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"We could see the fear in the batsmen's eyes" : Courtney Walsh

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Saj

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PakPassion.net is delighted to present an exclusive interview with West Indian fast bowling great, Courtney Walsh.

49 year old Walsh is quite simply a legendary fast bowler who terrorised opposition international batsmen for over 16 years.

Hailing from Jamaica, Walsh was a member of the great West Indian fast bowling quartets that took Caribbean cricket to the top of the cricketing ladder for many years.

Walsh's tremendous levels of fitness and his aptitude for hard work enabled him to take an incredible 519 Test wickets and bowl 30,019 balls in the 5 day format.

Extremely tall, unorthodox, but very effective Walsh formed one of the great opening bowling partnerships with Curtley Ambrose and between them they took 421 wickets from 49 Tests.

Walsh was a true gentleman and well liked by team mates and opponents. His facial expressions whilst bowling always brought great entertainment and his batting was equally entertaining.

Walsh was also a loyal servant for English County side Gloucestershire whom he represented with great dignity for 14 seasons.
 
PakPassion.net : Courtney it's an absolute pleasure speaking with you and many thanks for your time.

Courtney Walsh : No problems, my pleasure. Thanks for having me.


PakPassion.net : When you started your international career in 1984 did you have any idea that you would represent the West Indies with such dignity, success and for such a long time?

Courtney Walsh : No I had no idea. I thought I would just try my best, maintain my form for a few matches and then see how it goes. I certainly did not expect to play for the West Indies for as long as I did.

I wanted to do well and to play a couple of Test matches. Looking back I'm really happy, proud and very pleased that I served the West Indies team for so long.


PakPassion.net : You are the only fast bowler to have ever bowled more than 5000 overs in Test cricket. How did you manage to stay fit for so long and injury free? Was it down to a particular fitness regime or down to luck?

Courtney Walsh : I would say it's a combination of both. I looked after myself very well and I tried to stay as fit as I could and I got a little bit lucky too. But with the love I had for the game, I always wanted to play and that proved to be very helpful. I tried to do everything I could to look after myself and make sure that I was fit enough to play whenever I was needed.


PakPassion.net : A lot of modern day fast bowlers seem to be struggling with injuries and having to restrict the number of matches they play and reduce the formats they play in. Where are they going wrong?

Courtney Walsh : I think it's partly bad luck and also overuse of their muscles down to pushing themselves a bit too hard and playing too much cricket. Of course they want to give a good account of themselves, but with the amount of cricket being played these days you have to look after yourself a lot better and that extra effort can be the downfall for some of these fast bowlers.


PakPassion.net: You formed a formidable bowling partnership with Curtley Ambrose for many years. What was it like to bowl in tandem with Curtley? What were your pre match plans and discussions?

Courtney Walsh : He was the perfect foil for me. He was great to bowl with and we complimented each other in the West Indian bowling line up. Our common goal was always to ensure that the West Indies team did well. There was some healthy competition between us but we always focussed on success for the team and we worked very well in tandem.

We were really good friends off the field too which helped with things on the field.


PakPassion.net : What did the pre match banter between you and Curtley usually revolve around when it came to the opposition batsmen?

Courtney Walsh : Yes there was plenty of discussion around the opposition batsmen and what we were looking to do. We'd think about which one of us stood the best chance of getting who out and work things out between us.

There were always plenty of discussions at the team meetings but away from the team meetings, we fast bowlers always used to like to have our own discussions on particular opposition players. This worked very well for us as we were generally on the same wavelength.


PakPassion.net : You had many wonderful seasons at Gloucestershire where you are still remembered fondly. These days it seems that overseas cricketers just come and go for a season or so and there seems to be very little loyalty?

Courtney Walsh : Yes there seems to be a lot of changes in personnel when it comes to overseas players in County cricket these days. I played at Gloucestershire for 14 years and it was the only County side that I played for. I was one of the very few overseas players who just played with one County. I really enjoyed my time there and I always did my best to get the County moving up. It was a wonderful experience and I thoroughly enjoyed my time there and I look back at those days with great satisfaction and pride.


