Not buying it
Former player not seeing CWI director of cricket’s World Cup plans
Published:Sunday | November 19, 2023 | 12:12 AMOrane Buchanan - Staff Reporter
FORMER WEST Indies and Jamaica fast bowler Daren Powell is not buying the latest proclamation from Cricket West Indies (CWI) director of cricket Miles Bascombe regarding the goals of the recently concluded Super50 Cup, won by the Trinidad and Tobago Red Force.
Speaking with CWI Media, Bascombe said the tournament was used as the launching pad for identifying players and for ensuring the West Indies were part of the next 50-over World Cup.
“Coming into this tournament, white-ball head coach Daren Sammy had meetings with the franchise coaches and, during the tournament, had meetings as he outlined his brand of white-ball cricket. As we make preparations for the 2027 World Cup, we now have four years to ensure that we are able to compete in that World Cup and bring some glory to West Indies cricket,” Bascombe explained.
As host India and Australia are currently engaged in the final of the 2023 edition, the West Indies, for the first time in their history, had failed to secure qualification for the showpiece event. According to Bascombe, between now and the next World Cup, there’s adequate time for players to understand various skills and work on their craft.
“We have to keep apace with the change in trends, and the 50-over game has changed the most in the last few years. Looking at the ongoing World Cup, you’re seeing scores of 300 plus being chased comfortably in some cases, and we have to be able to keep apace with that. We want players to understand what it is to be [an] opener, a wicket-taking fast bowler, and they will effectively have three to four years to refine their skills and practise those roles,” he said.
However, Powell isn’t being swayed by the music he’s hearing, believing, rather, that decisions around the regional team often take a collective agreement from various regional bodies, which often carries some contention.
“There’s a huge breakdown that has been trickling down in the region over the years. Until everyone comes and are singing the same song, dancing to the same beat, we’ll only have the talks and nothing being done. I read Daren Sammy’s proposal outlining a number of things that he wants to get done. Are the regional boards willing to accept that their coaches need to follow a system set by the board?” asked Powell.
Powell added that he doesn’t believe it should have taken West Indies missing a World Cup for the regional body to get serious about the type of cricket that is being played.
“We’ve been missing the boat for a long time now. I don’t think our coaches and administrators really understand management on a whole, and that is what is crippling West Indies cricket. People want to go about doing their own thing. Once we get ourselves in a collective balance, we will see a more successful West Indies.”