Just a week before the start of the Twenty20 World Cup, 2010 in the Caribbean, a former West Indies captain and world class batsman, Sir Vivian Richards, has chided the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) and the regional players who he said have lost sight of the great legacy of Caribbean cricket.
Twelve countries are participating in the tournament, which bowls off on Friday April 30 in Guyana, with West Indies opposing Ireland and Sri Lanka doing battle with New Zealand.
The other participating teams are: England, India, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Australia, and Afghanistan.
This is the first time that Afghanistan is participating in world class cricket competition.
This is the second Twenty/20 World Cup tournament. The first was won by India, and it is the second World Cup tournament to be played in the Caribbean. The first was the World Cup 2007 (50 overs).
The West Indies were known to be the world champions three decades ago, having won the first two World Cup Tournaments in the 1970s in England, but the game has been slipping away from the Caribbean and the attitude of players has angered many past players and fans.
Richards, who retired from international cricket nearly two decades ago, said, "I honestly believe that we have lost respect in that particular manner for the legacy and when you lose that, you're not quite sure what you're out here for, you're lost."
The Master Blaster said that one of his greatest concerns is the longstanding acrimony between the WICB and the West Indies Players Association (WIPA), which has threatened for several years now to derail regional cricket.
Both the WIICB and the players were blamed for the state of affairs that now exists. He said, "To me, if players have a Board they can trust well enough, they're doing the right thing for the Board, I don't think we have the right environment for that." He added that he feels the players also need to show their West Indian pride.
It seems to me that cricket fans in the region, even the "die hard", do not show much interest in the game as yesteryear
The question is what can be done to bring back the glory. It seems to me that the players of today do not have personal pride and the game at heart, and what is disturbing is that they are well paid as compared to the olden days of Garfield Sobers, Wes Hall, Rohan Kanhai and others who had raw talent, faced the fieriest bowlers without helmets. More so, they have all so many coaches, advisors, medical personnel, and even modern technology
The West Indies are struggling at the bottom of the ladder and, unless there is a change of attitude, they might be kicked out of Test Cricket and be placed in the second tier of international competition. a move which would make Sir Learie Constantine, George Headley, Sir Frank Worrell, and other West Indian greats turn in their graves.
Richards said that the players today have no idea what they are playing for, and that they are not familiar with the great history of the game in the region.
However, a few senior players in the current West Indies team, including former captain, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, who is the most reliable player in the game today, are optimistic that the home team will perform well, and if possible win the tournament. We will have to wait and see.
Twenty four matches will be played during the Twenty/20 tournament before the two semi finals and the final.
The venues are Guyana, St Lucia and Barbados.
The two semi finals will be played in St Lucia on Thursday and Friday, May 13 and 14, while the final takes place at the famous Kensington Oval, in Bridgetown, Barbados.
Twelve countries are participating in the tournament, which bowls off on Friday April 30 in Guyana, with West Indies opposing Ireland and Sri Lanka doing battle with New Zealand.The other participating teams are: England, India, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Australia, and Afghanistan.
This is the first time that Afghanistan is participating in world class cricket competition.
This is the second Twenty/20 World Cup tournament. The first was won by India, and it is the second World Cup tournament to be played in the Caribbean. The first was the World Cup 2007 (50 overs).
The West Indies were known to be the world champions three decades ago, having won the first two World Cup Tournaments in the 1970s in England, but the game has been slipping away from the Caribbean and the attitude of players has angered many past players and fans.
Richards, who retired from international cricket nearly two decades ago, said, "I honestly believe that we have lost respect in that particular manner for the legacy and when you lose that, you're not quite sure what you're out here for, you're lost."
The Master Blaster said that one of his greatest concerns is the longstanding acrimony between the WICB and the West Indies Players Association (WIPA), which has threatened for several years now to derail regional cricket.
Both the WIICB and the players were blamed for the state of affairs that now exists. He said, "To me, if players have a Board they can trust well enough, they're doing the right thing for the Board, I don't think we have the right environment for that." He added that he feels the players also need to show their West Indian pride.
It seems to me that cricket fans in the region, even the "die hard", do not show much interest in the game as yesteryear
The question is what can be done to bring back the glory. It seems to me that the players of today do not have personal pride and the game at heart, and what is disturbing is that they are well paid as compared to the olden days of Garfield Sobers, Wes Hall, Rohan Kanhai and others who had raw talent, faced the fieriest bowlers without helmets. More so, they have all so many coaches, advisors, medical personnel, and even modern technology
The West Indies are struggling at the bottom of the ladder and, unless there is a change of attitude, they might be kicked out of Test Cricket and be placed in the second tier of international competition. a move which would make Sir Learie Constantine, George Headley, Sir Frank Worrell, and other West Indian greats turn in their graves.
Richards said that the players today have no idea what they are playing for, and that they are not familiar with the great history of the game in the region.
However, a few senior players in the current West Indies team, including former captain, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, who is the most reliable player in the game today, are optimistic that the home team will perform well, and if possible win the tournament. We will have to wait and see.
Twenty four matches will be played during the Twenty/20 tournament before the two semi finals and the final.
The venues are Guyana, St Lucia and Barbados.
The two semi finals will be played in St Lucia on Thursday and Friday, May 13 and 14, while the final takes place at the famous Kensington Oval, in Bridgetown, Barbados.
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