PakPassion.net : Over the years fast bowlers have always had a word or two of advice for the opposition batsmen. It would seem that sledging is part of a fast bowler's armoury, but you rarely resorted to sledging, why was that?

Courtney Walsh : My philosophy was simple in that I wanted to let the ball do the talking. I thought that was important and I always backed my skills and I backed myself to get the job done. Once I had the ball in my hand and working for me, then I had enough confidence to get the job done. For me it was always a case of less talking, more action.


PakPassion.net : Which is your most memorable Test match and why was it so memorable?

Courtney Walsh : The most memorable Test match for me personally was the one where I took 13 for 55 against New Zealand in February 1995 at Wellington and we went on to win that Test match. It remains a special match for me as it was the highest number of wickets that I got in one Test match in my career.

Another Test match that was special for the team was the one where we won by 1 run against Australia in 1993 at Adelaide. That was an amazing match that will live long in the memory of everyone who watched it and all the players who took part in it. It was a huge relief when I took the last wicket of Craig McDermott after he and Tim May had added 40 runs. There was some serious celebrating after that win.


PakPassion.net : And which was your most memorable Test wicket and why was that wicket so special?

Courtney Walsh : The wicket that took me past Kapil Dev's Test wickets record. It was my 435th wicket and the batsman was Henry Olonga. It was a special moment as I took the wicket at my home ground Sabina Park, Jamaica. Kapil sent me a congratulatory message after I broke his record which was nice of him.

Also another really memorable wicket was my 500th Test wicket which was a batsman a bit better than Henry Olonga and that was Jacques Kallis in Trinidad. That was an unforgettable moment too and those are moments that I will always cherish for as long as I live.


PakPassion.net : Throughout your career you played in many great cricket stadia. Any ones in particular that you have fond memories of?

Courtney Walsh : Sabina Park in Jamaica which of course is my home ground was always special for me. The home fans always backed me greatly at Sabina Park and gave me a great reception. It always felt good playing there. The Kensington Oval in Barbados is another ground that I enjoyed playing at. The atmosphere was always good and the crowd always gave the home team vociferous support.

Outside of the Caribbean, I always enjoyed playing cricket in Australia, particularly in Perth and Brisbane largely due to the nature of the wickets there, the bounce and the pace which I really liked. I thoroughly enjoyed bowling on those wickets.

Lords always was special for any cricketer and it remains that way. Playing there was a great occasion and I always wanted to do well at Lords.

Another ground that will always hold special memories is Wellington where as mentioned previously I took my career best Test match figures of 13 for 55.

The aforementioned are grounds that stood out for me throughout my career and where I really enjoyed playing my cricket.


PakPassion.net : You came up against plenty of good Pakistani batsmen during your career. Any in particular who you thought were tough adversaries and stand out for you?

Courtney Walsh : Javed Miandad is the first name that springs to mind. He was someone who didn't have the flair of his team mates but he was a master batsman, he was a craftsman and very tough to dismiss.

The other one I would say was later in my career, Inzamam ul Haq who came through into the Test side after Javed, but was an excellent batsman too. Again someone who made you as a bowler really earn his wicket.


PakPassion.net : The West Indies were at the height of their power when you played for them. What was it like coming up against some of the opposition batsmen who knew they would be facing a fearsome pace attack, did you ever sense fear in the eyes of the opposition batsmen?

Courtney Walsh : Yes sometimes it was quite intimidating for them. We were the dominant side and playing a brand of exciting and fearless cricket. Some batsmen were intimidated by us and when we turned up at some grounds we could see the fear in the batsmen's eyes. That was good for us and made our jobs slightly easier.


PakPassion.net : Take us back to the incident in 1987 in Lahore during the World Cup in Pakistan when you could have run Saleem Jaffar out at the non striker's end when he was backing up too far and won the match for the West Indies. Pakistan went onto win the match and qualify for the semi finals, any regrets now?

