The sorry state of West Indian cricket

Yes Johnno, the politics of decolonization from the 1960s to the 1980s of most of the WI islands, I doubt it's a coincidence that the quality of WI cricketers born from the 70s onwards has declined.

You almost made sense for a moment there Rupert. Bangladesh have 100 million so we can safely assume the population is irrelevant to success. Especially as Australia have only 22 million. That means it is money and the cost of the game that is the impediment. So instead of fattening India's coffers, let's pressure the ICC to develop the game internationally. The Bangers and Windies need quality development professionals and a cash injection.

I would have thought the islands of the West Indies were as comparative as the states the other cricketing nations draw from to play representative national cricket. We always hear a lot of excuses but few solutions to remove the Windies malaise. I think a strong West Indies side is important to the health of the game. Money is really no object. There is plenty. Maybe the ICC could step up and create an equalisation scheme where funds are distributed equally amongst all cricketing nations to ensure a competitive, vigorous and interesting competition. Take a leaf from the AFL. In any event they've been down too long for mine and we should demand that they're fixed.

chris Basketball and the NBA are very popular there too its sports like that and football, sports where in which you can actually partake in them as a recreational activity without being physically punished. Sports that are built on braun such as Gridiron are extremely hard games to grow or muscle sports largely remain internal to that domestic region ....

Another area where Soccer is eating away sadly, what next FIFA in Cuba.

Football , Basketball and Track @ Field have always been prominent sports in the West Indies . Australians have been lead to believe that Crickets the only sport there by the Australian media . The internet among other concepts have slowly changed the modern perception of sports in the West Indies , most formats to the sport of Cricket last for more that 4-5 hours per game another struggle Cricket faces in a time poor, less patient or tolerant world. I'd suggest that Cricket equipment or kits is not that much of a financial burden as some may think too.

I too remember the Windies from that period very fondly. As a recent arrival from Canada I loved their aggression, I think Roy Fredericks made 169 in a day at the WACA. Although they lost, they seemed to have an energy about them, and from this I watched as Clive Lloyd harnessed that energy and they became a megaforce in World Cricket. I used to barrack for them, telling my friends I was a white West Indian, that was what my Canadian accent really was. Sadly, disunity was always a looming threat when cobbling individuals together from various nations. When things were going well they could paper over the cracks, but as other teams became more athletic the Windies natural "edge" disappeared and more hard work and training and, dare I say it, discipline would be required to stay at the top. Sadly, the commitment to go beyond "natural" talents has proven to be a bridge too far for the most. Chanderpaul is a glaring exception as he has taken some talent and honed it through dedication to become somewhat of a wall. If he had 4 or 5 other team mates willing to do the same they could still be a force. Look at D Warner. Many said he could not play Test cricket, and at the time, they may have been correct, but lots of hard work has paid off in spades. Same goes for S Smith who has turned some natural ability into a world class level of consistency. I would love to see the Windies rise again, but the culture of their overall administration needs to be given a good shake up for this to happen. Groundsman need to be encouraged to produce not only lively wickets, but lively nets where exuberant young players can athletically bound in and see results for their efforts, not low and slow wickets they offer only heartache on steamy days at the oval. We need a strong West Indies, lets get the ICC (read BCCI) to back this and make it happen before it is too late.

I wonder if Cricket Australia has a back-up plan in mind in case the West Indies pull out of its tour of Australia, like they did halfway during the recent tour of India, with enormous repercussions for West Indies cricket. Could CA put 'Plan B' into effect and ask ie Pakistan or Sri Lanka to be on standby and have a team match-ready and be on the first flight to Melbourne or Sydney in case the tour by the West Indies fall through at the 11th hour? And with West Indies cricket going into freefall mode, CA has to be on the alert and ready to put its plan into action. An Australia v Sri Lanka Boxing Day Test match would have more appeal, especially to the expatriate Sri Lankan community in Melbourne.

Mine was a dud attempt at an explanation Snickometero. What I was trying to get at, is most West Indians could not afford to go to an international cricket match in Australia. (Many Australian families cannot afford to go to the cricket) And Glenn Innes, you are right about bat prices, but they seem to be much higher than when I played. And we did not have the requirement for helmet and other paraphernalia. It costs a lot of money to kit a kid out for cricket, compared with the cost of other sports. Regarding basketball: television has had a huge impact on the games popularity in the WI I thought my post at 11.49 pm was late, but you guys are posting at 1.04am and 3.18am.!! The Roar is certainly a 24/7 operation

Dan The interesting thing to me is the apparent attitude of Gayle - he is the leader of the band and yet his lack of enthusiasm, JOY and general apparent boorish attitude must affect the WI team generally. Either he has no personality or does not particularly care. The sooner he is gone the better for the WI - this is a team that has thrived on BUBBLE in the past - listen to Michael Holding - he stil has it. Its interesting to see both Richards and Lara on the TV - neither seem to have that joie de vivre that we see, for example, in the Australian team Both were great performers - but that is not enough in a TEAM sport. Being so laid back, COOL. whatever you want to call it, seems to be part of the mindset of some of the players - it does not work.

