Preserving the legacy of West Indies cricket
In my formative years, I did not care much about cricket. While other boys played cricket, I delved into football, lawn tennis and table tennis. Too much sun! The ball is too hard! These were the eternal reasons for my abstinence. I did play some recreational cricket, however, just enough to maintain the cadre of friends within the neighborhood.
Those sentiments would change, over time, as I matured. Firstly, both my wife and I are avid ‘integrationists’. We believe that with good collaboration and structured, purposeful effort, an influential and prosperous ‘United States of the Caribbean’ is attainable. I soon learned of the remarkable history of cricket in the Caribbean and its importance to the peoples of the region and gleaned from CLR James’s masterpiece, Beyond a Boundary (1963), that cricket was more than a pastime to the average Caribbean citizen; that there were deeply rooted psychological linkages to a sport that was introduced by the British colonizers. Other Caribbean authors have expounded on the value of cricket in the Caribbean. Michael Manley’s A History of West Indies Cricket (1988) and Professor Hilary Beckles’ Cricket without a cause (2017) are further testimonies.
The triumph of the West Indies cricket team over England in the 1968 test match at Lords provided more than a trophy for the West Indian team. Quite significantly, it signaled a phenomenal bolstering of spirit and pride among, especially, the early West Indian ‘Windrush’ immigrants; proud moments that would serve to motivate a people into being the best they could be notwithstanding the unfavorable circumstances under which they lived. Outside of the University of the West Indies, cricket is arguably the most unifying entity/institution among Caribbean people; a notion that is expressed by Caribbean writer Ian McDonald, when he describes West Indies cricket as “superbly an imaginative possession which binds the Caribbean Community together” (A Cloud of Witness, 2012).
Present day journalists write regularly on the halcyon days of West Indies cricket, perhaps in a bid to restore respect and appreciation. But, those days are gone! West Indies cricket hovers embarrassingly at the bottom of the bundle of cricket playing nations. It is quite understandable, therefore, that the recent resurgence of West Indies cricket against Bangladesh and Sri Lanka projects a glimmer of hope, or more. At the very least it serves to confound the naysayers who are convinced that West Indies cricket will disintegrate within 10 years. But let’s not fool ourselves into believing that a mere uptick in performance is enough to recapture excellence. That would be foolhardy. It may well be just a transient rush of luck and good timing which may dissipate when tougher challenges arise.
In view of this, there is a need to institute a workable and well-conceived strategy for the sustenance of this positive display of brilliant West Indies cricket. This must be pursued through the development of cricket at the grass roots level in an effort to not only improve the talent pool, but to educate on the glorious and important history of West Indies cricket.
During my tenure in the Sport and Development Sub-Program of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), I conducted a rapid survey of the status of cricket in schools. Widespread dialogue with coaches, PE teachers and sport administrators was executed. The study was mandated by the Prime Ministerial Sub-Committee on Cricket – a body of eminent political leaders from various Caribbean countries. The group was convened in 2005 over concern for the persistent decline and questionable governance of West Indies cricket and mandated to examine all matters related to cricket: this in itself, a further declaration of how importantly West Indies Cricket was viewed by the region! “The Patterson Report” (2007) arose from this committee.
Among the key findings of the study was the fact that those schools with access to all weather concrete practice facilities, invariably did much better at the sport than those without. In addressing this reality, the Secretariat’s Sport and Development Sub-Program in collaboration with the West Indies Cricket Board conceived of a ‘Pitch in Schools’ project. The idea was to engage the private sector, the local cricket boards, past students associations and other stakeholders in a program to establish concrete practice pitches in as many eligible schools as possible. This, we perceived, would facilitate year-round practice, for the young athletes, so inclined, regardless of weather.
The seasonal approach to school sport was another concern. Football season meant that cricketers had to take a break especially in situations where the sole playfield was shared by both cricket and football. The construction of this netted concrete pitch would ensure that the skills of the gifted young cricketers could be honed and nurtured toward greater levels of competency. The facility would also provide ample and prominent advertising space for sponsors. Quite likely, the draft ‘Pitch in Schools’ proposal languishes somewhere on a dusty shelf. I remain convinced, nonetheless, that should such a programme be implemented, the quality of players vying for a place on a West Indies team, would be improved substantially.
West Indies cricket can not only be preserved but reclaim its place among the best of the world. This will not occur through glorification of a transient blip on the radar of international cricket but through prudent and purposeful effort to improve the way cricket is taught, practiced and preached.
John Campbell is a sports physiotherapist and a rehabilitation specialist.