Courtney Walsh : Well he (Saleem Jaffar) was backing up too far and he was looking to steal a single. If I didn't believe in the spirit of the game I could have run him out, but that wasn't the way I was brought up to play my cricket.

I have absolutely no regrets about what I did. If the same thing happened to me today I would not run the player out without warning him.


PakPassion.net : Let's talk about the current standard of fast bowling. Any guys out there who impress you and what are your general observations regarding modern day fast bowlers?

Courtney Walsh : There are a few quicks out there who look good. But there seems to be a lack of consistency from the modern day fast bowlers. Dale Steyn though is one fast bowler that impresses me. He is a fast bowler who day in, day out bowls well. He is the most consistent out of all the fast bowlers playing at the moment and his strike rate - which is important as a fast bowler - is impressive.

Australia look as if they are starting to produce some good quicks once again. But I don't think the overall quality is there at the moment in cricket when it comes to fast bowling. Looking back, nearly every team had at least a couple of genuine quicks and these days there are just a handful of what I would term genuine fast bowlers of real quality. I don't think it's a great phase for fast bowling at the moment.


PakPassion.net : Any quick bowlers apart from Dale Steyn that impress you?

Courtney Walsh : I liked the look of James Pattinson on debut. He came out and looked as if he meant business. He showed good attitude, bowled with good pace and aggression and I think he has the look of a fast bowler who could make great strides. I was very impressed with his debut and it will be very very interesting to see how he develops. I'm looking forward to seeing him come to the West Indies and see how he does in the Caribbean.


PakPassion.net : Your thoughts on the current crop of West Indian fast bowlers?

Courtney Walsh : Fidel Edwards, Kemar Roach and Jerome Taylor have impressed me. They have shown that they have potential but the fitness levels are a major concern. You cannot take wickets if you are not on the field of play. It's down to them to get their fitness levels higher and maintain those levels.

What the West Indies needs is for all of these quick bowlers to be available for selection together and for all three of them to be fit and on the field together for a sustained period of time. We need Fidel, Kemar and Jerome at the top of their game, fit and ready and that is what has been lacking.

We need all of these boys fit and raring to go and it will definitely help the team to perform better and win more games.


PakPassion.net : We hear all the time that world cricket needs a strong West Indies side. However in recent times we haven't seen the West Indies team struggle. Where is it going wrong at the moment in your opinion?

Courtney Walsh : We just have not been playing good and consistent cricket. It's something we are working on and there are signs of improvement. For example the first Test in India is one that I felt we could have done much better. But the key is to improve our levels of consistency and to raise the standards of performance from all of the players. Consistency in performance remains the key for the current West Indies team.


PakPassion.net : It's a travesty that Chris Gayle is not currently featuring for the West Indies. Your thoughts on the Gayle versus WICB affair?

Courtney Walsh : I would love to see Chris Gayle back in West Indies colours. Both parties need to move on, forget what has happened and for the sake of West Indies cricket to move forward and leave what's happened in the past.

Chris is a good friend, he is someone who I have coached a little in the past when he first started playing cricket and he went to the same school as I. We need Chris back on the field for the West Indies. It will be a huge lift for everyone involved in West Indies cricket when Chris takes the field again for the West Indies.


PakPassion.net : A few pundits and fans around the world are saying that Darren Sammy isn't the right man to be leading the West Indies side. Your thoughts on Sammy as skipper?

Courtney Walsh : I fully endorse Darren Sammy as captain. I think he's doing a fantastic job. Yes his form has not been tremendous and has dipped a little of late but I think he is doing a good job as captain. You cannot question his performances in the Test arena. In one day internationals recently he picked up an injury and didn't fully recover from it, but I have no problems at all with Darren Sammy as captain.


PakPassion.net : Shoaib Akhtar was an enigma. A mercurial talent who wasn't seen on the cricket field enough. Your thoughts on Shoaib and his career?

Courtney Walsh : Too many injuries hampered his career and not playing cricket consistently was another problem. He was very exciting to watch with his long run up and he looked like he was going to be someone who was going to trouble batsmen throughout his career, but sadly that wasn't to be. He didn't always focus on cricket and did not do as well as I think he could have for Pakistan.


