Cricket-Match-Special ... A forum for discussion

There is some talent there to work with- not a top class side but should perhaps be doing a bit better.

A possible 1st XI of:

Gayle
Barath
Sarwan
Samuels
Chanderpaul
Bravo
Baugh
Taylor/Sammy
Benn/Bishoo
Edwards/Rampaul
Roach

Is not such a bad side.

Of the two either ors, Sammy and Rampaul provbably offer more in batting but a fully fit Taylor and Edwards seem the better bets? As others have mentioned, wicketkeeping and fielding remain a problem. That side though should be competitive at least.

Mr Popodopolous wrote:There is some talent there to work with- not a top class side but should perhaps be doing a bit better.

A possible 1st XI of:

Gayle
Barath
Sarwan
Samuels
Chanderpaul
Bravo
Simmons both Baugh and Ramdin give me nightmares
Taylor/Sammy
Benn/Bishoo
Edwards/Rampaul
Roach

Is not such a bad side.

Of the two either ors, Sammy and Rampaul provbably offer more in batting but a fully fit Taylor and Edwards seem the better bets? As others have mentioned, wicketkeeping and fielding remain a problem. That side though should be competitive at least.

Pops what most of our players need is common sense and the majority of them have shown that they lack it.

WI cricket is far from dead, it just needs better management, admittedly they don't have the resources or talent pool that the likes of the BCCI or the ECB but they still have produced players like Chanderpaul, Bishoo, Gayle amongst others.

I would pick Rampaul as he is bowling well and has improved his fitness.

I felt West Indies have put on some quality performances in the recent World Cup and had what it takes to go far, shame they collapsed against Pakistan in the quarter finals.

West Indies need to play more matches, a two test series against Pakistan doesn't do justice and especially when it was poised at 1-1. In the ICC tours programme, 4 tests was pencilled in against India but only 3 are to be played.

When Gibson was appointed coach, I was all in favour. He seemed to bring English experiences to the West Indies, which were ignored by Bennett King and John Dyson. Gibson revived the academy, and all of a sudden, the A team started to play in a number of series.

But that all seems to be getting undermined by Gibson's big ego, and his determination to subject the senior players (Gayle, Benn, Shiv and Sarwan) to his will. He blames them for the West Indies exit at the quarter-final stage of the World Cup, and then takes disciplinary action when they naturally react angrily to what they see as unfairly singling them out....

I also have to question his training methods. Not everyone is the same physically, especially in a multi-ethnic team like the West Indies. You don't give an ageing Indo-Caribbean player (Shiv) the same gym work as a young Afro-Caribbean player (Sammy). That's why Shiv woke up with a sore shoulder on the eve of the second Test against Pakistan, and couldn't play. If Shiv had been fit, there's always the possibility that the Windies may have not lost the match, and may have won the series. Also, Gayle is very good at gymwork, but because of his heart, he's not good at running long distances. So, why insist that he runs 20 laps, and compare his times to Sammy's? And why threaten Sarwan and Barath that they are in danger of losing their places because they can't run as fast as their Afro-Caribbean colleagues?

In the Caribbean, anyone who's worked with athletics teams will know that Afro-Caribbean youngsters are better at sprinting and running than Indo-Caribbean youngsters. Trinidad has a 50-50 split between Afro-Caribbeans and Indo-Caribbeans, but yet their athletics team is 100% Afro-Caribbean. Is anyone seriously surprised at that?

What Gibson needs to do, to ensure he doesn't undo all the good work he's done to date, is to tailor fitness programmes to the individual according to their age, physique, and ethnicity. You can't have a one-cap-fits-all situation....

mikesiva wrote:When Gibson was appointed coach, I was all in favour. He seemed to bring English experiences to the West Indies, which were ignored by Bennett King and John Dyson. Gibson revived the academy, and all of a sudden, the A team started to play in a number of series.

But that all seems to be getting undermined by Gibson's big ego, and his determination to subject the senior players (Gayle, Benn, Shiv and Sarwan) to his will. He blames them for the West Indies exit at the quarter-final stage of the World Cup, and then takes disciplinary action when they naturally react angrily to what they see as unfairly singling them out....

