Cricket - What has happened to the WIndies?

[yello]

It pains me to see this once former great cricketing nation succumb to internal collapse. The players just don't seem to care. As much as they would have put the fear of god up me, I loved to see big bird et al in full flight.

Sheesh, even England can beat them these days.

 

[Wolf04]

They still managed to bowl England out for 51 in Kingston. Two poor teams, the Aussies will hammer us.

 

[Dayvo]

They won too much money (a million dollars each) in that Allen Stanford farce match. Now they seem to be only motivated by big bucks.

Even their captain, Chris Gayle, has admitted to not being interested in playing Test cricket and wants to focus on Twenty20 cricket!

 

[iLB]

US basketball

 

[yello]

Even their captain, Chris Gayle, has admitted to not being interested in playing Test cricket and wants to focus on Twenty20 cricket!

Yes, I read that. I guess it's easy for us to be disappointed but it's not us that's being offered the big bucks. I can understand it.

 

[mangaman]

Mind you - as Wolf04 said they still beat us in the West Indies in the test series.

I feel a bit sorry for them this tour. It feels very artificial - just 2 tests and 3 one dayers stuck into the beginning of the season in freezing weather. Having just beaten us I suspect they rather resent being treated like Bangladesh or Zimbabwe normally are.

 

[Aperitif]

US basketball

Correct!

 

[rich p]

Mind you - as Wolf04 said they still beat us in the West Indies in the test series.

I feel a bit sorry for them this tour. It feels very artificial - just 2 tests and 3 one dayers stuck into the beginning of the season in freezing weather. Having just beaten us I suspect they rather resent being treated like Bangladesh or Zimbabwe normally are.

Not really true. Sri Lanka pulled out and the Windies were asked if they'd care to fill in. They were offered a very large financial inducement by the ECB and accepted so the fact that they've taken the bucks and are clearly going through the motions is a disgrace.
They've actually got the core of a decent side (Gayle, Chanderpaul, Sarwan, Bravo, Edwards, Taylor) but they seem to be motivated by 20/20 pub cricket, money and are constantly at war with their board and their sponsors. I suspect the players didn't want to come here so early in the year but money talks too loudly sometimes.

 

[Dayvo]

Not really true. Sri Lanka pulled out and the Windies were asked if they'd care to fill in. They were offered a very large financial inducement by the ECB and accepted so the fact that they've taken the bucks and are clearly going through the motions is a disgrace.
They've actually got the core of a decent side (Gayle, Chanderpaul, Sarwan, Bravo, Edwards, Taylor) but they seem to be motivated by 20/20 pub cricket, money and are constantly at war with their board and their sponsors. I suspect the players didn't want to come here so early in the year but money talks too loudly sometimes.

Nail. Head. Hammer.

Well done, richie benaud!

 

[mangaman]

Good point rich p.

I completely forgot about that

 

[zimzum42]

it's much more to do with youngsters being attracted by the money that can be made in US sports, there's little reason for people to get into cricket now except for pure love of the game....

 

[yello]

They were offered a very large financial inducement by the ECB and accepted so the fact that they've taken the bucks and are clearly going through the motions is a disgrace.

Cheers Rich, I didn't know that. It explains a great deal. As I said, it saddens me. The WIndies were fearsome.

 

[dellzeqq]

the ECB has a kind of baked-beans-on-shelves approach to marketing cricket. Witness Test matches in Cardiff and Durham. When Sri Lanka withdrew they should have invited a couple of minor test countries to replace them - Canada, or the Netherlands for example or if they wanted to have a successful tour, bring the West Indies and play at the Oval and Old Trafford or Headingly.

I'm sure that basketball and sprinting are behind the decline of cricket in the West Indies, but if the ECB had a bit about them they'd be asking themselves why interest in cricket has collapsed in Brixton.....

 

[rich p]

It's a bit like tennis in that both the ECB and Wimbledon spend shedloads of wonga on grassroots sport but never have anything to show for it.

 

[Dayvo]

My home county of Essex have a great youth coaching set up, though! Ravi Bopara!

They have indeed, Crock, and it's good to see that English-born Asians are making major inroads to the domestic game here, and getting the recognition they deserve at international level at all 'genres' of the game.

Back to Twenty20, even Shaun Udal is critical and cynical! See the last papagraph, or read the whole article, if interested.

http://content.cricinfo.com/england/content/story/406072.html