“Awarding West Indies Cricket!”

Sep 18, 2011 Sports

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Colin E. H. Croft
With the recent International Cricket Council Awards 2011, I have this very heartening feeling that West Indies cricket is definitely on the up-swing.  The three awards won by West Indians must signify hope, even as the senior teams, ladies and men, travel outward to continue the process of representation!
Curtly Elconn Lynwall Ambrose is included in my favorite fast bowlers – Wasim Akram, Dennis Lillee, Joel Garner, Wes Hall, Charlie Griffith, Malcolm Marshall, Andy Roberts, Michael Holding and Imran Khan.
Only Charlie Griffith, of those named, is not in the ICC Hall of Fame, but, at least in my mind, even if all of the rest were not actually included in the ICC Hall of Fame, which they are, they were all still great!
“Ambi” is easily one of the best fast bowlers that West Indies, and the rest of the world, have seen.  He definitely deserves, by stats alone, being included into ICC Hall of Fame.  When anyone attempts the almost impossible task of selecting an “All West Indies Cricket Team”, he must feature very significantly.
Ambrose’s statistics are astounding.  Including another ICC Hall of Famer, Courtney Walsh, Ian Bishop, augmented by Winston and Kenny Benjamin, they formed the last good WI bowling attack.  Fast bowler Kemar Roach and spinner Devendra Bishoo head the new wave, so there is great hope for better too!

Ambrose played in 98 Tests.  I have so much respect for the man that he did not prolong his presence to get to the coveted 100 Tests, even though he could have, some say should have, soldiered on.  He had 405 wickets, at an incredibly frugal average; 20.99.  It would be very difficult to better those numbers!
I have been fortunate to witness almost all of “Ambi’s” Tests, so it gives headaches to highlight one specific performance.  His Test No. 46, v England, Queen’s Park Oval, 1994, though, by which time he was a seasoned campaigner, showed how focused, determined and accomplished he had become.
England should have won that Test, one of the best that I have seen too.  It was also the very first international game that I had been involved in, as a Summarizer, for CMC and BBC Test Match Special.
So, after West Indies had been restricted to 252 in 1st innings, courtesy of excellent bowling by Angus Fraser and Chris Lewis, who both had four wickets, England led West Indies on 1st innings, making 321.  Ambrose had 5-60, “Cuddy” Walsh 2-77 and Winston Benjamin 3-66, the calm before the massive storm.
West Indies fared slightly better in 2nd innings – 269 – Andrew Caddick getting 6-65 and Lewis 3-71.  That set England the supposedly relatively easy task of getting 194, in approximately four sessions, including the entire final day, to win that Test, to bring the series to 2-1.  Then that well-known stuff hit the fan!
To this day, and I have spoken with many of the protagonists since, England did not know what hit them.   On that 4th afternoon, QPO flung its gates open, the crowd swelling from the average 10,000 or so, to capacity, in next to no time.  Cars and maxi taxis were pulling to the sides of the roads, to listen to us!
Ambrose’s first ball had England’s captain, Michael Atherton, palpably LBW.  That was effectively that!  England never recovered.  By Day 4 end, they were tottering on the ropes; 40-8.  Day 5 was for cleaning up.  They lost by 147 runs.  Unbelievably, England was dismissed for its 2nd lowest score ever, yes, 46!
I remember one specific Ambrose delivery that defied logic.  Graeme Thorpe, England’s best batsman at the time, had top scored in England’s 1st innings with 86.  Much depended on him, Atherton and opener Alex Stewart.  Ambi accounted for them all; 6-24 from 10 overs in 2nd innings; match figures of 11-84!
That delivery to Thorpe, a left-hander, 2nd innings, last of Day 4, pitched on a good length, leg stump, 86mph.  Thorpe shuffled.  From our vantage commentary point, he covered everything up.  Somehow, that late ‘off-cutter’ snaked through, maybe even under, both bat and pads, uprooting the off stump!
Curtly “Ambi” Ambrose and Courtney “Cuddy” Walsh (519 wickets, 132 Tests, avg. 24.44), have taken 924 wickets for West Indies in 230 Tests, plus 452 wickets in 381 ODI’s, collectively.  Without any doubt whatsoever, both do deserve to be twinned again in the International Cricket Council’s Hall of Fame!
Stefanie Roxann Taylor and Bishoo, interestingly, must be the future of our respective sexes’ cricket.  Taylor is only 20, while Bishoo is 25.  Both should serve West Indies well for many years to come.
At least, Stephanie Taylor being awarded “International Women Cricketer of the Year” should inspire more West Indies women to become involved in cricket, as administrators and as players too, as both are desperately needed here, considering how the male species have screwed things up so very badly!
Taylor made her debut for West Indies aged 17, playing 40 ODI’s, and 24 T-20’s, so far.  In ODI’s, she has 1468 runs, avg. 43.17, and 50 wickets, avg. 16.17.  In T-20’s, she is dynamic too; 661 runs, avg. 34.78 and 20 wickets, avg. 19.35.  She could easily become the “Gary Sobers” of women’s international cricket!
West Indies women’s cricket is still an evolving element.  With some exceptions; I am included in those; most cricket patrons in our male-dominated existence are not even yet fully comfortable that women should be playing cricket, much less to accept them as another enthusiastic, present facet in our lives.
That is why this recognition of Taylor is so important.  It is time that those male fuddy-duddies try to change.  These ladies are just as skilled, comparatively, as their male counterparts.
I really like seeing these women play.  They have an energy that men lack.  We must accept and respect them for all of their efforts, as they deserve every ounce of encouragement that can be given to them.
I have never seen India’s mystery maestro, Bhagwath Chandrasekhar, bowl “live”, but from television and films, Bishoo’s action reminds me of “Chandra”, who has legendary status among all he played against – 58 Tests; 242 wickets – more than 4 wickets per Test.  Amazing, considering his team-mates!
Chandra formed as lethal a bowling attack, only much slower, as Holding, Roberts, Garner and Croft, with other Indian spin legends, Bishen Singh Bedi, Srinivas Venkataraghavan and Erapalli Prasanna.  If Bishoo can be only just half as good as “Chandra” had been, he will still be great, in his own time!
Bishoo has played only 5 Tests, with 21 wickets.  His 11 ODI’s have yielded 19 wickets.  Scarily, his ODI average per wicket, 21.57, is so much lesser than his Test bowling average, 35.42.  Like another former West Indies leg spinner, Dinanath Ramnarine, it is Bishoo’s tenacity that stands out most!
Guyana, Jamaica and West Indies should be looking to develop the leadership skills of Taylor and Bishoo.  Not only will they be around for eons, all things considered, but they both will, even with a fall in form, which everyone has, still be good enough to commandeer their respective places.
All West Indies should be very proud of Ambrose, Taylor and Bishoo!  Enjoy!

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