Dear Editor,
There was lots of pre–tournament speculation regarding who will emerge victorious in this year’s Twenty/20 world cup and not surprisingly the West Indies received a plethora of nominations globally owing to the calibre of players and their ability to demolish teams expertly in this format as we have seen from tournaments held around the world. However, like a sniper, the execution to be precise; West Indies struck the target handsomely thus confirming the vote of confidence that was bestowed upon them during the lead up to the tournament.
Nestled in my apartment with my phone as the only device to follow the game and with updates from other ardent friends namely Joel Dilchand and Chevy Bissessar, who were present at their watering holes, I found it difficult to contain my excitement as the West Indies zeroed in on a major elusive world title.
Though Chris Gayle had already sounded an unequivocal premonition to his opponents that the cup would be going to the shores of the West Indies, some supporters might have been cautiously optimistic since his disposition is usually one of nonchalance; the West Indies are known for snatching defeats from the jaws of victory.
However, the Darren Sammy led team was unperturbed by past failures and negativity as they pursued their quest for a major title after a number of years. Meanwhile, Sri Lanka found themselves in familiar territory for the fifth time and was indefatigably hunting this world title on home soil. The home support together with the presence of quality multidimensional players on sub-continental soil is enough to intimidate visiting teams.
The West Indies innings began horribly with the loss of both their openers in quick succession. This coupled with their failure to gain any impetus owing to the frugality of the Sri Lankans, seemed as though they were destined for another poor showing against Sri Lanka which has had a hold on them for a very long time now. But Marlon Samuels had different ideas as he mixed caution with aggression to record yet another half century in the tournament and unquestioningly the most important for his team, confirming the old maxim that cricket is a game of glorious uncertainty. This innings has clearly underlined his talent and shown that he is maturing with every passing game.
Darren Sammy’s place in the West Indies team will always be questioned until he can contribute substantially with a great deal of consistency and understandably so, but he must be extolled for his little cameo and his captaincy. The manner in which he meticulously rotated his bowlers and managed his team, speak volumes about his growth as a captain. Maybe the only blunder in his captaincy was the reintroduction of Rampaul because it is public knowledge now that he is usually expensive upon return, in this format at least.
Have we turned the corner? Your guess is as good as mine, but what we have seen is a fair bit of consistency from the players. Gayle and Samuels, the most experienced batsmen have demonstrated a great deal of consistency and commitment to the team much to the delight of the supporting public. The bowlers have grown by leaps and bounds and have certainly shown that they understand what is expected of them at this level.
More especially the signs are good for the West Indies as Samuel Badree seems to have found his niche in this format.
Rampaul has become more reliable hence his selection ahead of Edwards. On the obverse side of the coin, there was a pang of uneasiness as Narine seemed to have lost his mojo, but he unquestionably redeemed himself in the last few games.
As the global outpour of felicitations for the West Indies continues to inundate facebook, supporters can deservedly continue their revelry and gagnam dance made popular by the honourable and flamboyant Chris Gayle. Heartfelt congratulations to Sammy and company for a fantastic job.
Yours faithfully,
Raul Khan
