Another wicket falls in West Indies cricket

The firing of Phil Simmons as head coach of the West Indies team means that the regional sport is into the tail with only numbers 10 and 11 to come.

Simmons’ termination was announced the day the West Indies limited overs team was set to leave the Caribbean for the United Arab Emirates to take on Pakistan.{{more}}

His departure from the pitch of responsibility follows closely that of bowling coach Curtly Ambrose and triumphant Twenty/20 captain Darren Sammy.

This, though, has been the tale on and off the field, as the innings called West Indies cricket may soon come to a close.

Simmons’ firing, parting of company with his employers, the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB), has not really shocked those who have been taking notes of cricket’s best soap opera – the West Indies.

Many would have been vindicated, as when he last took up the post, the cry among persons, near and far, was that it was an act of bravery.

To some persons, Simmons must have thought he would have miraculously turned water into wine.

Simmons, a former West Indies opening batsman, who later developed into a useful all-rounder, enjoyed the latter part of the regional side’s world near invincibility, which came to an end in the mid 1990s.

Success followed him for eight years, as he moulded Ireland into a formidable non-test unit.

However, his stay with the West Indies, as senior team head coach, has been far from cordial with the WICB.

His questioning of the non-selection of some players and his pronouncements of interference from members of the WICB, caused him to be suspended, then reinstated.

Having found himself in the wrong, things simply got from bad to worse and Simmons, from time to time, stretched the barometers of diplomacy.

Finally, last Tuesday, he was given the boot, with the board stating ”differences in culture and strategic approach”.

Whatever that means, the WICB‘s vague explanation for Simmons’ removal left many again to question if there are many behind the scenes issues.

But this has become the nature of West Indies cricket.

Through Simmons’ tenure, the West Indies played 14 test matches, winning one, while losing nine, with the other four drawn.

In the ODI matches under Simmons’ watch, the West Indies won three and lost seven of the 10 matches.

However, in the Twenty/20 format, it was joy unspeakable, as there were 10 wins, as opposed to two defeats, with Simmons in charge of the technical set-up.

Comparatively, with Simmons’ immediate predecessors, the combination of Otis Gibson and the stand-in Richie Richardson, the West Indies played 13 tests, won 3, lost 8 and drew 2.

In ODIs, played 29, won 13 and lost 16 and in Twenty/20, played 18, won 9, loss 8 and there was a no result in the other.

A look at the statistics in all three formats, there is no distinct difference, except in the West Indies’ cup of tea – the T/20.

Simmons’ highlight reel was the 1-1 Test draw with England and copping the World T/20 in April.

So, like true calypso cricketers, the regional cricketers are masters at hitting out whenever fear looms; the same things are occurring with those entrusted to administer the sport in the region.

No better the beef, no better the barrel, as the West Indies contain the best Twenty/20 players in the world and their demands are testimony, as they are the first choices for the lucrative tournaments across the globe.

And, the administrators have followed suit, as they too only know how to have brief relationships with their players.

Was it not the same board which a few weeks ago held an open forum with players in Lauderhill, Florida?

A forum which would have fleshed out and at the same time healed some of the festered wounds which have been inflicted in recent times.

No one should be surprised by any turn of events, as this type of operation is now the norm of West Indies cricket, as the WICB is labelled a lord unto themselves.

They answer to no one; hence, everyone else goes, while they remain rooted in their positions to get rid of another.

Much of the finger-pointing has been directed at WICB chair Dave Cameron and his deputy, but little mention is given to the director of cricket Richard Pybus.

Reports say that Pybus and Simmons were always at loggerheads and in the most recent past only communicated via emails.

Such is the state of West Indies cricket, as the massa days have been re-enacted with the whip fully in train and operational.

West Indies cricket, by its own demise, the mentality of the board, the mindset of the players have all led Caribbean people to have scant concern for what unfolds on and off the field.

The norm is fully in place, just waiting for another wicket to fall and another batsman to come in, and the cycle continues.

Unfortunately, no partnerships are formed as even Caricom does not have the moral authority to stem the tide of what is taking place with the regional game, which once gave the West Indies world status.

Things will remain as they are until there are changes made all around.