It is always fair to allow newcomers to implement a new direction towards any project and West Indies cricket is no different, especially after the executive have canvassed in their election campaign to lead the great game of the Caribbean back to the top of cricket world.
The challenge that lies ahead could only be described as complex, especially in the area that needs a methodical path which will facilitate the direct benefit for each country in the Caribbean.
History may be one of the essential areas where the positives and negatives may divulge the pathway which mirrored the fluctuation from the brilliance of George Headley, through the famous “three Ws,” to Garfield Sobers, Rohan Kanhai, Viv Richards, Wes Hall, Sonny Ramadhim, Alf Valentine route, where the era was paved for Alvin Kalicharan, Gordon Greenidge, Andy Roberts, Malcolm Marshall, Curtley Ambrose and Brian Lara, and now ultimate failure for the last decade or more to this day.
As patriotic as the Caribbean cricket lover has been over the years, the reverse towards disappointment is difficult to accept, hence the reason why CWI president Ricky Skerritt and his executive should begin the plan towards an improved environment in the cricket world from the ground up.
Over the years, the intensity of the competition among the islands was positively effective, where the strength of administrative capability created a wonderful atmosphere for the cricketers themselves and the fans as well.
<The initial path to the future>
Using the famous formula exercised by the successful sporting disciplines, the first move will be to decide upon the method which can bring the quality of coaching to each and every Caribbean nation, all exposed to a pathway which will develop some form of similarity towards the basic fundamentals of the game, the administration together with the theoretical and technical needs.
This method starts with competence and blueprint from the likes of Lindsay Grant, Alan Rae, John Goddard, Jeffrey Stollmeyer, Sir Frank Worrell, Sir Clyde Walcott and Berkley Gaskin among many others.
The assumption is that this department could be improved through the use of some of the fine exponents of administration (sports especially), then the structural pattern which could be used to produce the quality of coaching education should be provided to the players in the region.
This could only be done by having high-level Caribbean coaches placed into the various countries where the methodology of getting top-class information to the participants, from the tiny tots towards the ultimate level of the geniuses of the past, will be beneficial and productive to all and especially our cricket.
The competitive spirit which often ignites serious commitment, positive human approach to the lessons which are learnt and the psychological merging as a team must be ignited.
Experiences of regional cricket tournaments have had the most successful of all, where the likes of Kanhai, Fredericks, Camacho, Solomon and Butcher had to match strides with Sobers, Nurse, against Hall, Griffith, Greenidge and Haynes and of course the three “Ws.”
From T&T, it was Bernard Julien, Trestrail, Ramadhin, Rodriguez, Stollmeyer, Larry Gomes and Lara who took the challenge to the opposition among many others. The Combined Islands provided a remarkable source of talented players in Richards, Richardson, Roberts and Ambrose, while the Jamaicans gave us George Headley, Alan Rae, Lawrence Rowe, Courtney Walsh, Maurice Foster, Lester King and Mike Holding.
The most successful method for coaching under these circumstances was the players themselves, whose competence was recognised during all regional contests which attracted great crowds. A picture is always worth a million words and the memories of an orthodox stroke, an excellent style and quality bowling, and the basic approach to improving their fielding remain in our memories.
This formula will bring back the great crowds, the true atmosphere needed for the players and the ideal situation for all. The past can also help to improve the quality of automatic coaching lessons for all the young potential cricket stars of tomorrow and bring the game back to the level it once was.