It's so sad to see Caribbean cricket in disarray once more. After the players' strike of 2009 when a second-string West Indies side got battered by lowly Bangladesh, the sporting world must have hoped that there would never be a repeat. However the three-way dispute which caused the mid-series cancellation of the India tour has set not just West Indian sport but all international cricket back years.
The T20 World Cup triumph papered over the ever-present cracks while the adventures of Darren Sammy, Kieron Pollard, Chris Gayle et al have maintained interest in the sport across the Caribbean Sea. However the Windies have sunk to eighth in the rankings in the main formats and their chances of success in the 50-over World Cup were remote even before Sunil Narine's bowling action was called. With an unprecedented (I think) players' strike curtailing a tour in this way, I fear that the island collective may not even compete in next year's tournament.
Given the West Indies' fabulous contribution to the development of one-day international cricket, and winning the first two World Cups in such exhilarating fashion, this would be a kick in the teeth for the memory of Lloyd, Richards, Holding and all those giants of the game. Not sure what would happen to the WICB within the ICC in terms of possible punishment for what happened in India. However, they will be the financial losers not only because of compensation to the BCCI but also the potential cancellation of the reciprocal tour and other fixtures. Will Pakistan, Sri Lanka and the rest be keen on organising fixtures with the WI when players have a reputation for quitting?
The one bright spot in the whole sorry business is that, as far as I can see, the main dispute is between Dwayne Bravo plus most of his team-mates and their union, led by Wavell Hinds. If the WIPA's agreement with the WICB was indeed signed without the approval of the players, then that is not the Board's fault. I don't suppose I'd support a massive pay cut either but I'm not sure why the union would cave in to the Board either.
Whatever, if the workers (players) don't have faith in the union's ablity to represent their interests, surely they have the power to democratically unseat Hinds and restore friendly relations with the Board and save the World Cup. Or am I just being naive? Actually, I probably am because Bravo has been vocal in his own dismissal of the agreed pay structure and Memorandum Of Undertanding so is he really going to force the WICB to up their offer?
All very unsavoury but I really would not want to see the West Indies either absent from the World Cup or fielding another weakened squad. The same goes for future Test series. Who cares about T20, although the loss of the biff-bash stuff will hurt the Board in their pockets the most?
I guess the West Indies do things differently. After all, it's not a national team in the same way as New Zealand or South Africa; it's a collection of states united by geography, history and a love of cricket. Let's hope the latter prevails and there will be more greats to prolong the line of Constantine, Headley, Weekes, Sobers, Marshall, Lara and Chanderpaul for decades to come.
