Stephen VasciannieIVAN 'Wally' Johnson, Principal of Kingston College, can turn a phrase to match V.S. Naipaul at his best. Here is Principal Johnson, writing over 25 years ago in the school's magazine (1976-1977), about Michael Holding:
"In far-off lands they watched him move: tall, dark, lithe. They did not see the gay abandon on the West Indian. The easy, fluid movement took them all the way back to the Black Continent: and those who had seen the gazelle, said he moved like the gazelle. Michael Holding had arrived on the far international scene, a long way from the dust bowls of the Red Hills Oval and his own Melbourne and Clovelly Parks."
This, for the first paragraph of a feature on Holding, easily matches Cardus, Cozier, and the past master C.L.R. James. But Johnson's stylistic prowess is not really the subject of today's column. Look again at the last sentence quoted above: Holding's superiority as a cricketer is perceptively linked, from the outset, to his early arenas of play -- Red Hills Oval, Melbourne and Clovelly Parks.
FULLY FORMED
So this is my point: usually, when we talk about cricket, we tend to assume that our heroes, those instructed to carry on the legacy of the Three Ws, Sobers and so on, are fully formed individuals who have played at Sabina Park all their lives. With some notable exceptions (and here I must mention Tony Becca, with respect), West Indian cricket watchers are apt to concentrate on the result of the process -- Michael Holding in his prime, for instance -- without considering the perspiration factors that move a player from Red Hills Oval to Sabina.
Similarly, in the process of assessing what ails West Indian cricket, we tend, as cricket lovers, not to notice that there are limited avenues for young cricketers wishing to make a mark or wanting simply to enjoy the game. Where, in other words, do cricketers who are not yet at the club level, find opportunities to sharpen their skills?
In the old days, the sugar estates provided avenues for aspirants, and then, as now, the secondary school system encouraged those who are not afraid of a little sunlight (now very largely through the grace of Grace). In some parishes, too, there are commercial sponsors who promote area leagues, and at the tertiary level, the unreasonably-maligned UWI seeks to maintain a presence both on and off the field.
But suppose you want to play cricket outside of school and are not (yet) at a senior level? How can you get there if you have limited or no access to a cricket field? Red Hills Ovals are still relatively scarce in urban Jamaica, and secondary schools are understandably reluctant to throw open their gates to all and sundry for cricketing purposes.
Remember, too, that the aspiring cricketer will need at least bat and ball, and a large enough area for delivery and strokeplay. In contrast, the aspiring basketball player needs only a ball and a hoop, and the "scrimmage" football, if he is really serious, can make do with orange juice boxes on a five by five stretch of concrete. The requirements of cricket from pitch to pads to box to tips and to balls that are easily lost over the fence -- seem to militate against its success among those who lack financial means.
The point may be taken further. At some urban and rural schools, interest in cricket remains at a fairly high level (particularly in rural schools, I am told); but when your school days come to an end, the next steps become difficult if you wish to make progress. This cannot help cricket development; nor can it be helpful that televised cricket (outside of Test matches) remains sporadic.
CVM Television, to its credit, has systematically brought basketball to Jamaicans, without much shouting I might add. But, given our history, culture and passions, could we not have more cricket? Cable channels -- or at least the ones to which I have had access -- have been simply disappointing in this regard. We should not wonder why Sabina Park is empty for regional cricket matches when the mass media sometimes treats such games as an afterthought.
People from the sixties will tell you how romantic it used to be to pick up the West Indies Test series against Australia on a scratchy radio signal at an ungodly hour: this kind of interest in the game needs to be encouraged among the post-cellular generation, if we want our teams to make more than 100 when they come upon reasonable swing bowling.
Finally, for our cricket to develop, the Sabina authorities need to move into the 21st century. Surely, they must realise that the World Cup of Cricket will not be played at a club which officially, formally and fully, excludes from membership over one-half of the Jamaican population. Given the tradition and charm of Sabina, alternative venues should always come second to our headquarters. But this should only be taken as guaranteed when Sabina abandons its unjustifiable policy of discrimination against women.
Stephen Vasciannie is Professor of International Law and Head, Department of Government UWI. He is also a consultant in the Attorney-General's chambers.
