West Indies cricket - the ugly truth

C.J. Moxam, Contributor

West Indies cricket, depending on your age, can evoke a range of emotions - happiness, sadness, anger, etc.

The West Indies cricket team, for Caribbean people, represents more than just a team they can cheer for. Unlike the other nations in the cricketing world, it represents a region made up of many countries. Therefore, it is the source of a great sense of Caribbean pride for a region, which otherwise is individually independent and individualistic. It is the one thing all Caribbean nationals can look at and feel a sense of pride and togetherness. In other words, it has been more than a game to the Caribbean for a very long time.

From the second half of the 1970s to the mid 1990s the West Indies were the kingpins of international cricket, with intimidating, quick, smart, and at times, very tall 'fast bowlers' at the forefront of their success, accompanied by brilliant, dashing and, most important, consistent batsmen. Not to mention the more-than-capable fielders would be a crime; true professionals in all aspects of the great game.

Not to say there were no good times before with stars such as George Headley, Everton Weekes, Sir Frank Worrell, Wes Hall and Garfield Sobers, just to name a few, but this period was when the team was seemingly invincible. They were not only a bunch of people playing a sport they loved, but they were ambassadors, role models and winners. Everybody loves a winner. Understandably, being a West Indian cricketer brought with it great responsibility.

'The glory days' is a common term used in reference to that period when listening to older folks speaking about/debating their memories: the great catches, flashing willow and leather, hearing the great pleasure they got from growing up watching and listening to the great game, almost as though their lives revolved round it.

Faded pride

In more recent times, however, this sense of pride and pleasure has faded to no more than a distant memory, tied with the occasional flashes of hope and promise which, more often than not, disappears rather quickly. The once-great beast that was West Indies cricket can now be compared to a mild lamb, ready for the slaughter house.

The list of reasons for why this great beast with a ferocious roar has now faded to a mere whimper is endless. However, there are a few reasons that hurt me as a West Indian who grew up in a household with a father who has always been a 100 per cent fan of West Indies cricket. It was inevitable that I, too, would love the game.

I remember the days growing up when I would wake up extra early for the overseas tours. Just to catch a couple hours of my heroes in action, even when I knew I had school at 7:30 a.m. and would probably not be learning much that day. Just to see Curtly Ambrose and Courtney Walsh steam in and then the next morning wake up and see Brian Lara do what he did best - demoralise the opposition, while entertaining me with that high bat lift and jump across to off stump, flashing his bat with great style, flare and precision.

I even learned bravery from cricket, seeing Jimmy Adams getting hit flush on the chin, then getting stitches on the field and going back to bat, bloody and all. I always heard that being down doesn't mean you are out; that was one of the greatest demonstrations of that saying I had ever seen and it has stuck with me until now.

After saying all that, it's time to get to the meat of the matter, "the ugly truth". In this current crop of West Indian cricketers, I don't see too many with the pride, professionalism, fight and heart that should be required of a West Indies cricketer. What I see are players with talent, little discipline, earrings sparkling and chains on the field of play as though it is some kind of modelling contest coming in and out of the line-up.

Coming from Jamaica, one of the countries with a reputation for turning out some of our best cricketers, I have a good platform from which to view and feel the level of power cricket has had in the past and its present lack of power. Jamaica has had a good run on the regional domestic scene over the past five years, consistently winning the four-day game and doing well also in one-day competitions.

Excelling in other sports

Jamaica also does very well in other sports such as football and track and field, among others. We have developed a sense of pride and a highly competitive spirit. This is demonstrated yearly by our athletes on the international stage; the most popular being Usain Bolt, an international phenomenon.

The thought of playing for the West Indies cricket team no longer brings with it that feeling of greatness and desire. The great pride and importance has almost disappeared unless you are a long-time fan of the game. This is due to the years of failure and underachievement West Indian fans have had to endure for the past decade. Losing has become a norm and it is no longer a horrible thing to lose, so much so, that it is more of a surprise when they win.

As a youngster who plays cricket, when I express my views, I am told that I should be a catalyst for change, aim to get into the team and be a positive addition. How can I, when what I see is a dysfunctional group of individuals? I don't see a team. I don't fancy the nice cars, publicity and fame, but if I had a desire to attain those things I would be dying to get into the team so I could afford them.

What about those of us who just want our heroes back? Or want to bring back the pride and passion to the game so we can enjoy the great game once more and tell our children about some greats? In the future, if I have a son, I won't have much to tell him about great or very good players other than Brian Lara, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Chris Gayle and Ramnaresh Sarwan, from my days growing up as a teenager. This is a very sad thought.

This may sound harsh, but now I would take greater pride in playing for Jamaica than I would the West Indies cricket team. A few years ago, that would have sounded absurd but it no longer does.

C.J. Moxam is a student at the Caribbean Maritime Institute and a former Grace Shield cricketer at Jamaica College.