The West Indies Cricket Board (CWI) is not as bad as you think!

[ExpressPacer]

First of all, this very Test against England, their wins against Pakistan, their drawn Test vs India and the Eng series in 2015 are clear indications of the fact that the West Indies has a lot of potential in Tests and is growing to become one of the better sides of the world.

And in my humble opinion, if we must hold the board responsible for losses in the past, we must also acknowledge the board for the success that has come, albeit little.

Here is why I think so:

The entire Test team needed to be revamped because most of their pro's either demanded too high salaries or refused to play ANY domestic or First Class cricket and even chose which international series they wanted to play and which ones they didn't. It was clear that their loyalty to the team had been subsided and more preference was given to T/20 leagues around the world.

Instead of pressurizing some of its vets to continue playing who would have been in their late thirties by now anyways, the WI revamped their entire team (something Pakistani fans can only dream of), brought in a completely new side full of youngsters, appointed a new Test captain and started playing as much cricket as they could. And even though wins have been far and few in between, their progress and their prowess is evident and cannot be ignored.

The fact that WI can bounce back so hard after such a humiliating defeat against a mighty strong opposition in its own den proves that WI were never mediocre to begin with, they just don't have enough match practice.

 

[Cuts_and_cuts_hard]

The team has talent. The board deserves no credit. Most incompetently run board in world cricket.

 

[ExpressPacer]

The team has talent. The board deserves no credit. Most incompetently run board in world cricket.

I choose to disagree. Did you even read what I wrote? The mere reason that they've done decently in this Test is because CWI decided not polish the oldies a long time ago and bring in new, fresh talent.

 

[Chief Destroyer]

No, they're really bad.

 

[ExpressPacer]

No, they're really bad.

Any specific reason for your opinion?

 

[Markhor]

Let's not get carried away. If the West Indies administrators had their act together, this team would not be ranked as low as they are. West Indies Board still needs urgent reform which it has resisted for many years.

Dave Cameron has ran the board like a tyrant and has overseen countless coaches and captains. Phil Simmons was notably mistreated by the Board who incessantly interfered with his work. Darren Sammy wins them two T20 World Cups yet got sacked for telling the truth about his bosses. The facilities in schools for cricket is substandard, the pitches are appalling and there is a lack of coordination between the coaches in the different islands.

The policy that you can only be eligible for national team selection if you play domestic cricket was always unrealistic and ludicrous as the likes of Gayle, Sammy, Pollard, Bravo etc have ALREADY served West Indies cricket and HAVE done their time in domestic. Players were always going to maximise their earnings from T20 leagues compared to the paltry fees earned from playing domestic.

What they have done right recently is appoint Johnny Grave, who was the former commercial director at the PCA, as Chief Executive, and former captain and Kent coach Jimmy Adams as Director of Cricket. They've introduced an amnesty for the rebel players.

They're also planning on introducing lucrative white-ball contracts like England and New Zealand that'll allow them to balance national team service with T20 league commitments which'll be a really positive move as it'll enable them to retain the services of their best players.

 

[Cuts_and_cuts_hard]

I choose to disagree. Did you even read what I wrote? The mere reason that they've done decently in this Test is because CWI decided not polish the oldies a long time ago and bring in new, fresh talent.

What oldies were pushed out. Only Chanderpaul, and he is still a good batsman and can be an asset to the team. Samuels was rubbish anyway.

You have no clue what you're talking about. West Indie are doing well in this test DESPITE WICB, not because of them.

 

[Arham_PakFan]

With all due respect,CWI is the worst-run board in the world,closely follwed by the SLCB.

They recently fired their coach a week before the start of the tour lol.The board is always at loggerheads with some players.Darren Sammy's speech afte the WT20 final was an indication of how bad things really were.Every coach that has come out of the system amhas criticised CWI.

 

[TestMatch]

Sorry, CWI is worse than you depict it.

1. The board commissioned The Paterson Report in 2007, which clearly outlined numerous implementations necessary to save West Indies cricket. The board repeatedly tried to bury or ignore this report, as the report recommended restructuring the board itself, and the payments to board members.