I also have to question his training methods. Not everyone is the same physically, especially in a multi-ethnic team like the West Indies. You don't give an ageing Indo-Caribbean player (Shiv) the same gym work as a young Afro-Caribbean player (Sammy). That's why Shiv woke up with a sore shoulder on the eve of the second Test against Pakistan, and couldn't play. If Shiv had been fit, there's always the possibility that the Windies may have not lost the match, and may have won the series. Also, Gayle is very good at gymwork, but because of his heart, he's not good at running long distances. So, why insist that he runs 20 laps, and compare his times to Sammy's? And why threaten Sarwan and Barath that they are in danger of losing their places because they can't run as fast as their Afro-Caribbean colleagues?

In the Caribbean, anyone who's worked with athletics teams will know that Afro-Caribbean youngsters are better at sprinting and running than Indo-Caribbean youngsters. Trinidad has a 50-50 split between Afro-Caribbeans and Indo-Caribbeans, but yet their athletics team is 100% Afro-Caribbean. Is anyone seriously surprised at that?

What Gibson needs to do, to ensure he doesn't undo all the good work he's done to date, is to tailor fitness programmes to the individual according to their age, physique, and ethnicity. You can't have a one-cap-fits-all situation....

That sounds like another Greg Chappell

Rampaul has not only led the bowling, but has also been one of our more consistent batsmen, during two Tests against Pakistan and one against India. That said, Rampaul is a pace bowler who can bat a bit, and any batsman worth his salt should be performing better than him. Here are the stats from the last three Tests:

1) Adrian Barath - ave 51 (102 runs)
2) Shiv Chanderpaul - ave 39 (116 runs)
3) Marlon Samuels - ave 31 (63 runs)

4) Ravi Rampaul - ave 29 (116 runs)

5) Darren Bravo - ave 28 (166 runs)
6) Lendl Simmons - ave 21 (124 runs)
7) Darren Sammy - ave 17 (104 runs)
8) Carlton Baugh - ave 10 (62 runs)
9) Ronnie Sarwan - ave 9.5 (57 runs)
10) Brendan Nash - ave 9 (54 runs)
11) Kraigg Brathwaite - ave 7.5 (15 runs)
12) Devon Smith - ave 7 (14 runs)

So, only three batsmen passed the Rampaul Test, and one of them was inexplicably omitted from this team....

How long has Nash got left to keep his place? Not been in great form, though today he did get a low ball.

I would still like to see Russell in our side. He makes things happen.

Maybe Rampaul should bat at 6.

ntini77 wrote:I would still like to see Russell in our side. He makes things happen.

Maybe Rampaul should bat at 6.

This is why if the two sports clash, I watch athletics instead of cricket....

http://www.espncricinfo.com/west-indies ... 20534.html

Is WI cricket dead?

A big fat NO.... They might not be at their peak but their Cricket is far from dead. Another Lara or Ambrose and they will be a force to reckon with again

IndusCreed wrote:Is WI cricket dead?

A big fat NO.... They might not be at their peak but their Cricket is far from dead. Another Lara or Ambrose and they will be a force to reckon with again

Lara was a great player but off the field he was too troublesome. It will take more than one or two talented players to sort them out. They need another Clive Lloyd as a captain. He got the WI's to play together as a proper team and they were all willing to play for him as a captain.

Aidan11 wrote:Lara was a great player but off the field he was too troublesome. It will take more than one or two talented players to sort them out. They need another Clive Lloyd as a captain. He got the WI's to play together as a proper team and they were all willing to play for him as a captain.

Good point. However, the point I was trying to make was that WI team is not out yet. They just had a very good series against Pakistan and they seem to be doing well against Indians too currently.

To me, it seems that WICB likes to come in the way of the players. As a Cricket fan, I never had any issue with Lara or now, Gayle.

IndusCreed wrote:Is WI cricket dead?

A big fat NO.... They might not be at their peak but their Cricket is far from dead. Another Lara or Ambrose and they will be a force to reckon with again

I get what you are saying Indus. Apart from the bowling skills of Ambi our current crop of players can take what made Ambi great: his atitude and pride. Hardly anyone in our team display such attitude.