Team expectations high for Windies

Cricket West Indies president Ricky Skerritt. - CWI Media
Cricket West Indies president Ricky Skerritt. - CWI Media

IN a statement from Cricket West Indies (CWI) president Ricky Skerritt and vice-president Dr Kishore Shallow, the regional cricket administrators said expectations are now high of West Indies teams as relationships among all stakeholders have been rebuilt.

In a letter to regional media and cricket stakeholders, the pair outlined their achievements in the first year in office.

The statement said, “We are proud to report on the transformational changes now taking place at CWI, after one year of our leadership. We are especially pleased with the high level of enthusiasm that the rebuilding of relationships have aroused amongst cricketers, coaches, management, staff and fans. But we are also aware that this enthusiasm has lifted expectations. At the start of our tenure, CWI teams were all ranked at the bottom of all ICC (International Cricket Council) ladders, and we are mindful that those rankings have not yet improved.”

During the Dave Cameron-led CWI, there were a number of distractions off the field including the relationship between some of the senior West Indies players and president Cameron. Among those who had disagreements with Cameron were Dwayne Bravo, Darren Bravo and former captain Darren Sammy.

Skerritt and Shallow know that moving up the rankings will not happen overnight.

“Although we know that there are no quick-fixes for climbing the performance ladders, we are firmly committed to the philosophy that improving the capacity, efficiency, accountability, transparency and financial well-being of the entire CWI organisation, on and off the field, is a prerequisite for improving on-field results. We are also re-establishing the proper role of the CWI board, of oversight and policymaking. The professional executive management must be encouraged, and allowed, to carry out approved policy without undue, or confusing, interference.”

The vision of the board is for CWI to truly become both a trustee and a designer of West Indies cricket, as a public good.

CWI says it is important to partner with relevant stakeholders to help develop the region’s cricketers.

“CWI’s main challenge now is to partner effectively with the cricket community and with all public and private stakeholders, to attract and gather together as much of the young talent in our region as possible, and to help them to develop into thoughtful, hard-working, and proud West Indians. CWI must develop, operate, and sustain a cricket system that is built on a foundation of heritage, global standards, proven best practices, and competent expertise. This cricket system must produce more disciplined, skilful, and confident cricketers, most of whom should be self-motivated and battle-ready.”

CWI knows covid19 has affected the sporting world, but said all stakeholders must continue working together.

“Covid19 pandemic-related uncertainty is rapidly changing the global market for every product, service, or event. Unprecedented disruptive challenges are increasingly emerging for professional sports, including cricket. But even in the midst of this unpredictable outlook, we continue to believe that the best way forward is for all stakeholders to work responsibly and strategically, together.”

The statement included the ten-point cricket first plan which was the foundation of the Skeritt-Shallow 2019 election campaign. The ten-point cricket first plan includes the creation of a cricket-centric organisational culture, optimum use of technology for greater effectiveness, increased investment in grassroots cricket, enhancement of the franchise system, modernisation of coaching through education and professional collaboration, increased exposure for Under-23 and Under-19 players, revamping of the system of team selections, redevelopment and decentralisation of a high-performance system, repair of stakeholder relations and utilisation of regional technical expertise.

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