2. The 2 best "progressive" things the board did - better pay for domestic players, more domestic games - it did begrudgingly, far too late, and messily implemented.

3. Most of the improvements in local batting have been due to the elite Wanderers cricket club (there since the 1800s) in Barbados, originally set up by the Brits. It's why you have 8 Bajans on this current West Indies team. The other big pool of talent is Trinidad, whose local clubs are at constant war with the CWI.

4. The older players are not playing because the CWI colluded with the Players Union (through a puppet representative) to adjust payment without consulting the players. When the players learnt of this, they threatened walk outs. Instead of agreeing to negotiate with their players, or pay the players at their old salaries for one last tour, the CWI blacklisted everyone. This is just bad, dictatorial management.

5. The T20 stars are big money earners for the CWI. A big percentage of their earnings go to the board.

6. The CWI has been proven, in a court of law, of blackballing and unfairly ruining the career of Sarwan. They're currently paying him damages.

7. The CWI's last 3 or 4 coaches have been pushed out before completing their jobs. They're still paying these coaches, which they're contractually obligated to, even though these coaches aren't working for the CWI. No other board is this inept.

8. The CWI is so inept, a nice, quite, polite, soft-spoken guy like Chanderpaul, spent 15 minutes dissing them on British radio back in 2008 or 2009.

9. The CWI has a history of blaming and pushing away all its seasoned players (Lara, Chanderpaul, Sarwan, Gayle, the Bravos etc), the moment they stand up for better pay, or the moment they've started gaining experience and more skills. Sarwan was dropped when he had his best averaging year of test cricket, for example.

10. The CWI keeps putting puppet captains in place who aren't picked on merit, but because they are good "yes men". As likeable as Sammy and Holder are, they weaken the bowling attacks. Note that Sammy was unceremoniously dropped as T20 captain, after winning 2 world cups, because he criticized the board.

11. It is true that the CWI has "revamped things" and are "sticking with younger players" and "playing more local cricket", but these Patterson Report policies were all resisted by the board before Richard Pybus came in to implement them.

 

[Napa]

their drawn Test vs India

This is funny. WI did not earn any draw against India. They were saved by rain on two occasions. In the first draw there were only 4 wickets left, and an entire day was washed out. In the second draw, 4.5 days were washed out.

The fact that WI can bounce back so hard after such a humiliating defeat against a mighty strong opposition in its own den proves that WI were never mediocre to begin with, they just don't have enough match practice.

This just shows the gap between India and the other teams. Only India dominated the WI thoroughly, others sometimes struggle.

 

[ethan hunt]

This is funny. WI did not earn any draw against India. They were saved by rain on two occasions. In the first draw there were only 4 wickets left, and an entire day was washed out. In the second draw, 4.5 days were washed out.



This just shows the gap between India and the other teams. Only India dominated the WI thoroughly, others sometimes struggle.

Yes and the fact that India only took one wicket in a whole day or so or the fact that the westindies were leading with 4 wickets in hand should not be mentioned ??
Lol @ only 4 wickets left . Would have taken 4 more days and a 400 run lead the way India was bowling .

 

[ethan hunt]

Westindies have talent . The board still is pretty bad though . The team should do a lot better .

 

[Napa]

Yes and the fact that India only took one wicket in a whole day or so or the fact that the westindies were leading with 4 wickets in hand should not be mentioned ??
Lol @ only 4 wickets left . Would have taken 4 more days and a 400 run lead the way India was bowling .

Your "facts" are wrong. Two WI wickets fell on the 5th day (Blackwood and Dorwich). There is no doubt what the result would have been if a day was not lost due to rain. Heroic though the resistance from Holder and Chase may have been, they were the last resistance, one more wicket would have sealed WI's fate.

 

[ExpressPacer]

Sorry, CWI is worse than you depict it.

1. The board commissioned The Paterson Report in 2007, which clearly outlined numerous implementations necessary to save West Indies cricket. The board repeatedly tried to bury or ignore this report, as the report recommended restructuring the board itself, and the payments to board members.

2. The 2 best "progressive" things the board did - better pay for domestic players, more domestic games - it did begrudgingly, far too late, and messily implemented.

