Marlon Samuels is the man responsible for one of the laziest, most uncommitted performances by a professional cricketer I’ve witnessed.
While on duty for West Indies against England Lions in Northampton (the hometown seamer Jack Brooks was in the England side, the reason for my attendance in a working capacity) Samuels, fresh off a bank-balance inflating stint in the Indian Premier League, produced an effort which could’ve been bettered by a cardboard cutout.
His warm-up consisted of patting back a handful of extremely slow throwdowns without enough force even to reach the advertising boards from half a dozen yards away, and, er, that was it.
He then scratched his way to 32, which was quite an achievement given his feet didn’t move enough to even make new spike marks. He missed more than he hit and his commitment to application was conspicuous by its blatant absence.
But it wasn’t necessarily how he played which was the issue – given his colleagues struggled to adapt to the damp, seaming early season surface – but rather that he gave the impression he would’ve rather been anywhere but where his body actually had him stationed.
In the subsequent Test series, the Jamaican made light of such a lacklustre showing with a collection of excellent innings, the best of which was a sublime first-innings century at Trent Bridge. Not necessarily the definition of the ridiculous to the sublime but, as Billy Birmingham’s note-perfect Richie Benaud would state, “Pretty f****** close to it.”
There have been plenty of cricketers down the years with a personality split which manifested itself in their performances, but Samuels would have to somewhere near the top were such a list ever compiled.
Barely caring one day – the recent Test series in Australia was another case where his countrymen may as well have played with ten – and peeling off match-winning stints in finals the next.
Jekyll and Hyde eat your proverbial heart out and then some.
Samuels has played in a pair of World T20 finals, against Sri Lanka in 2012 and England the other day, and both times he has been the star of the show.
While Carlos Brathwaite applied the stunning coup de grace to the final in Kolkata on Sunday, it was Samuels who made sure his side had a sniff, after they threatened to make a right hash of chasing England’s under-par total.
Much is made of the ability to hit the ball out of the ground in the 20-over format, a la Brathwaite or Andre Russell, but a calm head and the nous to pace an innings is a highly valuable skill and one Samuels has down to a tee.
In Colombo four years, ago his 78 – constructed out of the potentially ruinous score of 32-2 at the halfway point of the innings – was a masterclass which contained a breathtaking assault on Lasith Malinga and propelled the West Indies to a score that netted them the trophy.
His innings at Eden Gardens may have lacked the same pockets of fireworks, but there was a similar recipe adhered to; stay in the game, bide your time, then press the accelerator.
There is more time than many would have you believe in such a short game and Samuels has certainly signed up to such an adage.
For a player capable of such moments, Samuels has a curiously underwhelming record. An average of fewer than 34 in Tests and a fraction over the same number in one-day internationals are nothing to really shout about.
They’re not dreadful by any means, but they seem somewhat unbecoming when you see the level he is capable of raising himself to on the biggest stage.
But that is just the way it is, and while myself or anybody else can pick holes in his cricketing resume, the man himself has two shiny gold medals on his mantelpiece. They are medals he has done more than most to earn.
And there are numerous cricketers who would love to be able to say that.
Jacko
Guest
Its really got me beat. You guys put sooo much crap on West Indies players ( particually Chris Gayle) when they only play T20 cricket yet give Samuals absolute crap over the fact that when he plays tests in your opiniont his heart isnt in it. Why cant you accept that people are different. Some batsmen spend their time waiting to bat vomiting and on the loo and others will actually go to sleep waiting to bat so does that mean only the nervous people care??? Viv Richards was one of the most laid-back cricketers Ive ever seen yet no-one ever questioned his dedication. Marlon Samuals proved to the world that he cares very deeply by telling the world he is sick of a has-been putting crap on him when commentating and to me that shows as much heart as any one
Peter Zitterschlager
Guest
For me, Marlon excelling in finals can be put down to his aloofness. When the stakes are high, and other players are freezing up, the aloof cricketer strikes me as having an advantage. He's now done it twice, so there might be something scientific there.
peter
Guest
I understand that some of his performances are impressive but he has consistently under performed throughout his career yet has a swagger that is out of proportion with his performance.
Charl
Guest
Marlon Samuels is guilty of standing up for himself after being repeatedly rubbished by Shane Warne - the knives are out. Let's start discrediting the victim. Never fails.
anon
Guest
"Similarly if an Australian player was fined 30 per cent of his match fee for taunting the bowlers with obscene language during the match we would never hear the end of it." Just a bit of banter. What happens on the field stays on the field. Play the game hard but fair. Aren't those the excuses when they Aussies are giving a gob-full?
anon
Guest
Meanwhile Geoff Lawson was implying that Samuels was involved with criminals. That's basically slander. Is the goal to run all the West Indian players out of the BBL?