PakPassion.net : We are seeing Twenty20 cricket becoming hugely popular around the world. It wasn't a format that you played in and some are worried about the future of Test cricket. Your thoughts on the future of Test cricket?

Courtney Walsh : Test cricket is the number one format and I sincerely hope that it remains that way. I'm sorry that I never got the chance to play the Twenty over format as I'm sure I would have enjoyed it. No bowler likes to see the ball flying to the boundary on a regular basis but the challenge would have been a good one. Twenty20 brings the fans to the stadia, it puts people on seats but there has to be some caution here as overkill can put the fans off too.


PakPassion.net : What can the ICC and the Cricket Boards around the world do to ensure that Test cricket retains its status as the number one format?

Courtney Walsh : I think it's important to set up the Test championship so that teams can compete for the number one spot in a play off every 2 or 3 years or however long the ICC want to hold the play off. That battle for the number one spot will add extra interest and more intensity. It will also add more interest from a fan's perspective. The Test championship really needs to be implemented soon by the ICC.


PakPassion.net : Your own future, do tell us all what your plans are?

Courtney Walsh : I'm still involved in West Indies cricket. I worked with the West Indies Under 19s on their last couple of tours. I want to play an active part in helping West Indies cricket in future and I want to help West Indies cricket in any way I can.

I want to put something back into West Indies cricket. From working with the Under 19s if that leads to working with one of the regional teams then that will be great too.

However if things don't work out at home, then I have to go overseas to continue working in cricket and to develop my coaching, then I am prepared to do that also.


PakPassion.net : Many thanks for your time today Courtney.

Courtney Walsh : My pleasure.
 
Great bowler. Always liked whenever he came and goes out on Duck :)). But indeed a great bowler and a great sportsman.
 
Seems a very humble chap. His name doesn't crop up as much as other Windies quicks but one of their greatest bowlers for sure.

I'm not sure if if he truly believes Sammy is test standard but he seems to be only in the team because he is the only choice for captain.
 
Terrific bowler, gentleman, and champion.

Walsh and Ambrose were a lethal pair
 
Thats astonishing...in 49 tests they took 421 wickets! Thats 8.6 wickets EVERY test! Has anyone done better?
 
Good Interview. Well said about that Run out incident. Someone should tell him to read Shoaib's book.
 
Simply awesome interview and theres one response that stands out and sums up walsh the man, the bowler and the cricketer!

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PakPassion.net : Over the years fast bowlers have always had a word or two of advice for the opposition batsmen. It would seem that sledging is part of a fast bowler's armoury, but you rarely resorted to sledging, why was that?

Courtney Walsh : My philosophy was simple in that I wanted to let the ball do the talking. I thought that was important and I always backed my skills and I backed myself to get the job done. Once I had the ball in my hand and working for me, then I had enough confidence to get the job done. For me it was always a case of less talking, more action.

------------------
 
Wonderful player. Wish West Indies can go back to its glory days.

Fidel Edwards, Kemar Roach and Jerome Taylor, fit and firing in the same bowling attack - a fearsome prospect for the batsmen !
 
Terrific person, cricket lacks players like him these days. These players made cricket gentlemen game.
 
Saj said:
Courtney Walsh : Well he (Saleem Jaffar) was backing up too far and he was looking to steal a single. If I didn't believe in the spirit of the game I could have run him out, but that wasn't the way I was brought up to play my cricket.

I have absolutely no regrets about what I did. If the same thing happened to me today I would not run the player out without warning him.


.
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Great sportsman, now compare that with
<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/TBIiZBsBTOQ" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
 
Good interview. His comments on Shoaib were spot on and I agree with his view on Sammy being a decent skipper.
 
I don't think any proper batsman feared Walsh. Ambrose maybe.
 
Legend Killer said:
Great sportsman, now compare that with
<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/TBIiZBsBTOQ" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
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Kapil Dev gave him one or two warnings before that.

but yeah kudos to Walsh for that
 
Once again my sincere appreciation to Courtney for his time.

