The Enigma of West Indies Cricket

Cricket fans usually have strong loyalties to their national teams. But there has always been one team which is loved by most cricket loving fans the world over.  Infact, its not even a team representing a country. Its a team that represents the whole of Caribbean islands, The West Indies Cricket team. 

The once mighty Windies team which boasted some of the greatest batsmen from Sobers to Richards to Lara  to Gayle and champion bowlers like Michael Holding to Malcolm Marshall to Courtney Walsh have been in shambles lately. The state of west indies cricket over the past few years have been an enigma to say the least.  They have been  ranked one step from the last in ODI and test rankings for almost 5 years I guess!!!

Being a fan of West Indies Cricket, it has been a harrowing experience. Its been sad to not to see any great talent emerge on the stage post Brian Lara and Walsh/Ambrose. There is Chris Gayle, but according to me, he lacks the stature of his predecessors. His tussle with the board doesn't help the team either. The lack of emerging talent have been compounded by the problems between the cricket board and the players to such an extent that Darren Sammy, who was not even a regular in the playing eleven was made the captain.

Looking back at the mess over the past few years, I'm not able to comprehend the reasons for the downfall of the West Indies. I can only say that the West Indies had hit rock bottom. I can't even remember a single Test or ODI series that they've won against a higher ranked team.

The only silver lining has been the performance of the West Indies in the test series against England in May-June 2012. England won the series hands down. However,  the inexperienced   batting lineup have accomplished what Top ranked Indian team and 'The Famed Indian Batting' could not achieve in 4 tests at England in 2011. They put up 300+ scores in all the test matches. 

The team under Darren Sammy and the new coaching staff are showing promise. They may not have won, but the team's showing a lot of heart. I'm sure return of Chris Gayle will bolster the team morale. The fact of the matter is I don't see the West Indies winning any time soon. But their performance of late gives hope.

Its been a slow and painful recovery for West Indies cricket, but the fact of the matter is that when you hit rock bottom, there is no easy way up. It may still be few years till one sees them winning consistently. Being the  loyal fan of West Indies that I've been for so many years, I just don't want  to give up  yet.