"The cost of taking a family, two adults and two kids, to a test match in Australia would probably be equal to a months pay for the average West Indian supporter. ( I made that up, but I have been told its close to reality)" Where do you get your information from? You need to abandon that phony source. The West Indian countries aren't impoverished. The worst parts of the WI are still infinitely better off than the populations of half of the countries at this Cricket World Cup. India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, South Africa, Bangladesh, Zimbabwe & Afghanistan make up 7 of the 14 teams. Those places are extremely & embarrassingly dire in any comparison.

Onside Good Cricket bats have always been expensive, I remember back in the early seventies it cost over a hundred bucks for a half decent one it has always been more expensive to play than soccer, but a junior club really only needs a couple of bats a few pair of pads and gloves. The West Indies could always manage to find the money for equipment in the past, what they can't find the money for is the AIS style elite junior coaching that other countries now have.

Iohnno - You nailed it when you said these countries are poor, you could have added and their populations are relatively small.I don't think it has anything to do with American sports (soccer is the most popular sport outside of cricket) and administration has always been sclerotic, These days wealthy countries like Australia, South Africa (the white part) England as well as India (which is poor but has a middle class of about fifty million) have such sophisticated talent identification and elite junior coaching set ups that the West Indies have just been left behind.They also lack the sheer numbers that Pakistan and Srl Lanka have...so they have the worst of both worlds, no money and not many people. Back in the eighties raw talent was still enough but these days it is not enough, not when you are competing against countries that spend a fortune identifying and then coaching talented kids from their early teens.

onside that is why Ireland,Scotland,Canada,Holland,Denmark,UAE,there rich countries with a strong middle class. West Indies, too poor, same with Bangladesh and Zimbabwe. Bangladesh one advantage is it's right next door to India which may save it from cricket minnows.

A little perspective The Australian team that played Sri Lanka today, collectively earn a minimum of something in the vicinity of forty million dollars per annum . Thirteen cricketers made BRW's 2014 list of richest Australian athletes of which six are in the top ten. The cost of taking a family, two adults and two kids, to a test match in Australia would probably be equal to a months pay for the average West Indian supporter. ( I made that up, but I have been told its close to reality) Elite West Indian cricketers are forced to play overseas to maximise their salary, because they cannot earn a decent living playing at home. Lack of money is pivotal to the demise and demise of West Indian cricket . Next time you are in a good quality sports store, as a matter of interest ask about the cost involved with kitting out a teenager with cricket gear. A good quality bat costs between $600 and $900 .(Google : cost of quality bats). So what does the complete outfit cost.......plenty. And that's Australia. The West Indian kids have taken up affordable sports like basketball and soccer. Dans article is correct, but the wealthy nations are not putting anywhere enough back into the game in poorer countries. For example its seems like the next ODI World Cup will exclude the very nations that need help and exposure . I get the feeling that one day cricket will be so exclusive ,that we will end up playing with ourselves,which is what I think is already the domain of those officials in charge of the future of International Cricket.

Rupert You bring up some good points. Cricket is a far more expensive sport than say soccer or rugby,even basketball too. Soccer you just need 2 soccer balls per team of say 15 kids and your away. Cricket you need a whole heap of gear etc, a cricket costs far more than 2 soccer balls. Plus safe pitches etc, that cost money to build. Soccer you just need a few street cones at the basic junior stages. sevens rugby is cheap as to get going too. 15'S is an expensive sport to develop as you need specialists coaches and scrum machines etc. So it's easy to see why soccer is taking over the caribeean, just so much cheaper than cricket. And easy to see 7evens appeal to Fiji, cheap as chips to play.

It is a sheer case of the under-privileged trying to match it with the well-to-do. You don't see the Carribean kids turning up in their creams, match bags full of gloves, boxes, caps, jumpers, sponsored track-suits, spare sprigs, pads and at least two cricket bats. So long as the costs of gear keep rising, the gulf between the West Indian nations and the 4WD Tractor classes that encompass the likes of Australia and New Zealand, the chances of them bridging the gap will be insurmountable. The West Indies does not have a population base either when compared to India or Pakistan. Fiji, I can well remember in the 60s as being a hard-hitting emerging nation but they too have succumbed to insurmountable costs in the schools and throughout the islands. But you folk gathered amongst the fish-heads and your cucumber sandwiches keep on crying "it's Tony Abbott's fault!"

Did you know Lara and the West Indies team personally? And the Chris Gayle scenario, he obviously has a major chip on his shoulder with the West Indies cricket board as was evident with his disapproval of the players not selected for the West Indies team. He's given so much to WI cricket and obviously feels betrayed by the board recently. Dont blame him for being here for a pay day and a holiday

GD66 The other point of that is like pacific islands rugby teams. They play well for there clubs, but put them under the national team banner, without the coaching resources or back room staff, and 5 star hotels and all that goes with professionalism they fall apart. Same with indies cricket players. They will still produce some good cricketers e.g. Kieren Pollard types, but the windies team will disband or be also rans.

It seems from the glimpses we've had of the Windies players involve in the Big Bash, and from various occasional cameos by their players that without question they still have the skills and the flair. But for probably 15 years now we have seen their ex-playing legends bemoaning the apparent lack of discipline off the field : it seems this is an ongoing issue which hasn't ameliorated to any great degree. I'm not sure having the ICC involved will make any difference to this problem, and if the words of their legendary stars of the past have no effect, it's difficult to envision just what will get it done. Bloody shame. Renumeration ?