Published: Mar 10, 2016, 12:56 PM (IST)
Edited: Mar 10, 2016, 01:35 PM (IST)
If there is anything that West Indies have done on cricket field worth mentioning in the last 6-7 years or so, is winning ICC World T20 2012 in Sri Lanka. Cricket in the Caribbean has been in shambles, with controversies eclipsing everything else. Their cricketers have continued to hog limelight in several franchise-based T20 tournaments across the world, even though their struggles in international cricket have surged. Amid the shambles, Darren Sammy-led West Indies have arrived in India to have another shot at the ICC World T20 2016 — a format which, according to Dwayne Bravo, they are most comfortable playing. Bravo’s assessment is accurate, and the question, however, is only whether they will show up or not.
International cricketers, especially those perennially in the limelight, hogging eyes of public and media, do not enjoy the freedom of speaking about their shortcomings. Those on fringes and on comeback trails may admit about the areas they need to work on, but among top-flight cricketers it is a rarity to speak on such matters.
Bravo, however, is a brave man (no pun intended). He was not a part of the West Indies team that was rammed 0-2 in Australia late last year (the other Test was rain-washed) — a tour that saw the Caribbean cricket team plunging to further lows. Bravo could not have done much, for he had been sacked as captain and was thrown out of the team unceremoniously after West Indies left India tour in 2014 midway, and announced retirement in January 2015. ALSO READ: Where do West Indies go from here?
There is few doubt that Bravo is one of the most enigmatic cricketers from West Indies in recent time. The fact that he understands the game quite well and rates Test cricket highly is a proof that Caribbean cricketers respect the conventional format. “I wanted to do a lot more in Test cricket with West Indies, unfortunately now I will not be able to. Now I see what Dwayne Bravo can do as a cricketer,” he said at a recent event in New Delhi. ALSO READ: West Indies few defeats away from being labelled ‘minnows’
Bravo admits that T20 is a hit among West Indies cricketers — it does not demand technical flawlessness that the other formats demand. As Bravo said, “T20 is exciting, it is more natural for us. It requires less technical aspect, many players from other teams like it as well.”
The assessment was absolutely right: lack of attention translating to almost no success in Tests has strangulated West Indies in the format, and the same is the story in ODIs. However, with many of them being regular features in top-flight T20 cricket leagues around the world, they remain one of the best in the business.
Bravo’s assessment is right: West Indies players enjoy the format and it helps them play naturally. When cricketers start enjoying their game and play naturally, success comes their way more often than not. And like other teams, the only question remains is in what mood they turn up.
(Devarchit Varma is senior writer with CricketCountry. He can be followed on Twitter @Devarchit)
