Modern West Indies sides face a daily struggle to regenerate the folklore scripted between the eras of Frank Worrell and Viv Richards, but Kraigg Brathwaite and Shai Hope helped rectify that in Leeds
Mark Nicholas at Headingley26-Aug-2017Whatever else happens in this Headingley Test match, West Indies cricket has shown a better and happier face. The ugly fall out from Edgbaston was understandable, given practitioners and critics alike care so deeply for the game that has long held the hearts of the folk in the Caribbean. It is one thing to lose to a better team, quite another to do so without resistance.What was said or done in the interim has worked. It was a good toss to win on Thursday morning, and therefore a bad one to lose, but there was no sign of self pity or resignation amongst those beaten in Birmingham. In fact, quite the opposite.Shannon Gabriel gave the bowling attack real edge, while Devendra Bishoo gave it variety. Why Bishoo bowled so little remains a mystery, especially as Roston Chase bowled twelve overs of mainly anaemic offbreaks. Kemar Roach fought every bit as manfully as Malcolm Marshall might have done for his wickets and the tall, slim captain, Jason Holder, asked awkward questions with his swing and extra bounce amidst some humdrum stuff that didn’t always make sense.The only grumble was the catching. Oh the catching! England may not have made 180 had Joe Root and Ben Stokes fallen when they were first found out.It is said that Greg Chappell’s team talks were short, something like – “If we stay in, bowl straight and hold on to our catches, we’ll enjoy a beer tonight.” Well, thus far at Headingley, West Indies are two from three. I write “West Indies” out of habit and respect, although the instruction to the media is to call the team “Windies”, an annoying rebrand that tells us more about sport’s misguided commercial agenda than a truly relevant and attractive collective noun for elite Caribbean cricketers.Today it was the turn of the batsmen to restore faith and they did so to great effect. Indeed, the game is now theirs to win. To do so will take courage as much, or perhaps more, than anything else. Winning is a long forgottten habit among those who have represented West Indies in Test matches and the knack will not be easy to recover. Should they pull it off, it will be a win to rank with any in the ages of the game.The partnership between Kraigg Brathwaite and Shai Hope was a joy, incorporating as it did, the very essence of batsmanship in both defence and attack. Not since Gordon Greenidge and Larry Gomes put on 287 together in the famous run chase at Lord’s in 1984 has a partnership made more for any West Indian wicket in this country. That stunning performance is talked about to this day. Brathwaite and Hope have now become a part of the same folklore and, hopefully, will be as fondly remembered for their achievement.The challenge for West Indies cricket is to regenerate that folklore. Since January 1997, only 40 Test matches out of 199 have been won while 105 have been lost. Of the 40, just three against anyone other than Bangladesh or Zimbabawe have been won away from home. The teams involved included such names such as Lara, Hooper, Chanderpaul, Ambrose and Walsh.
Test cricket still provides aspiration for the young, and both satisfaction and glory for those involved. The faces of Kraigg Brathwaite and Shai Hope told one enough about the realisation of an ambition to pursue it further.
The long running battle between players and administrators – a mistrust that cost the game dear – has been behind an overwhelming bitterness that divides both opinion and region. It’s doesn’t help that the legacy created by the era that began with Frank Worrell in the early 1960s and continued through to the end of Viv Richards’ amazing career is so damn difficult to emulate.Johnny Grave, once of Surrey’s communications team and more recently the commercial director of the Professional Cricketers’ Association, is the new CEO of Cricket West Indies. He wants a clean slate and has begun the process by finessing the amnesty that allows the likes of Chris Gayle and Marlon Samuels to come to England for the ODIs that follow the Tests.These two names, along with a host of others such as the Bravo brothers, Kieron Pollard, Fidel Edwards and Sunil Narine are often mentioned in a team that could be here were it not for the myriad issues that have led to the mistrust mentioned above. The fact is that most of those guys don’t want to play Test cricket. The lure of the dollar in the global, “franchised” world of T20 is a) irresistible and b) less hassle.Grave quickly wants to establish a workable relationship between the players and board. At Edgbaston he spoke of the misconception that no one cared for cricket in the Caribbean anymore.”They are proud people” he says, “who like tradition and cricket has always been their number one sport. This applies to the players every bit as much as to the public.” He talks passionately of the need for a sustainable system that develops young talent and offers a pathway to success. I should add that he insisted West Indies were a much better side than the Edgbaston humiliation suggested, a judgement that has proved spot on.Shai Hope’s maiden Test century may turn into one to remember for some time•Getty ImagesThe question is can Test cricket still capture Caribbean hearts and fill grounds? Clearly, this is a challenge on many levels and there is a view that West Indies cricket would be better served reinventing itself as a home for the short form of the game and not expending energy and money on what is widely believed to be a lost cause. What nonsense.Test cricket still provides aspiration for the young, and both satisfaction and glory for those involved. The faces of Brathwaite and Shai Hope told one enough about the realisation of an ambition to pursue it further. Any West Indian crowd on any of the Caribbean islands would have wildly celebrated their partnership and crowed about the fightback from Edgbaston. Such things are an inspiration and provide both relief and hope.The people of the Caribbean don’t expect another Richards or Marshall by the end of the week but they do expect their team to realise its level of potential and fight as if their lives depended upon it. The Under-19s are the world champions, having beaten India by five wickets in last year’s final. Two of that side, Alzarri Joseph and Shimron Hetmyer, are in this touring party in England.The point is that the talent is still there but the journey to fulfillment in the longer form of the game has become complicated, often frustrating, and certainly underpaid in relation to what else is on offer. Grave is going to work on that too.Meanwhile, days like today warm the soul. There were shades of both Greenidge and Desmond Haynes in the strongly built Shai Hope, especially when he drove through the off side. Come to think of it, that pull shot he plays, left knee off the ground, is very Greenidge and all the more thrilling for it. As first Test match hundreds go, this one did. Neither Hope himself, nor any of us I suspect, will forget it.Alongside him, Brathwaite compiled hundred number six, so he must be able to play a bit. It’s only a start but it will get folk talking far and wide. If these fellows go on to win the match, the rum will flow and tales of the present will invade the space long occupied by those of the past. It’s about time.