3. Most of the improvements in local batting have been due to the elite Wanderers cricket club (there since the 1800s) in Barbados, originally set up by the Brits. It's why you have 8 Bajans on this current West Indies team. The other big pool of talent is Trinidad, whose local clubs are at constant war with the CWI.

4. The older players are not playing because the CWI colluded with the Players Union (through a puppet representative) to adjust payment without consulting the players. When the players learnt of this, they threatened walk outs. Instead of agreeing to negotiate with their players, or pay the players at their old salaries for one last tour, the CWI blacklisted everyone. This is just bad, dictatorial management.

5. The T20 stars are big money earners for the CWI. A big percentage of their earnings go to the board.

6. The CWI has been proven, in a court of law, of blackballing and unfairly ruining the career of Sarwan. They're currently paying him damages.

7. The CWI's last 3 or 4 coaches have been pushed out before completing their jobs. They're still paying these coaches, which they're contractually obligated to, even though these coaches aren't working for the CWI. No other board is this inept.

8. The CWI is so inept, a nice, quite, polite, soft-spoken guy like Chanderpaul, spent 15 minutes dissing them on British radio back in 2008 or 2009.

9. The CWI has a history of blaming and pushing away all its seasoned players (Lara, Chanderpaul, Sarwan, Gayle, the Bravos etc), the moment they stand up for better pay, or the moment they've started gaining experience and more skills. Sarwan was dropped when he had his best averaging year of test cricket, for example.

10. The CWI keeps putting puppet captains in place who aren't picked on merit, but because they are good "yes men". As likeable as Sammy and Holder are, they weaken the bowling attacks. Note that Sammy was unceremoniously dropped as T20 captain, after winning 2 world cups, because he criticized the board.

11. It is true that the CWI has "revamped things" and are "sticking with younger players" and "playing more local cricket", but these Patterson Report policies were all resisted by the board before Richard Pybus came in to implement them.

Terrific post. I reckon I did have a premature reaction looking at the recent successes and especially the bravery shown by Hope and Kraigg yesterday. I hope the board continues the trend of positivity that has recently begun in order to revive West Indies cricket.

Also, considering you're so knowledgeable with regards to CWI and cricket in the Carribbean, why aren't we seeing more cricketers come from small islands like Dominica, T&T, Antigua and the rest anymore?

 

[TestMatch]

Kraigg's a prodigy in domestic cricket, and he has more domestic tons than any batsman since Lara. He's very serious about his cricket, idolizes Chanderpaul, Greenidge and Haynes, and when he makes tons, it's usually vs good attacks. Other than Gayle and Chanderpaul, he is also the only Windies batsman with a bowling machine at his house (importing these machines to poor, tiny islands is a big deal). He's very dedicated, and so it's not surprising that he occasionally produces these brave knocks.

Why don't you get more players from the other islands? On one hand, politics, intra-island biases and favoritism determines who gets picked. On the other hand, outside of Trinidad, Barbados and Guyana, the other islands aren't as cricket mad. They have less clubs, are less competitive and have lower standards. Trinidad and Barbados are also much more wealthy, so are constantly investing in little domestic leagues and tournaments. Indeed, Trinidad fielded the best T20 team in the world for a number of years before franchise T20 leagues took over. They're always producing people, they just tend to chase T20 money.

Jamaica is the other big producer; they tend to produce aggressive mavericks like Gayle and Blackwood.

 

[Cricfan4eva]

I absolutely love this lot of WI cricketers. They are not brash, they are just trying to do the basics, celebrations are aggressive/in your face style but not cheap or attention-seeking.

These guys are out there to win and they are learning. If WI win this test (head says they won't) it would just be the kind of jump start this team needs to believe in itself and be more competitive in the games ahead.

It is already an amazing story to see them come back in this fashion after being bowled out twice in one single day.

 

[Markhor]

So white ball contracts have been introduced and rightly so. CEO Johnny Grave and Director of Cricket Jimmy Adams had made this one of their goals after being appointed.

Category A is for those who play mostly Tests and ODIs. Category B will be for Test players, while Category C will cover players featuring in ODIs and T20s.