Niranjan Deodhar
Roar Pro
peter, If you say he doesn't have any hunger playing for WI, please go out and check his stats: Scored 110 in his last ODI, scored 63 in his second-last, both against SL in Sri Lanka, scored a total of 601 runs @46.33 in ODI's in year 2015. coming to T20I Internationals, Scored 85 in the final, played a stable innings of 43 against SA to see his team home, scored 37 against Eng in group stage match and also has an overall healthy batting average of 29.81. Agreed, he has a sub-par performances in Test Cricket, but now that Shiv is gone, who else is consistent in that team either? Though he should improve at Test Level, It's easy to criticize, but to stay there in midst of all the chaos and performing as of he is doing now and that too in all the three formats is still worth appreciating, right?
peter
Guest
A Hunger? More a begrudging reluctance "Samuels is the Twenty20 star who is still playing Test cricket. Even if he is doing it with the vivacity of a man with a gun at his head, he is at least representing the West Indies. He can be maligned for much, but not for skipping out with the cash." Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/sport/cricket/for-marlon-samuels-and-the-windies-it-was-another-day-of-woe-20151227-glvhqv.html#ixzz451XV8zFK Similarly if an Australian player was fined 30 per cent of his match fee for taunting the bowlers with obscene language during the match we would never hear the end of it. https://www.express.co.uk/sport/cricket/658156/Trevor-Bayliss-Ben-Stokes-Marlon-Samuels-feud-cost-England-World-T20-glory-News-Gossip
Niranjan Deodhar
Roar Pro
Perhaps the biggest thing about Marlon Samuels as of now is his hunger to play for West Indies day in and day out irrespective of formats. While majority of players have a dispute with their board and some play only selected formats, Marlon seems to be enjoying his second-coming. Ever since he made a comeback in Wi team for the home series against India in 2011, he has been the most committed servant for WI cricket. Coming to his heroics in the final, he has always been the slow starter, getting off the blocks ever so slowly, but when he does that, he is lethal, murderous for the opposition. So his innings in the final wasn't any surprise for the cricketing world as we all knew about his abilities. He is lazy, he is arrogant, also looks ugly but his commitment to the West Indies team definitely needs appreciation at least considering all the chaos that is taking place all around him.
Amith
Guest
He might not be everyone cup of tea but he is a man who delivers on the big stage and off the field i read in his blog that he also does alot of charity work which si good to see
anon
Guest
The Anglosphere certainly have their knives out for Samuels. Imagine the vitriol for him if he wasn't man of the match in two World Cup finals?
madmonk
Guest
He did hire a bi-plane and do fly-bys over the ground on the Gold Coast where England were playing a tour match.
mariachi band fan
Guest
Hmm, I never saw Gower moving like he was waist deep in molasses, I never saw Gower with a facial expression that suggested he'd lost a hundred and found a fiver...the list goes on.
DingoGray
Roar Guru
The man for the occasion in hit and giggle cricket.... I've never seen him score an innings of substance in the longer formats of the game. In particular the Test format, his record is average at best. Mediocre cricketer at best.
Rogue marine
Guest
The most damning memory of Marlon I have involves the great Brian Charles Lara. He was the captain of the West Indies back when Samuels was first selected. He had so much faith in Marlon's ability & potential that he dubbed him as the next best batsman coming out of the Caribbean Isles. & how did our 'marley' repay his captain? In his inimitable trademark fashion, which is both comical & infuriating at the same time, Samuels ran the last shining beacon of WI cricket in his final international innings, out. against England. After calling him through for a single. Then turning his back on him! Only marley could pull it off. He blatantly & single-handedly robbed me (& everyone else) from the opportunity to see a last masterful knock by Lara, the final hurrah of a champion. I never forgave him for that. I have LMAO plenty of times by watching him getting bowled through the yawning gap between his bat & pad, with his feet firmly cemented outside the leg-stump as usual. Just a few days ago, Australia's very own Shane Keith Warne thought he's got his money's worth coming out to India by watching his old mate Marlon comically get himself out, spooning a dolly to cover. Warney thought let me have one last laugh at the expense of this clueless bugger. It seems, fate, is not without a sense of irony.
Camo McD
Roar Guru
As you say though Alec, it wasn't actually how he played that was your major issue. I reckon his supposed lack of outward intensity in his body language seems to be often interpreted as him not trying or caring when in reality they could be totally different things. If I recall correctly David Gower struggled with a similar perception.