Sarwan not sure about WI captaincy
by Faizool Deo
Stabroek News
June 12, 2004
"It would be a dream come true for me to captain the West Indies team over a long period of time. But at present if I got a call maybe I'd say I need some more experience," West Indies Vice-Captain Ramnaresh Sarwan said when asked if he would accept the captaincy for the England tour.
The Wakenaam-born Sarwan, who was addressing questions from local journalists at a press briefing at the National Communications Network (NCN) television studio, said he felt he needed more experience before making a long-term transition from vice-captain to captain.
"I have been playing first class cricket for quite some time now and in terms of the cricket aspect of it, I have a fair idea. But in terms of being captain, I think I would have to captain, maybe, the Guyana team for a period of time so that I can [learn to] handle certain issues.
"I am not sure how long this would last, maybe a year or so. It is kind of hard to put a time to it. But I think I need some more experience."
This reluctance contrasts with his online media press conference on Monday. During that interview, when asked by a foreign journalist if the opportunity presented itself whether he would accept the captaincy "today", Sarwan replied, "I think I just need to gain experience. But should the opportunity present itself I would grab it with both hands."
Stint as captain
Sarwan, who led the West Indies to a marginal loss against England in the first One-Day International in Guyana earlier this year and then to a comprehensive 3-0 limited-over series win against Bangladesh, opined that the hardest task as captain was pleasing everyone. "It is very hard to please everyone. Quite a few players in the side come up and give you advice that is good. But they get very upset when you don't do what they want you to do. It is understandable, but the fact of the matter is whenever you are in charge you have to go with your instincts."
He said he was not sure if captaining the side full-time would affect his batting, since he has never really had a chance to bat under pressure as a captain.
The declaration
But despite his seeming ambivalence about the captaincy, Sarwan, who now has the highest individual score by a Guyanese in test cricket (261 not out) continues to support his captain's decision to declare in the last Test against Bangladesh in Jamaica.
As he has done in previous interviews, Sarwan insisted that Captain Brian Lara's declaration was not bad, since winning the match was more important than any milestone.
He said he was offered another eight overs to reach his 300 mark. "[Ravi] Rampaul came out with a message to me, asking if I wanted to go on to 300. He stated that they would give me eight overs to get to that mark. I said it does not matter, whatever they want to do is fine with me. If they want to declare now it is okay with me. I looked at the dressing room and Brian asked me what's happening. I said it's okay if you want me to come off now, I'll come off. So there was no misunderstanding."
Asked whether he would have declared just then if the decision were up to him, Sarwan replied, "at that point in time maybe, maybe not, but the win was more important."
The young right-handed batsman also said that during his innings thoughts of the world record never came to his mind.
Sarwan on the WI's recent performance
Sarwan said he believed the West Indies lacked the "killer instinct. I don't know if we are just not accustomed to winning," he continued, "but we are just not playing hard enough."
The transition for young cricketers from regional to international competition, was another matter of concern for Sarwan. "It is a fact that our team is lacking experience; the young players are playing first class cricket for one or two years and I don't think that they have enough experience for them to be thrown into test cricket."
Tino Best and Fidel Edwards were dubbed as the pick of the crop from the recent tour.
Sarwan is also open to the idea of having a bowling coach from one of the Asian countries to coach in the West Indies to develop a special spinner.
Excellent form
Sarwan excelled against Bangladesh in the recent 1-0 series victory, leading the way with the bat. His aggregate was 301 runs, at an average of 301 and he picked up eight wickets with his leg-spin bowling at an average of 13.12.
He credits his performance to hard work, since according to him he has been working hard on his fitness for the last six months and this coupled with physical and technical support from Gus Logie and Ronald Rogers has made him into a better player.
On the upcoming tour to England, Sarwan said, his main goal is a West Indies victory; he also hopes to come out injury-free. Sarwan and West Indies media liaison Imran Khan are slated to leave Guyana on Sunday for the England tour.