime on any surface in any form of cricket. That's the missing element in Holder's teams
In short selectors must demonstrate vision for current times and the future whenever teams are chosen for regionals and internationals.
Advise to Indians in the Caribbean
Discard the Chanderpaul mold. Grafting is boring. Grafting is ugly. Absolute grafting has no place in cricket. Pooran is explosive. Hemraj on fire is a breath of fresh air. Hemraj needs to overcome his health issues. Hemraj needs to record more centuries in dominant fashion especially against Barbados in Barbados.
The IPL is littered with indian attacking batsmen. The IPL also showcase a number of fine indian fast bowlers. Bumrah, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, and others ought to be a yardstick for young indians to imitate. Even if Indians and other are not selected for West Indies teams they can earn decent standard of living in cricket in T20 leagues. Love for Hemraj, Permaul, Shepherd and Pestano to be offered IPL contracts. Love for them to perform at least satisfactorily, enough to be retained for several seasons. Notice, Sunil Narine, don't need West Indies teams selection.
Grafting and spinners are unlikely to be selected by franchises when home grown talent are available, in abundance.
