THE EDITOR, Sir:
FOLLOWING THE recent debacle during the cricket series between England and the West Indies where West Indies were stunned into silence with a three-nil series loss, I would like to use this medium to make a number of observations on the current state of West Indies Cricket.
There is a need for the players of the West Indies to realise that cricket extends beyond the boundary as their poor performances affects our psyche. The West Indies cricket team does not only represent a squad of fourteen people plus management but also the whole West Indian community, both in the Caribbean and in other countries, as it carries all our hopes and aspirations with them. The history of a people is very important if one wants to know the genesis of our society. West Indian players need to be conversant with the history of the region so that they can understand their role in nation building.
The fight by a number of prominent people, among them C.L.R. James, to have Sir Frank Worrell lead the West Indies team at the turn of the sixties, which coincided with the thrust for Caribbean independence, needs to be highlighted to members of the West Indies team; as all of this is now reduced to naught by the present performances of the current West Indies team.
With the thrust of management now being based on performance one wonders if there is a Mission Statement and a vision for the West Indies Cricket Board and the players. The West Indies now lie in eighth position in the rankings of current Test playing nations. This places us last in the order of traditional Test playing nations.
The question needs to be asked if new players are to be given a talk by management or someone to be assigned by the board to inculcate the need for excellence, presented with a video, brochure and a manual that details what is expected of them; any one entering a new organisation is brought up to date on what the particular institution expects of one.
I am, etc.,
Jeffrey Carlyle
Carisbrook P.A.
St. Elizabeth
