Long road to recovery for Windies

The signs are there for a West Indies recovery to a position of strength in cricket. New talent is looming, and a fighting spirit sorely lacking in the last few years was evident in the recent test series against Australia.

Despite their improved showing, however, there is still a long way to go before this team claws its way out of 8th spot and begins to start challenging teams such as Australia, India and South Africa, which are the three best teams in the world at this point in time.

One of the ways they have to do this is start promoting new talent. While they got on the right foot over the selection of Xavier Marshall, who made two swashbuckling half centuries and showed immense fighting spirit, they are again showing their unwillingness to look outside the Barbados-Jamaica circle.

Amit Jaggernauth only got into the first test after a public outcry for his selection. It was a good call considering his form that season for Trinidad and Tobago (41 at 15.65), but his only test of the series exposed him to batsmen who can play spin bowling, and as a result he was punished.

Oddly enough three of the top five wicket takers in the West Indies first class competition were spinners: Nikita Miller (42 at 14.85), Jaggernauth, and gangling Sulieman Benn, who impressed in the third test. The only fast bowler to top 30 wickets this year was Shane Shillingford, from the Windward Isles, yet there was never a whisper of selection for him in the test squad, despite the continued poor performances of Darren Powell, who looks way out of his depth in test cricket.

It’s worse with the batting, with the test stars dominating the domestic scene. The only young players to really set the batting scene alight was Leon Johnson who, at 20, could be considered as a having big potential, and the 18 year old Adrian Barath, who has stormed from obscurity to be one of Trinidad and Tobago’s leading lights. Their concern now is how to breach the notorious inter-island rivalry and get a decent run at international level.

A prickly problem for the selectors is the form of expat Queenslander Brendan Nash. Nash was Jamaica’s top batsman and scored a century in Jamaica’s victory in the first class domestic final. He is in good touch despite only coming into the area recently following difficulties in the Australian scene. Whether they regard him as good enough to make the team remains to be seen.

There is hope that there is a new generation of players the West Indies can usher into their side under the guidance of firm hands Chanderpaul, Sarwan, and Gayle to help build a team with the aid of talented players such as Jerome Taylor, the resolute Marshall, and the outrageously gifted Dwayne Bravo.

For cricket’s sake, a strong West Indian side will benefit not only the game in the region, but the game around the world.