Getting the best out of WI for T20 World Cup

Daren Sammy led the West Indies team in 2012 and 2016 to championship victories in the ICC T20 World Cup competitions. Those were fantastic achievements. However, captaincy and coaching are two different aspects in the same sport.

The captain is on the field and controls the running of the game for his team and at all times must be aware of where his opportunities lie in order to grab the advantage over his opponent.

In the game of cricket especially, where there are four basic formats – whether it’s a Test match of five days or a first-class game of three or four days, a single innings of 50 overs per team or 20 overs per side – there would be various approaches.

Hence, several strategies to adopt in order to win– all happening on the field of play while the game is in progress, when thinking has to be constant and tactics change readily. It’s not an easy task.

At present, Sammy is the coach, therefore, no longer being in the middle of the action on the field of play. His role as coach involved the planning stage before a game begins, observing the play as it unfolds so that advice could be rendered at a suitable interval to gain an advantage. This part is tricky because it could interfere with the playing activity in progress and the on-field change of plans of the captain.

The point that I’m making here is the frustration a coach can encounter while watching from the sidelines, plus the emotional control he needs to be able to master the technique. A game being observed from off the field can be at odds with what is taking place on it.

Shamar Joseph is a newcomer to the WI team for a T20 WC and as such, elicited an explanation to the media that together with Shimron Hetmyer, it was for the sake of role-specific players that was the key for selection of both. I would not have thought that there was any doubt about Joseph being in the squad simply because he’s a class act, thus, he is someone any captain would need in his team.

Looking at him play in the two Test matches against Australia, Joseph obviously seemed to be someone who has the right attitude to play the game at the highest level. He also has the ability to play in any format, like the best fast bowlers in the world: Mitchell Starc and Pat Cummings of Australia, Jimmy Anderson and Simon Broad of England (although they would have passed their best recently), Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj of India.

Hetmyer is problematic. I don’t know what his problem is, but it seems to interfere with his cricket, especially at the highest level. His disposition creates instability and I was surprised at his selection. He is extremely talented yet unreliable, while his production does not match the level of his ability.

I have question marks by Andre Russell and Shai Hope. While I believe Hope is a class act, I nevertheless think that in the T20 format he does not quite fit in. Maybe he’s the number one choice as the wicketkeeper, however, in the hectic activity of keeping for 20 overs, then to open the batting is a risky business.

Besides, the only way he should play would be in the opening role to use his batting ability as a buffer to the unpredictable aggressiveness of Johnson Charles. But then there's Brandon Brandon King, the other successful opening batsman.

Russell is there in name only. He’s past his best. Although he can still win the team a match, the odds are not as highly favoured as before. I would have expected the selectors to bear in mind that this is not franchise cricket but international competition. The utility capabilities of Kyle Myers should have made him a certainty.

Rovman Powell is the captain. This, I believe, is the strongest suit of the entire team. Powell has not only proven that he understands the game, but he’s adept at leadership. He knows his men and is aware of how to treat them to achieve maximum impact. His self-belief is inspirational, hence the reason he has a good win-lose ratio as captain.

The advantage the WI has over their competitors will depend on the smooth agreement of function between Sammy and Powell. The captain was not a part of the selection committee which consisted of lead selector Desmond Haynes and coach Sammy.

Good luck, Windies.