Nice guy, who enjoyed talking cricket.
 
Legend Killer said:
Great sportsman, now compare that with
<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/TBIiZBsBTOQ" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
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I remember this match very well. Kapil warned Kirsten the first time, then the second time he stopped in his bowling stride again, did not release the ball from his hand, and warned him and informed the umpire. The third time Kirsten did the same thing and Kapil ran him out. Nothing wrong in my opinion. Running before the ball is released is an unfair advatange that the non-striker is trying to gain.
No need to bring down Kapil needlessly on a post on Walsh. Here's what Walsh said: "Courtney Walsh : .... I have absolutely no regrets about what I did. If the same thing happened to me today I would not run the player out without warning him.".
 
Good interview.
PakPassion.net : You came up against plenty of good Pakistani batsmen during your career. Any in particular who you thought were tough adversaries and stand out for you?

Courtney Walsh : Javed Miandad is the first name that springs to mind. He was someone who didn't have the flair of his team mates but he was a master batsman, he was a craftsman and very tough to dismiss.

The other one I would say was later in my career, Inzamam ul Haq who came through into the Test side after Javed, but was an excellent batsman too. Again someone who made you as a bowler really earn his wicket.
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I remember the series 1993, tour of West Indies; as Inzimam was fearless and attacking batsman against Walsh and Ambrose. Bigs vs Big was exciting to watch.

I have uploaded that series a long time, perhaps to search in youtube. In 3rd ODI, Inzimam helped the team to chase articulately well with his unbeaten 90. Chasing 261 against Walsh and Ambrose was real challenging for any quality batsmen.
 
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MalikMohsin said:
Good interview.


I remember the series 1993, tour of West Indies; as Inzimam was fearless and attacking batsman against Walsh and Ambrose. Bigs vs Big was exciting to watch.

I have uploaded that series a long time, perhaps to search in youtube. In 3rd ODI, Inzimam helped the team to chase articulately well with his unbeaten 90. Chasing 261 against Walsh and Ambrose was real challenging for any quality batsmen.
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Unfortunately this kind of intensity in the matches is missing these days. Those were good old days.
 
Saj said:
PakPassion.net : Your thoughts on the current crop of West Indian fast bowlers?

Courtney Walsh : Fidel Edwards, Kemar Roach and Jerome Taylor have impressed me. They have shown that they have potential but the fitness levels are a major concern. You cannot take wickets if you are not on the field of play. It's down to them to get their fitness levels higher and maintain those levels.

What the West Indies needs is for all of these quick bowlers to be available for selection together and for all three of them to be fit and on the field together for a sustained period of time. We need Fidel, Kemar and Jerome at the top of their game, fit and ready and that is what has been lacking.

We need all of these boys fit and raring to go and it will definitely help the team to perform better and win more games.

.
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Jerome Taylor also impressed me as well. Does anyone know what has happened with him? Seems to have fallen off the face of the earth
 
Courtney Walsh is currently on commentary.

One of my all time favourite bowlers.

Legend !
 
Convict said:
Jerome Taylor also impressed me as well. Does anyone know what has happened with him? Seems to have fallen off the face of the earth
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He's back today in the Test line up against New Zealand.
 
Saj said:
He's back today in the Test line up against New Zealand.
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Good to see. With him, Roach and Shillingford the Windies attack actually looks good on paper.
 
Convict said:
Good to see. With him, Roach and Shillingford the Windies attack actually looks good on paper.
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Taylor Bowled a good ball to dismiss Fulton and regularly beating the bat...On Paper, West Indies attack is pretty much world class imo..Taylor, Roach, Shillingford and Benn
 
"Imran Khan changed Pakistan cricket with his vision and positive approach" : Courtney Walsh

Calcutta: For close to 17 years he won hearts, destroyed careers and sliced and diced the batsmen with his fearsome pace and guile.

Like the legendary Usain Bolt from his native Jamaica, his strong work ethic was backed by undiluted passion that exploded every time he took a wicket.

