Ramnaresh Sarwan’s perplexing position in the leadership of the West Indies team took another, probably, final twist yesterday.
Pre-ordained as a future captain when he was named Brian Lara’s deputy five years ago, a role confirmed after he was eventually elevated to the role on Lara’s retirement following last year’s World Cup, Sarwan was returned to the ranks yesterday, reportedly on his own volition.
He was replaced as vice-captain to Chris Gayle by wicket-keeper Denesh Ramdin, a former youth team skipper, for the two 20/20 Internationals and the five ODIs for the current tour of New Zealand.
No explanation for the move was provided by the selectors in a terse media release from the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB), listing only the names of players chosen. But a later report from the Caribbean Media Corporation (CMC) stated that “Sarwan had stepped down for personal reasons”.
A Test player at 19, now 28-year-old veteran of 72 Tests and 136 ODIs and key number three batsman, Sarwan has been Gayle’s deputy throughout the year, in the home series against Sri Lanka and Australia last season, leading the team when Gayle was out injured in the first two Tests against Australia, and in the recent ODIS in Toronto and Abu Dhabi.
He had already been reappointed to the position for the forthcoming two Tests in New Zealand but now Ramdin, returning to the team after he was omitted from previous the ODI series in Toronto and Abu Dhabi, regains the deputy’s position he was first given in his initial series in Sri Lanka in 2005.
Sarwan lost the vice-captaincy two years after his initial appointment, when he and five others, Lara among them, withdrew from the first Test against South Africa in a row over individual sponsorship rights with the WICB.
When the disagreement with the WICB was settled and Lara and Sarwan returned, both lost their positions, as Shivnarine Chanderpaul took over as captain.
The pendulum swung once more after Chanderpaul, under pressure and clearly uncomfortable in the role, quit in 2006 to concentrate on his batting. Back came Lara as captain with Sarwan as his second-in-command.
Another jolt awaited Sarwan later that year. Even as vice-captain, he was dropped from the team for the second Test in Pakistan, Lara stating that “we just wanted to make him aware of the situation” and that “we need him and we need him to take control.”
It was portent for a year of misfortune that eventually cost him the captaincy that he had assumed on the tour of England last year, following Lara’s retirement. He dislocated his shoulder so seriously at Headingley in his second Test at the helm that he took no further part in the tour.
Fit again, he led the team in the disastrous campaign in the inaugural ICC World Twenty20 Championship, when the West Indies compiled over 200 against South Africa and were still easily beaten before being knocked out by Bangladesh.
Sarwan would probably have been retained for the back-to-back series in Zimbabwe and South Africa later that year, but a foot injury sustained in a training session prior to a KFC Cup Regional one-day match, eliminated him from the tour altogether.
Gayle took over, as he had done successfully in the ODI series in England six months earlier, and once the West Indies won their first Test under him, and their first in nine Tests in South Africa, it was clear that he had the inside rail for the captaincy whenever Sarwan returned.
It was a friendly rivalry, each stating that he would support the other whoever was favoured.
It was Gayle but injury soon struck him down as well, in the final ODI against Sri Lanka, and thrust Sarwan temporarily back into the role against Australia.
Gayle resumed once he recovered from his groin injury with Sarwan as his deputy. So it remained until yesterday.
Sarwan should just concentrate on his batting and leave the administration of the game to the numbskulls on the WICB…He is one of the best batsmen in the world and should concentrate on his world ranking as a batsman…take a lef out of Shiv’s book
Sarwan concentrate on your game west indies cricket is not going any way. you just happen to come at the wrong time.god bless.
Great move my dear. We are not a rubber stamp those ppl are not for the game.
My of luck in your batting
well sarwan is not very smart either and it shows,I know the kid,so he should thank west indies cricket for making him somebody,he is not captain material,not a leader in any way shape or form and he i think in his own interest needs to climb off his proverbial High Horse,and play sensible cricket,or they will fire him as they have clearly indicated a willingness to do.
quit the damn team and go and play for the icl or ipl or some english team, wi have nothing to offer but headache.
move on guys. soon the wi will not have a team to compete, in fact i think they are already there.
Good move by Sarwan… those positions have no praise in them, only distractions. In any case, I never felt he was a great captain and might never be.
Every problem has a answer to it, sarwan did the right thing
he must now focus on his batting & ranking in the world time to come he will be at # 1 just like shiv the “Tiger”
in both Test & ODI.
if it was sarwan’s decision to step down it’s fine.it is humilation on his behalf to be someone’s deputy when he was suppose to be the captain.well west indies dismal performance under the present captain is going unnoticed in the eyes of the selectors and west indies cricket board.
The West Indies Test Team need to break up and let every country or region form their own test Teams. Guyana and Trinidad should form their own teams. We all know who will be in those two. Barbados and Jamaica can field teams that are as strong as Bangladesh when they first became test teams. As the years go by they will grow and become more strong and formidable.
There is too much partisan politics involved in Cricket today. The West Indies fielded great teams in the past and produced greats like Richards, Haynes, Roberts, Holding et al because of a different political dynamic back then, as opposed to today. West Indies ain’t ever going to be great again as a team while the current condition persists.
Parents should encourage their kids to take up more rewarding and less politically sensitive sports like basketball, boxing, soccer, tennis and athletics. Let cricket die, who the hell cares.
HE MUST MAKE RUNS IF HE WANTS TO REMAIN IN THE TEAM, BATSMEN ARE IN THE TEAM TO MAKE RUNS AND AT NUMBER 3 HE IS DEPENDED TO GIVE THE TEAM RUNS. HE IS THE WORST NUMBER THREE BATSMAN FOR SOMETIME. OUT GOES SARS
Nonesense! Sarwan is an injury prone test player. As a number three batsman we expect him to be there to deliver on the promise. The history of players of his rank would bear me out. Rohan, Alvin, Lawrence, Viv,Brian et al, were always there. fit as ever. Sadly, injury is his draw back. Apart from that, he is a superbe test cricketer. I wish him well. But,I have seen Rohan,and Alvin bat at number three.
No comparisson