Tony BeccaTHE OMISSION of Marlon Samuels from the West Indies squad to the World Cup continues to be a topic of discussion among Jamaican cricket fans and based on the arguments, many of them do not agree with the action taken by the selectors.
Looking at the history of West Indies cricket and the number of players who have been selected for tours while nursing injuries, that reaction is understandable. Samuels may indeed be unfortunate.
In chastising the selectors, however, there are a few things that should be taken into consideration and numbered among them are these: injured players, generally and depending on the nature of the injury, should not be selected; these selectors are not the ones who selected injured players in the past.
Although selectors of the past selected injured players, that does not mean that the present selectors should follow them; and on top of that, the medical report on Samuels was such that it must have left the selectors with a lot of doubt.
According to reports, Viv Richards, chairman of the selection committee, has said that there is no place in the World Cup squad for players who are not 100 per cent fit and that makes sense. In fact, that is how it should be particularly for a limited-overs tournament.
Although Samuels' injury is serious and apparently more serious than others that it may not stand comparison, that, however, begs the question are all the other players 100 per cent fit?
Remembering that there are players in the squad who have been plagued with injuries, that captain Carl Hooper has just had surgery done on his knees, and that two fast bowlers, it is understood, are nursing injuries, the answer should be interesting even though they have been passed fit and although Hooper has said he is fit and ready to go.
Samuels, who had surgery on his knee in February last year - and once before, was sent to Dr. Akshai Mansingh for an examination after feeling pain in the knee during the West Indies preparation camp in Antigua.
According to the doctor's report, Samuels attributed the pain to "severe sustained running and weight training during the camp", and that also begs a question.
The question is this: in view of Samuels' injury, and based on what he told Dr. Mansingh, why was he put through the strenuous exercises like the other players who, based on the reported explanation of Richards re the replacement of Samuels, are obviously 100 per cent fit?
The answer may be that those in charge of getting the players fit were not prepared to protect anyone even though, according to word coming out of the camp in Antigua, Hooper did only light exercises.
Whatever the feeling of Jamaicans, the important thing is Samuels' future and based on the opinion of a number of doctors who are experts in the field, Dr. Mansingh and the West Indies selectors may have done the right thing.
Dr. Mansingh's report left room for serious doubts and the West Indies selectors said that their decision to replace Samuels is best both for the team and for his future.
According to some five doctors who have called to express their opinion, based on what they have been told, the injury is such that pain or no pain it could be getting worse with each passing day, it could derail his career and he should not lift a bat until he has had it re-assessed, until what has to be done is done, and until it is fully healed.
