West Indies legends Sir Clive Lloyd and Brian Lara said Cricket West Indies (CWI) has a herculean task in keeping regional players loyal to West Indies cricket, and not only thinking of playing in lucrative franchise T20 leagues around the world.
A two-day emergency meeting was held by CWI at the Hyatt Regency in Port of Spain from August 10 to 11 with the aim of improving West Indies cricket, particularly the performance of the men’s senior team.
Among the CWI members in attendance were president Dr Kishore Shallow, West Indies coach Daren Sammy, CWI CEO Chris Dehring and CWI member and president of the Leeward Islands Cricket Board Enoch Lewis.
Former Windies players like Lara, Sir Clive, Ian Bradshaw and Tony Gray also gave their insight.
Discussing the future of West Indies cricket, Lara said, “It is a long road. It is not something that is going to happen tomorrow…for us to get back on top or be a competitive nation in world cricket, we’ve got to address these situations and address them shortly, quickly, and hopefully we can reap the benefits in years to come.”
Despite the lure of the T20 game, Lara believes playing for West Indies is a dream for young cricketers.
“I still think West Indies cricket is still very important in the minds of all the youngsters, male or female, when looking at cricket as a career.”
Lara said CWI has to find out what keeps youth players driven.
“The motivational factor is what we have to tap into. What motivates the youngsters today? It might not just be representing West Indies 365 days of the year. It might be playing in the IPL (Indian Premier League) or the BBL (Big Bash League) or something else. We have to be able to find out those interests and see where West Indies cricket can still benefit these youngsters.”
The IPL and the BPL in Australia are leagues where players earn huge salaries compared to playing for West Indies.
Lara said TT batsman and ex-WI captain Nicholas Pooran retiring at age 29 from international cricket was unfortunate, and CWI needs to find out why players are making those decisions.
Sir Clive was satisfied with the two-day meeting. “I was very impressed and everybody had a say, so I look forward to the future.”
Sir Clive, who captained West Indies in one of their most dominant periods in the 1970s and 1980s, said West Indies must capitalise on their small talent pool.
Sir Clive agreed with Lara that it is challenging to keep West Indies players from T20 franchise cricket, but WI cannot afford to lose talent.
“We are five million people (in the Caribbean)…India got one and a quarter billion people…New Zealand is the only country that probably has the same number of people as we have. Sri Lanka got a lot of people, so they could lose players and still retain that standard that is needed.”
Sir Clive is hopeful West Indies players can play both international and franchise cricket.
“We are hoping to get our players to do both if possible. It might be difficult, but somebody has to be in there banging that drum, hoping they play some T20 but still play for us…. We don’t have the population so we have to try and keep the players.”
Lewis said the options players have now make their job tough. “In Clive’s days, it was West Indies, West Indies and no other option. Today, there are several other options…. It is either loyalty to West Indies or loyalty to family, and when you look at it this way, you understand which way they are going to go.
“CWI has to strike some sort of balance. Of course, you encourage loyalty to West Indies cricket, but at the same time, you have to find a way of balancing, just like in life.”
Lewis said more education needs to be passed on so players could see value in playing for West Indies.
(Trinidad & Tobago Newsday)
The post Sir Clive, Lara say CWI faces uphill battle to keep players from chasing global T20 riches appeared first on Barbados Today.