More than his 519 Test wickets, Courtney Walsh's gentlemanly behaviour always stood out during his playing days.

No wonder then that he reflected on his extraordinary gesture of not running out Saleem Jaffar, who had back far too much, at the 1987 World Cup during the 2018 Tiger Pataudi Memorial Lecture, presented by Air India and driven by Jeep, at the Oberoi Grand on Wednesday evening. The lecture was a joint initiative by the Bengal Club and The Telegraph.

A recurring feature of Walsh's great spells was his ability to read both the pitch and the match situation.

Here too, in a different role, he read the conditions perfectly focusing on India's shift from a predominantly spin-dependant force during Pataudi's days to the 'revolution' in the modern era when four fast bowlers played in a Test in Johannesburg.

Walsh made the point that a captain must call the shots. "There's a lot of debate these days on who's the boss, the captain or the coach. I was once a captain and now Bangladesh's interim coach for the tri-series in Sri Lanka... The captain should always be in charge. He has to run the show."

The fast-bowling great also drove home the point that superstars can make good captains.

"Coming from the West Indies, I grew up watching Michael Holding, who was my idol. We were from the same island Jamaica and played for the same club, Melbourne. It is one of those clubs which has produced number of West Indies cricketers - Michael Holding, Marlon Samuels... A rich heritage... My first roommate was Holding. It was an easy transition for me.

"I played with two of the greatest batsmen who went on to become captains, Vivian Richards and Brian Charles Lara... They have been pretty successful.

"So I don't believe superstar status would be any hindrance to be a good leader. Only things is you learn with time and you get mature. Lara wasn't adventurous at the start but matured with time as a captain.

"The difference between Viv and Lara was that Viv didn't like losing as a player and as a leader.

"Once he knew what he wanted to achieve he would make you fall in fine. Viv was the type of captain you might want to compare with Virat Kohli. There was no word called defeat in his dictionary. Virat too is very passionate about the game. He has Viv's positivity."

India's confidence in their pace attack hasn't come as a surprise to Walsh.

"There's been a revolution in Indian cricket and we have seen in the last series in South Africa that Virat played with four fast bowlers. I saw it on TV, and told myself, that's not too bad.

"There was a time when you didn't have to think twice against India, straightaway play four fast bowlers... Send deliveries at 90mph past your nose and then see what happens. Seeing this change, I thought to myself, they have finally decided to give it back. Being a fast bowler, I enjoyed it.

"A good captain is one who could win matches. Tiger had four spinners... With the likes of (Bishan Singh) Bedi, (Bhagwat) Chandrasekar, (Erapalli) Prasanna and (Srinivas) Venkataraghavan he gave birth to the golden era of spinners.

"He knew he didn't have good pacers, so he went with spinners. Clive, on the other hand, had four fast bowlers. Both devised unique strategy to win games though completely opposite to each other. Both were successful in their own ways.

"A good captain must be able to bring in change and keep his footprint in the history books. This is why I am a big fan of Imran's captaincy. He changed Pakistan cricket with his vision and positive approach.

"Most importantly, he encouraged and backed youngsters like Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis. He produced a champion team. He nurtured a dream and produced it. Herein lies a similarity between Tiger and Imran in the way they led their teams."

Walsh recalled how happy he was when Kapil Dev called him up after he broke the Indian pacer's record of 434 wickets at Sabina Park in 2000.

"My biggest moment came when Kapil called to congratulate me. 'All the very best,' Kapil said. He even organised a bottle of champagne that was delivered to me. It came of mutual respect we had for each other. It just showed the character and stature of the man."

But Walsh lamented the lack of recognition. "There should have been a recognition and an official or traditional handing over ceremony. To me it's only a token gesture so that the guy's efforts are recognised."

Walsh turned to the Jaffar incident during the 1987 World Cup. "Not many remember that Eldine Baptiste had dropped a catch in the same over and it went for a boundary. Heads down, we were disappointed... As I ran in, I noticed Jaffar was out of his crease. According to the rules of the game, he shouldn't have been there.

