Paul Wright | Windies upsetting the ‘experts’

Cricket, lovely cricket. The Windies have won the Wisden Trophy in no uncertain manner after demolishing England in the first two of three Test matches here in the Caribbean. Any West Indian cricket fan who “did know” that the margin of victory by the eighth-ranked ICC Test team over the third-ranked team would have been so decisive is either mendacious or a sorcerer. The ‘experts’ in England ALL gave us no chance, and the way the England team batted, bowled, and fielded in the two matches to date suggests that they too were on board with the hype.

The Windies, fresh from a series beating by minnows Bangladesh, were ‘soft’, ‘mediocre’, and all they had to do is turn up and victory would be guaranteed. How surprised they were! Even the most diehard West Indian fan (me) expected an improved performance from a humiliated and wounded Test team from the country that invented the game. Praise for our captain and his band of steely (not merry) men is well deserved as they showed that the victory in the first Test was not a fluke! They really deserved to win! The batting of test recall Darren Bravo placed steel in the middle order as he braved hits, good balls, and balls that performed gymnastics on an uneven surface to hold the innings together until the magical and psychological 300 was reached. How we missed his determination and resolve during the time he was suspended from playing because of an ill-timed description of his boss.

At the end of the match, a multiple Test-playing fast bowler with 1,000 wickets watched his final delivery of the second Test whacked over the boundary for six by a young cricketer playing in only his second Test. What a wonderful way to end a Test match!

As we prepare for the third and final Test, our captain and man of the match has been suspended for his second supervision of a slow over rate in one year. The first was against Sri Lanka in Barbados in June 2018. Master statistician Zaheer Clarke informs us that the Windies have lost all four Test matches that they have played without their captain. The Windies are 141 runs worse off when the captain does not play, and they concede 78 runs less per 10 wickets. But those teams were not as fired up as this one is.

Perfect foil

Shannon Gabriel has put the fear of whoever their god is in the minds and hearts of the Englishmen as he delivers the ball. He is the perfect foil for Alzari Joseph and Kemar Roach, who exploited the fleeing batsmen with controlled in-line bowling. Also, the tragic news of the demise of Alzarri Joseph’s mother during the match apparently led him to bowl the best that I have seen from him since his introduction to Test cricket. The English team looked beaten and demoralised after the shellacking they received in the first Test. It is difficult to see them recovering sufficiently to defeat us in the third and final Test even though they have absolutely no chance of winning the series. But the game is cricket. Who knows? We can only wish our Windies all that is good.

Yesterday at a press conference in St Kitts, Pete Russell, the chief operating officer of the Caribbean Premier League (CPL), announced that the St Kitts Patriots, one of the many franchises in the CPL, was being sold to Sushil Kumar and his team of co-owners comprising K. Jayaram, Venkatesh Sridhar, Vaibhav Meha, and Naren Kunder. These men control five different sports teams and have an interest in Hong Kong cricket. They promise everything good for CPL cricket.

While we welcome Kumar and his fellow co-owners, the question that arises is: How long can the CPL last if the owners who are putting up their cash and assets continue to see breaking even as a good thing while expecting a loss? The raw fact is that CPL cricket is not being supported in the islands by the fans and corporate bodies, who are the ones who are expected to assist in defraying expenses. In the case of the Jamaica Tallawahs, our Minister of Sport has stated that there is just not enough Government money to support all the teams that request and expect support. Therefore the threat of the Tallawahs playing more and more home games in Florida is real!

At some stage, businesses, and to a lesser extent, fans have to decide how important sports is to the region. Can we continue to expect foreigners and expatriates to fund our sports while we only turn out if we are winning or have an excellent chance of success? I am of the opinion that sport is vital to the spiritual, mental, and physical well-being of a nation. Once there is agreement on this postulate, then we must all put our resources where our mouths are. Let us not sit by and watch the CPL wither and die. Let us all with one accord chip in and help! Turn out in your thousands when the CPL comes to your island.