However the selectors headed by Courtney Browne decide who gets what contract. Carlos Brathwaite, Jason Mohammed, Evin Lewis, Rovman Powell, Ashley Nurse and Kesrick Williams are in Category C. Note, none of the "rebel players" have been awarded a white ball contract. This is what Johnny Grave has to say:

"Sammy and Bravos don't play for West Indies at the moment, so we can't offer contracts to people who are not in the team," Grave said. "Pollard, Narine and Badree are only in the T20 team, (and) white-ball contracts are for those who play ODIs and T20s. It's a view of the selectors that both Pollard and Narine have to show form in the Regional Super50 one-day competition to regain selection in the ODI team. If they play that tournament and perform I don't see why they wouldn't get recalled.

"Obviously post amnesty, Gayle and Marlon played in England, if we had won the series and they had made lots of runs, they probably would have got contracts. So I think the selectors want to see them in New Zealand, Super50 and World Cup Qualifiers, but I suspect at some stage in 2018 they will get contracts given the new system," Grave said.

Pollard and Narine could walk into the present ODI team. Narine was the second best spinner behind Imran Tahir in the tri-series last June. He is better than Ashley Nurse yet this criteria of playing in the Regional Super50 is still being imposed ? Why not select players on merit ? Are the selectors waiting until they fail to qualify for the 2019 World Cup before recalling them ?

Yes Samuels sucked against England but he has been one of West Indies' leading batsmen in ODI cricket over the last three years, and averaged 37 at 90 last year. As for Chris Gayle - averaging 43 at a SR of 125 vs England wasn't good enough for a contract ?

What more evidence of performance does Courtney Browne need ?

 

[shaz619]

Not as bad as we think, they are even worse! Beyond 'bad' , pathetic, disgraceful and embarassing would best describe them. But recently things look a little promising so I hope this is not short lived...

 

[bujhee kom]

Cricket needs a good WI.

 

[Chief Destroyer]

Even at their worst, they are more professional than our council of villagers.

 

[shaz619]

That council is run by villagers but they still put food on the table even if its daal roti. WICB on the other hand is surviving on dood and bread, no one really enjoys that in Caribbean much like the sport of cricket.

 

[Pakalulu]

Need more competitive wickets in the first class games to test the batsmen.

 

[nighthawk23]

They give most of their domestic players $5000 for a month of CPL. Absolute joke.

 

[Abdullah719]

CWI confirms new WINDIES coaching and support teams


St John’s, ANTIGUA – Cricket West Indies (CWI) has announced changes to the coaching and support teams for the current WINDIES squads. The main aim over the next year is to ensure that the WINDIES qualify for the ICC World Cup 2019 and defend the ICC Women’s World T20 title.

The confirmed coaching and support teams have seen the appointment of a number of persons in specific posts that include direct and full-time employment, mixed with supplementary and support services while on tour.

Director of Cricket, Jimmy Adams, congratulated the new appointees. “Rawl Lewis has been promoted to be team manager and Raymond Reifer steps up from his former U15s coaching role. I’m delighted that we’re promoting from within the CWI coaching and management set up.” Referencing the background to these changes, Adams added, “We are focused on improving team performance, as well as broadening and deepening the coaching expertise in the region. We know we’ve got vital games and tournaments this year and we’re confident that these appointments will strengthen the WINDIES squads for this year and our future plans.”

Johnny Grave, CWI Chief Executive confirmed, “We have assembled support teams for all three WINDIES squads that we believe will best assist the players in preparing and competing in their forthcoming series and tournaments.” In relation to the specific changes Grave confirmed, “Joel Garner has agreed to become an Ambassador, supporting the fundraising IT20 match at Lord’s at the end of May and helping us launch the WINDIES Foundation planned for later this year. Ronald Rogers will remain in the region working with Alzarri Joseph on his rehabilitation programme following his stress fracture.”


