West Indies, make winning a habit

THE EDITOR, Madam:

We are so happy for Amir Jangoo. He has been patiently waiting for his opportunity for a very long time. He deserved a call-up, and he deserved a ton for such a batting display. Yes, it is Bangladesh, but funny enough, we have a better ODI record against England at home than Bangladesh, so a series sweep is good for a change. Well done to Daren Sammy for coaching a mentality shift in this format, but credit goes to the players for putting that winning mentality into action.

Many times, we have noticed in the Test series, especially in the second Test, that WI were taken to task in different spells. Many individual battles were lost, and they did not ride it out; they weren’t up for the fight and threw in the towel, hence the second Test defeat. However, in the ODIs, the West Indies pushed back the pendulum each time Bangladesh turned up the heat. It was a breath of fresh air, because that’s the beauty of the longer formats – winning individual battles, gripping spells, and periodic onslaughts – and that team effort determines who wins the game.

The downside of these performances is that fellows like Jangoo, Greaves, and Motie are 27, 30, and 30, respectively; they should be making their débuts when they were at least 24 years old. So, we have enough players in the talent pool to compete for selection across three formats. If anyone chooses anybody else besides the West Indies, no problem; replace them. The ODI set-up is working well; the batting spine is taking shape nicely, and we must have a combined average of 175-plus from batters one to five. Shout-out to Motie; he has become a handy batter, and to Rutherford as well; jeez, that Guyanese hits the ball hard. Humble yourself, Jangoo; West Indies make that performance a habit.

KENDELL KARAN

Chaguanas

Trinidad and Tobago