"I could have taken the bails off but because of the way I was brought up, I decided to warn him... It's about the spirit of the game. A system would have been ideal to guide youngsters, to let them know about the spirit.

"The good thing is I had the support of my captain and teammates. I remember Viv and Gordon Greenidge joking there would have been a riot had I removed the bails and Pakistan lost."

His friendship with Curtly Ambrose is also part of folklore with whom he shared 762 Test wickets in 95 Tests they played together from 1988 to 2000.

"Curtly has a second band now called Spirited. But the one regret remains that when in a bar, he won't buy you a drink," he quipped. "But he's my friend."

https://www.telegraphindia.com/sports/captain-has-to-run-the-show-walsh-212196?ref=hm-new-stry
 
Imran Khan will now use Courtney's comments in his next political speech:))
 
IK, one of the 5 greatest cricketer ever played the game. No one influenced Pak cricket more , not even close.
 
Courtney Walsh. Now good was he ?

Courney Walsh has got 519 test wickets. But often when we talk about top test bowlers we never mention him in any discussions. Why is it that pundits have always ognored him. How good was he ?
 
Its a similar story with Shaun Pollock who was overshadowed by Donald and Steyn.
As good as Walsh was , his bowling partner Ambrose was much better.
 
Ali_Pakistan said:
Courney Walsh has got 519 test wickets. But often when we talk about top test bowlers we never mention him in any discussions. Why is it that pundits have always ognored him. How good was he ?
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Basically because ambrose was the better bowler in their partnership It was also because walsh when he broke into the team initially was the 4th pacer in the WI team the workhorse rather than the destroyer

He got better with age and as WI declined he got better He was probably at his best in his mid 30s when bowlers retire

A top class bowler and theres no shame in him not being in the top 5 WI bowlers overall
 
Cricket has changed so much over the course of time. I don't think he would be THAT effective today.

But a great bowler of 90s.
 
Hell of a bowler, Walsh. Amazing fitness too. I loved it when he threw the ball from the boundary with his bowling action.
 
FWIW, Mark Nicholas said the two hardest bowlers he ever faced were Wasim Akram and Courtney Walsh.
 
He was a fab bowler. Lot of bounce, nice smooth action. Always looked chilled.
 
Bowlers [MENTION=136729]Suleiman[/MENTION] would call boring to watch..
 
Good bowler, very good in fact but some of those atrocious Windies pitches in the 1990s and early 00s definitely helped instil fear in the batsmen.
 
Saurav said:
Kapil Dev gave him one or two warnings before that.

but yeah kudos to Walsh for that
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Kapil had, in all fairness to him, warned Kirsten twice previously in the series before eventually taking evasive action at Port Elizabeth. But that did not stop Kirsten from exchanging a few colourful words with the Indian all-rounder before storming off. Wessels, who wasn’t keeping quiet himself, then decided to transfer his rage into actions and reportedly hit Kapil on the shin with his bat while taking a run.
 
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-partner="tweetdeck"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">When Courtney Walsh refused to mankad Saleem Jaffar and it cost West Indies a place in the 1987 World Cup semi-final <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/cricket?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#cricket</a> <a href="https://t.co/RqmCg2zZSR">pic.twitter.com/RqmCg2zZSR</a></p>— Saj Sadiq (@Saj_PakPassion) <a href="https://twitter.com/Saj_PakPassion/status/1110471639811133441?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 26, 2019</a></blockquote>
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MenInG said:
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-partner="tweetdeck"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">When Courtney Walsh refused to mankad Saleem Jaffar and it cost West Indies a place in the 1987 World Cup semi-final <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/cricket?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#cricket</a> <a href="https://t.co/RqmCg2zZSR">pic.twitter.com/RqmCg2zZSR</a></p>— Saj Sadiq (@Saj_PakPassion) <a href="https://twitter.com/Saj_PakPassion/status/1110471639811133441?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 26, 2019</a></blockquote>
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those days are long gone.
 
