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Dr. Anthony fires probing response to Hilaire

Apr 22, 2011 Sports

Guyana’s Minister of Sport Dr. Frank Anthony has dispatched a strongly worded response to WICB CEO Ernest Hilaire, who answered some of the concerns raised by the Honorable Minister in a letter that was sent to Chairman of Selectors of the WICB, Guyanese Clyde Butts seeking clarity on matters relating to the selection process.
In his second letter to the WICB CEO, which Kaieteur Sports was able to obtain, Dr. Anthony revisited several burning questions that were not answered in his first missive.
Following is the full text of Dr. Anthony’s letter to Dr. Hilaire:
Dear Mr. Hilaire,
I thank you, most sincerely for your swift response to my April l4th, 2011 correspondence to Mr. Clyde Butts.
Two issues in your first paragraph need to be clarified: Firstly, whilst we in Guyana are very concerned about the omission of Messrs Sarwan and Chanderpaul from the imminent ODI series in the West Indies, my concern is about the bigger picture of the criteria recently used to come up to what must be deemed a dubious decision, especially if Sarwan’s record and relevant statistics for example are taken into account.
Perhaps if the WICB will like to regain the confidence of the Guyanese and Caribbean public then it should fully disclose the records pertaining to the selection of the WI team.
Secondly, I am amused that you think I will, “fall prey to wild media sensationalism”. If I thought, that you were serious about that, I would certainly take exception to the inference. But maybe the wild media sensationalism was fueled by the opaqueness of the selection process, and the coercive tactics used to bully some of the players. This latter was revealed by former Captain Chris Gayle in his recent radio interview.
In terms of the gist of my correspondence to Mr. Butts, dated April 14th 2011, I have to submit respectfully, that – your own response — much of which was released generously to the Regional Media before my request, has not addressed the specific issues that I raised.
For example, did your Board indeed forcefully “invite” Shivnarine Chanderpaul to “retire” from ODI? Did reported tensions between Coach Gibson and the three senior players’ impact upon or influence recent cricketing decisions?
At a personal level, it is only in “extreme” cases that I would consider intervening in matters related to selection. I know only too well, that these matters are best left to the on the ground professionals tasked with such responsibilities. However, I and we in Guyana, retain the right to seek answers when we are confronted with what appears to be non cricketing considerations.
You write that, “…the WICB cannot take a narrow and parochial view in the process of rebuilding West Indies cricket”.  That is heartening. Our Guyanese cricketing “experts” will observe whether that process results in specific players being picked for and exposed at specific (home) venues. That indeed would be pandering to “the luxury of parochialism”, which I am assured, runs counter to your selection policy.
It seems that a well meaning call for clarification in the interest of Caribbean cricket continues to be blinded by the thick fog that surrounds the criteria and the process of selection. If the WICB is unable or unwilling to share this information, then I am afraid it is not only the WI team for 2015 that needs rebuilding, but I will humbly suggest that we think about the rebuilding of the administrative and management team that runs WI cricket.
I look forward to a useful reply that covers the issues overlooked in your first response and raised herein a few paragraphs above.
With every good wish for the future of West Indies Cricket.

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