BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, (Reuters) - Tony Howard began his reign as West Indies interim team manager yesterday promising ‘a no-nonsense approach’ in an effort to turn around the team's fortunes.
Howard, who played a single Test as a spinner, replaced Ricky Skerritt who resigned after the seven-wicket defeat against England in the second Test in Trinidad. West Indies are 2-0 down in the four-match series.
The 57-year-old said he hoped the same attributes that helped him take Barbados to four titles in the regional first-class tournament since taking over in 1998 would help lift West Indies.
``I am looking for a sense of one-ness, a sense of discipline,'' he told reporters.
``If we get that, then we'll see how we can get this West Indies team, which honestly includes some of the most talented players in the world, on the right track.
``I am not under any pressure. I (just) feel we do have to deliver, to demonstrate that there has been a turnaround in West Indies' fortunes.''
Skerritt had described the behaviour of four players, who reportedly attended a party after West Indies had collapsed to their record low Test score of 47 all out in their second innings in Jamaica, as ``completely irresponsible''.
Though Skerritt was willing to see his contract through to its June 30 end, the WICB appointed Howard on Sunday.
``I am a no-nonsense kind of person,'' Howard said. ``I think that's what everybody knows about me. I am coming into this basically cold. I don't have any bias or prejudice as to what's gone before. I come in with a clean slate.''
Howard's immediate goal is to prevent England from winning a series on Caribbean soil for the first time since 1968, but he said an all-round improvement was just as important.
``In the short term I expect to see a halt in the haemorrhaging,'' he said.
``In the medium term I expect to see a change in the way we carry ourselves and hopefully that will translate onto the pitch.''
Howard said he would speak to the players in the run-up to the third Test starting on Thursday but said each had to demonstrate they had a responsibility to the team and the West Indies public.
``It's not just about cricket,'' Howard said. ``When a player realises that it is also about personal development, that is when I find they get the best out of themselves.''