West Indies sent packing
By Tony Cozier
THE West Indies made their feared exit from the World Cup yesterday. Not even the considerable assistance they received from Australia, purely out of self interest, in their last group match at Old Trafford on Sunday could save them. Nor should it have. It would have been a travesty had the West Indies advanced to the next round, the Super Sixes, through such contrivance. It was just that New Zealand, by their own superiority over Scotland, should achieve what was needed to move on. To have gone through such a ruse would have again camouflaged the deficiencies in our cricket, just they had been by Brian Lara's phenomenal batting and the magnificent bowling of Curtly Ambrose and Courtney Walsh in the great revival in the Tests and one-day internationals against Australia in the Caribbean. There is, and has been for some time, an appalling shortage of batsmen and all-rounders of international standard and the perpetuation of cricketers with either questionable techniques or questionable temperaments and, in some cases, both. There was such pessimism here over the batting against the swinging white ball and the capricious early season pitches it prompted a debilitating caution from those at the top. It cost dearly when run rates came to be finally tabulated. Ridley Jacobs and Jimmy Adams dilly-dallied for more than 80 balls each over their half-centuries against Bangladesh when 46.3 overs were required to reach a target of 183. Sherwin Campbell spent 32 balls over 8, Jacobs 131 balls over an unbeaten 80 and Adams 29 balls over 3 so that the 157 needed to beat New Zealand used up 44.2 overs. The obvious tactic was for Lara, a run-a-ball aggressor, to bat No.3. But there was always the fear that his early loss, with Stuart Williams, Phil Simmons and the four fast bowlers at the bottom, would lead to a panic-stricken collapse. It was not misplaced for it was based on strong evidence, dating back to the previous two World Cups when Australia also applied the same pressure in critical matches they did Sunday and the batting buckled. In 1992, the West Indies would have gone through to the semi-finals by winning their last first round match against Australia who had already been eliminated. Seeking 217 to achieve their goal, Lara, then opening, scored 70 but no one else passed 15. They were all out for 159 and had to head home. In the even more despairing semi-final in 1996, the last eight wickets tumbled for 37 and they were six short of a modest winning goal of 202. The last seven individual scores then were 2, 1, 2, 0, 3, 2 and 0. The last six at Old Trafford on Sunday were 3, 1, 1, 0, 1 and 6. The contrast with the opposition this time was stark. Pakistan recovered from 42 for four and 135 for six to reach 229 for eight, the West Indies slumped from 101 for three to 202 all out. Bangladesh moved from 55 for four to 182 all out, New Zealand from 75 for six to 156. When the West Indies found themselves batting for the first time, against Australia, they did not have the resources to pull themselves out of the hole, at 20 for three, when Lara was dismissed. Only Jacobs' application carried them past the ignominious 93 against Kenya in 1996 that was their lowest World Cup total. The middle order slots were filled by Keith Arthurton, before he injured himself in the first match, Stuart Williams and Phil Simmons, old hands with little to recommend them. They are the type of players Sir Garry Sobers calls unkindly, but not unjustly, "recycled failures". Mike Findlay and his fellow selectors will pose the obvious rejoinder. Who else was there? They will argue that Carl Hooper's ill-timed retirement was an obvious setback and the one seam bowling all-rounder worthy of the name was Vasbert Drakes iineligible and performing for Nottinghamshire. Yet Hooper's withdrawal did prompt the inclusion of 20-year-old Ricardo Powell, a bold and imaginative choice. His natural talent was thrillingly obvious in the most audacious innings of the tour, 53 off 22 balls with three sixes and four fours in the preparation match against Surrey. It made everyone sit up and take notice and earned him a place in the opening match against Pakistan. Against the best balanced attack in the tournament, in unfamiliar conditions, he laboured over 4 and was promptly discarded, not to be seen again, not even against the lesser opposition of Bangladesh and Scotland. Stuart Williams was preferred and proceeded to contribute 14 not out against New Zealand, a first ball 0 against Scotland and a five-ball 3 on Sunday. It was a policy so short-sighted as to be virtually blind. The failure at such an early stage is an affront to the typically sterling efforts of Ambrose and Walsh, both obviously in their last World Cup tournament, and to the continued excellence of Jacobs, in his first at the age of 31. No one used the favourable white ball and pitches more effectively than the two veteran fast bowlers, no opening batsman adjusted to the conditions better and no keeper was as reliable as Jacobs. Now Ambrose won't get the World Cup medal that he coveted as the last momento on his mantle piece in Swetes before his bows out. And Walsh still won't appear in a final at Lord's that was his stated wish. With weaknesses in so many areas, such hopes were probably unrealistic in any case. But Zimbabwe have shown what can be achieved with even reasonable all-round depth, a sense of purpose and self belief and proper planning. The West Indies have another four years to get ready for another shot at the game's most prestigious trophy that was once theirs by right.
By Tony Cozier TEAM manager Clive Lloyd once more bemoaned the lack of batting support for the bowlers that led to the West Indies' first round elimination from the World Cup. "You can't fault the bowlers, they have done extremely well, not only now but for years" Lloyd noted. "We need the batsmen to give the bowlers something to work with and they haven't done that for quite some while now." Lloyd made the point that he has made time and again that Brian Lara "can't be expected to bat for the whole team". "They are others there who are being paid to do a job and they must do it efficiently," he said. "When we've made runs and given the bowlers something to bowl to, we have done extremely well," he noted. "We're not far off from being a very good side. We just need some batsmen to score runs and win games for us." "You go through this phase but we're doing things and now going further along," he said. "We're stopping and start sort of thing but I feel that with the positive injection of youth and training we can do well in the future." The West Indies team returns to London today from Manchester and will disband after attending the function at Buckingham Palace attended by all the teams tomorow.
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