Follow UsWest Indies continued their lacklustre Test form, as they lost by an innings and 140 runs against India in Ahmedabad, on October 4 (Saturday). It was the West Indies’ fourth-straight loss in the longest format, and it continued to show there is a dearth in the quality of red-ball cricketers in the country.
Former West Indies cricketer and a legend himself, Brian Lara, questioned Roston Chase and the West Indies side, asking, “Does he and the other guys have cricket at heart? Do they really want to play for the West Indies?”
“Every single one of their parents would have had in the back of their mind their son playing for the West Indies. Their son doing well for the West Indies meant a lot back in those days,” Lara said on the sidelines of CEAT Awards, reported The Indian Express.
“It is a very big problem. Let me get it very clear. I can’t blame any single player for wanting to pursue cricket as a career outside of the West Indies because the disparity in what’s happening, playing five or six franchise leagues, compared to playing for the West Indies, is massive. You have to have empathy with that player.”
Lara reckons that the onus is on the board (Cricket West Indies) to find ways to create, unify and get the young players on the board to show their keen interest in playing Test cricket.
”I think the onus is on the Cricket West Indies to find a way to create, unify the efforts of the young players who want to go out, but also have them playing for us. Australia is able to do it. England is able to do it to keep their players loyal to their country. So we have to find a way to do that. There is no need to point fingers at anybody. It’s just that we’ve got to come together as a team, as administrators, as coaches, as players. If you have West Indies cricket at heart, you will find a way to move forward.”
Chase and co will have a chance to turn their fortunes around when they take on India in the second Test at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi, on October 10 (Friday).