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font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:550; line-height:18px;"> View this post on Instagram</div></div><div style="padding: 12.5% 0;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;"><div> <div style="background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);"></div> <div style="background-color: #F4F4F4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);"></div></div><div style="margin-left: 8px;"> <div style=" background-color: #F4F4F4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;"></div> <div style=" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg)"></div></div><div style="margin-left: auto;"> <div style=" width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);"></div> <div style=" background-color: #F4F4F4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);"></div> <div style=" width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);"></div></div></div></a> <p style=" margin:8px 0 0 0; padding:0 4px;"> <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CDiUvosgXw3/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" style=" color:#000; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:normal; line-height:17px; text-decoration:none; word-wrap:break-word;" target="_blank">It cost West Indies a place in the final but Courtney Walsh refused to mankad Saleem Jaffar in the 1987 Men's [MENTION=2099]Cricket[/MENTION]worldcup, a move that was praised by fans and critics &#55357;&#56908; WATCH him speak about the incident &#55357;&#56573;️ #ICCHallOfFame</a></p> <p style=" color:#c9c8cd; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; line-height:17px; margin-bottom:0; margin-top:8px; overflow:hidden; padding:8px 0 7px; text-align:center; text-overflow:ellipsis; white-space:nowrap;">A post shared by <a href="https://www.instagram.com/icc/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" style=" color:#c9c8cd; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:normal; line-height:17px;" target="_blank"> ICC</a> (@icc) on <time style=" font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; line-height:17px;" datetime="2020-08-06T05:35:15+00:00">Aug 5, 2020 at 10:35pm PDT</time></p></div></blockquote> <script async src="//www.instagram.com/embed.js"></script>
 
ST JOHN’S, Antigua – Cricket West Indies (CWI) today named Courtney Walsh as the new Head Coach of the West Indies Women’s team. The West Indies cricket legend will lead the preparation and development of the Women’s Team at least up until the end of 2022, including competing in the next International Cricket Council (ICC) Women’s Cricket World Cup (50 overs) and ICC Women’s T20 World Cup.

The former world-renowned fast bowler has served as an assistant coach with the Bangladesh Men’s team, and subsequently worked on a short term contract with the West Indies Women’s team, including at the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup 2020 held in Australia earlier this year.

Walsh is the leading wicket-taker in West Indies Test history with 519 wickets in 132 Test matches. A former Jamaica and West Indies captain, he took 227 wickets in One-Day Internationals, and also took 1807 wickets in 429 first-class matches. The 57-year-old is a member of the ICC Hall of Fame.

Speaking on his appointment Walsh said: “This is indeed an honour to be named as the new Head Coach. It’s an exciting challenge and I’ve always wanted to give back in any way I can and help with the development of the game in the West Indies. The experience I have, my knowledge of the game, and my overall organisational skills will be key aspects as we try to develop a winning team culture. I worked with the team at the Women’s T20 World Cup earlier this year in Australia and in the series against India in the Caribbean last year, so I have a very good understanding of what is required. The ability and the talent are there, we have some fantastic players in the West Indies, and it will be my duty and focus to help the women to develop their talents and achieve the goals we are going to be setting together.”

Jimmy Adams, CWI’s Director of Cricket said: “I am delighted to have Courtney leading our international women's programme having successfully come through CWI’s recruitment process. He will be overseeing the programme initially until the end of the next two ICC Women's World Cups in 2022 and he will be pivotal in working with CWI’s High Performance Team to move our whole women’s programme forward, as part of our wider strategic plan which has Women’s cricket as a key priority.”

Since retiring from the game, Walsh has held several posts within CWI cricket set-up. He was a member of West Indies’ senior selection panel from 2013 to 2016 and was part of the panel which selected the squad that won the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup in India. He has also been Team Manager for the West Indies Under-19 and Under-15 teams and has served as a Director of the Jamaica Cricket Association. He has also been a Bowling Mentor for the Jamaica Tallawahs and Bowling Coach for St Kitts & Nevis Patriots in the Caribbean Premier League (CPL).
 
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