Bdos: 'Splaining the decline of Windies

It is time to face the reality and to stop looking for excuses. It is time to attack the problem head on.

Indiscipline has apparently been a problem in the past West Indies, but as the argument goes, it is overlooked once the team is winning. Therein lies the problem, which we face. The inability to tackle the problem head-on, will create a cyclical problem, which will always be apart of West Indies cricket.

Since 2001, West Indies have struggled to be competitive at home, contrary to their overall history. New Zealand, South Africa, Australia and England have all come into the Caribbean and have outplayed the West Indian team, with disastrous results (for West Indian fans). They all came with better plans and executed them to perfection, while bemused West Indian fans searched for answers, blaming the captain, or the management team for the team’s poor showing.

The problem, could be one of neo-colonialisation of the mind. This reverse form of domination has been exerted on the West Indies, at home and especially away from home. It starts with the foreign media who come to the region with the sole intention of seeing the West Indies suffer. So their articles express that view, that in their eyes the West Indies are not capable of facing their side, or how this bowler will terrorise the West Indians into submission. The best example was back in 2001, when Andre Nel came into the region, with a created name, based on the fact that he had floored a fellow number 11 in Alan Donald, yet in the region, Nel was perceived to be a great bowler!

That falls perfectly onto the view that many of us quickly fall into the trap which has been carefully set. We begin to question the ability of our team to compete with others, given what has been written by opposition journalists, but it goes deeper.

Other teams have used the advancements, which have become available to improve themselves on the world stage. The use of full-time, well-staffed Academies, well thought out, planned and financed coaching programmes, which have the ability to shape and mold cricketers at an early age, for example, Jacques Kallis, a product of the South African Academy system, is now the leading world all-rounder. Other teams have created Professional Leagues and encouraged professional players, who are under contract, which means that they must “eat, sleep and breathe cricket”.

That is not the case in the West Indies. We allow criticism of our way of life, structures, facilities and ultimately of our players and unwittingly do the same ourselves, not remembering that these same people suffered at our hands for 15 years.

More grief that bidst the o'erburdened heart to break.

Last week I turned to Shakespeare with the hope that the West Indies buoyed up by local support would demonstrate “the action of the tiger; stiffen the sinews; summon up the blood” and follow their spirit to success. No such luck. The West Indies have made Kensington their second Agincourt, while making precisely twice as many as they made at our first Agincourt three weeks ago at Sabina Park. At this rate our second innings at Antigua will be 188, with a whitewash and more shedding of tears.

There is much that needs attention in West Indian cricket and it does not depend on the team we select for the ARG. When did the decline start? Tony Cozier, the premier cricket writer takes us back to 1997. Others take us back earlier to 1995 and Lara’s departure on a frolic of his own when he left the West Indies team which was on tour in England. By the way, whatever has become of the Wes Hall Report, and what action was taken on it? I am certain that Andy Roberts, Ian Bishop and the late Malcolm Marshall would place the decline in attitude if not in performance a year or two earlier. What is quite clear however is that in 2004 the decline is beyond mere performance. It is in attitude and administration as well.