Crybaby stuff: Ramdin should respect the selector’s role

DENESH Ramdin always refers to senior players, ad nauseam. For someone who has been playing international cricket for the West Indies since he was 20 years old, it would have been welcome to hear him speak of how he prospered under senior international cricketers in his youth. For instance, just how did selectors of the day treat seniors – was it with kid gloves and/or timidity?

For someone who is fast approaching 35 and being first chosen for the West Indies Test team in 2005 and having played as recently as two months ago in a T20I, I believe his experience of 14 years of international cricket albeit fluctuating at times, yet would have given him a feeling of honour to have represented TT at the highest level for that length of time. Ramdin played 287 matches for the West Indies.

During that time he represented TT almost annually when he was available.

As a sportsman, to represent one’s country is the highest honour one can expect and the greatest of feelings.

When a cricketer (or any sportsman for that matter) is involved with his team regardless of whether a school team, a club or national side, there is always the possibility of being dropped!

It goes with the territory. It is also one of the best motivating forces! The sportsman cannot go on and on until he decides he does not want to play anymore.

The selector is someone who is thinking of choosing his best team at all times; no selector would weaken his team if, by doing so, he thinks he might lose the game.

There are many aspects he has to look for in the game of cricket as there is so much involved.

The form of his player, the strength and weaknesses of the opposition, the type of surface on which the match would be taking place, how well his team meshes together, their motivation and mindset, the balance; and a host of other reasons that may seem minuscule but is of great importance to performance!

How unfair and infantile it is for a player to criticise a chairman of selectors, a coach or any member of the administration for his non-selection.

A player is just that, a player and is subject to the thinking and choice of selectors, who could (but they don’t have to) explain to the player why he or she has been left out of the team!

The cricketer has his job to do and so has the selector and they happen to be two different jobs so one should not confuse one with the other.

This is crybaby stuff, the behaviour of Ramdin. Almost as if he thinks he’s greater than the game; the same sport that gave him a wonderful life, making him famous, visiting many countries of the world, only to spoil it all with this unwarranted conduct.

One would expect of our sporting heroes a lesson for the younger ones to emulate, the same junior players to whom he so often refers, by graciously surrendering to the selectors’ choices.

Offer assistance to the team and stop ranting and raving about being dropped while removing personal feelings of annoyance with the coach or chairman of selectors or whoever.

It’s hard to accept that two supposedly mature men like Ramdin and the coach Mervyn Dillon, are on the same team and not talking to each other! Unbelievable! Two international cricketers! So, neither of you fellows realised that it would make for an uncomfortable dressing room thus a deterioration in performance?

Of course, from the wicket-keeper’s report on chairman of selectors Anthony Gray, and from Gray’s retort, it seems reasonable to assume that he, Ramdin, was speculating. His lack of emotional control was surprising! However, as a senior international sportsman of some note, it was unbecoming to stoop so low to conquer.

How could Ramdin expect anyone to believe that Gray would deliberately not want Ravi Rampaul, Evin Lewis or Imran Khan in his team; but these were three of the names Ramdin criticised the chairman of selectors for treating badly. Gray and Dillon replies sounded very plausible.

Ramdin is also in poor form and certainly seems to have come into the team lacking cricket, therefore, it was a reasonable assumption by the selectors, of whom Gray is the spokesman, not the only selector, to release him to play some club cricket and build some form. Very reasonable!!

No cricketer is bigger than the game!