Here are the full lists of the coaches and support teams for each squad:


WINDIES MEN

Team Manager, Rawl Lewis
Head Coach, Stuart Law
Bowling Coach, Alfonso Thomas
Batting Coach, Toby Radford
Fielding Coach, Ryan Maron
Physiotherapist, David Kershaw
Strength and Conditioning Coach, Corey Bocking
Massage Therapist, Matthew Laubscher
Team Psychologist, Steve Sylvester
Team Analyst, Dexter Augustus
Team Media Officer, Philip Spooner


WINDIES WOMEN

Team Manager, Eugena Gregg
Head Coach, Hendy Springer
Assistant Coach, Gus Logie
Physiotherapist, Marita Marshall
Strength and Conditioning Coach, Shayne Cooper
Team Psychologist, Olivia Rose Esperance
Team Analyst, Gary Belle
Team Media Officer, Nassira Mohammed


WINDIES A Team

Head Coach – Floyd Reifer
Asst Coach/Manager – Reon Griffith
Asst Coach (Bowling) – Roddy Estwick
Physiotherapist – Khevyn Williams
Strength and Conditioning Coach – Gregory Seale
Analyst – Dinesh Mahabir

 

[Bewal Express]

CWI confirms new WINDIES coaching and support teams


St John’s, ANTIGUA – Cricket West Indies (CWI) has announced changes to the coaching and support teams for the current WINDIES squads. The main aim over the next year is to ensure that the WINDIES qualify for the ICC World Cup 2019 and defend the ICC Women’s World T20 title.

The confirmed coaching and support teams have seen the appointment of a number of persons in specific posts that include direct and full-time employment, mixed with supplementary and support services while on tour.

Director of Cricket, Jimmy Adams, congratulated the new appointees. “Rawl Lewis has been promoted to be team manager and Raymond Reifer steps up from his former U15s coaching role. I’m delighted that we’re promoting from within the CWI coaching and management set up.” Referencing the background to these changes, Adams added, “We are focused on improving team performance, as well as broadening and deepening the coaching expertise in the region. We know we’ve got vital games and tournaments this year and we’re confident that these appointments will strengthen the WINDIES squads for this year and our future plans.”

Johnny Grave, CWI Chief Executive confirmed, “We have assembled support teams for all three WINDIES squads that we believe will best assist the players in preparing and competing in their forthcoming series and tournaments.” In relation to the specific changes Grave confirmed, “Joel Garner has agreed to become an Ambassador, supporting the fundraising IT20 match at Lord’s at the end of May and helping us launch the WINDIES Foundation planned for later this year. Ronald Rogers will remain in the region working with Alzarri Joseph on his rehabilitation programme following his stress fracture.”


Here are the full lists of the coaches and support teams for each squad:


WINDIES MEN

Team Manager, Rawl Lewis
Head Coach, Stuart Law
Bowling Coach, Alfonso Thomas
Batting Coach, Toby Radford
Fielding Coach, Ryan Maron
Physiotherapist, David Kershaw
Strength and Conditioning Coach, Corey Bocking
Massage Therapist, Matthew Laubscher
Team Psychologist, Steve Sylvester
Team Analyst, Dexter Augustus
Team Media Officer, Philip Spooner


WINDIES WOMEN

Team Manager, Eugena Gregg
Head Coach, Hendy Springer
Assistant Coach, Gus Logie
Physiotherapist, Marita Marshall
Strength and Conditioning Coach, Shayne Cooper
Team Psychologist, Olivia Rose Esperance
Team Analyst, Gary Belle
Team Media Officer, Nassira Mohammed


WINDIES A Team

Head Coach – Floyd Reifer
Asst Coach/Manager – Reon Griffith
Asst Coach (Bowling) – Roddy Estwick
Physiotherapist – Khevyn Williams
Strength and Conditioning Coach – Gregory Seale
Analyst – Dinesh Mahabir

All these expensively assembled teams of coaches are waste of money. The problem for the Windies is that none of the present generation of cricketers wants to play for the Windies except to put themselves in the shop window for T20 leagues around the world. Until the players want to play for you, the coaches will make no difference.

 

[MMHS]

Toby Radford is a brilliant appointment- he is one of very few modern batting coaches from UK (He is Walesman).

It might be a total wastage because of other issues and lack of commitment but Law & Radford are fantastic combination. Not sure about Alfonso Thomas though.