WI Players Weak In Mind Games
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WI players weak in mind games
Editorial Trinidad Guardian Friday 12th, July 2013West Indies team emblem |
On yet another occasion, the mental brittleness of West Indian
cricketers, the batsmen in particular, has been demonstrated as the major
weakness in the team performing consistently at a high level. After winning
(even though they tried desperately to lose their first game against India)
their first two games in the tri-nation series with India and Sri Lanka the
West Indian batsmen simply could not apply themselves to the not-too-difficult
tasks set them by the two Asian teams. All of Gayle, Samuels, Pollard,
Dwayne Bravo, Smith, Sammy and Ramdin consistently gave away their wickets to
thoughtless and suicidal shots. In the instance of Gayle, Pollard and Samuels,
one false stroke looked much like the one of the previous innings.
Sammy showed that he knows of one way to bat: lunge his huge frame
and bat at the ball in great hope, completely oblivious of the circumstances of
the game and what could be possible.
In two of those games, specialist bowlers Roach, Best and Narine showed up the
lack of temperament and strategic thinking on the part of the senior
batsmen. Only young Johnson Charles and Darren Bravo made at least two
useful scores each even though they too succumbed to the non-thinking disease
of throwing the bat in cavalier fashion. All of the players look good when
exercising what is universally known as the flair and creativity brought to the
game by generations of West Indian players.
However, they all crumpled whenever the pressure was turned on by
the opposing team. But of course this is nothing new and was most recently
displayed in the ICC World Cup. Then, in the crucial qualifier game
against South Africa, Pollard literally threw away his wicket when all that was
needed was to block his first delivery so that the WI would emerge ahead and
qualify for the final. Instead he heaved high into the lap of a fieldsman
at third man. That mental failure was even more stark when it is
considered that unlike in the past, Pollard could not complain of not being
aware of the situation and what was required of him as the Duckworth/Lewis
formula was plastered all over the modern scoreboard.
The amazing reality of this lack of the capacity of the players to
apply themselves, to bring into play the skills of the mind so apparent in
world sport today has been going on with little input from the West Indies
board to attempt to develop the capacity of the modern player to cope with the
mental elements of cricket. The national boards of all of the cricket
playing nations which make up the West Indies are equally guilty of not being
able to discern what is happening and to seek out remedies. What is even
more unbelievable is that one of the most successful head coaches, one who was
very responsible for the head development of the all-conquering WI teams of
Lloyd and Richards, Dr Rudi Webster, has not been employed on a permanent basis
to develop the capacity of the senior West Indian team.
What is more, he has not been brought into the academy for West
Indies cricket to equip the young players in the A team and junior teams with
the skills to cope in a game in which the physical abilities and talents are
only the first requirements needed. Past West Indian players and teams
were grounded in a culture and society far more capable of passing on the
quality values required. The bling culture of the day cannot pass on the
dispositions required. West Indies cricket needs thinking people fully
aware of the requirements of the modern game.
( Trinidad Guardian Friday July 12th. 2013)
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