West Indies Cricket Nosedives Into Further Trouble
The West Indies cricketers may have shot themselves in the foot by pulling out of a tour against the most powerful cricketing nation in the world. But backstabbed by one of their own, Dwayne Bravo & Company may have been left with no choice.
- Rajarshi Gupta
- Updated: October 18, 2014 05:46 PM IST
West Indies' dramatic pullout from the India tour has landed an already troubled cricket nation in further trouble. After the series came to an abrupt end in Dharamsala on a day of sensational events, West Indian cricketers and the board officials started a rampant blame game. The West Indies Cricket Board, after realising the implications of annoying India, tried some damage control, but nothing would appease a "shocked and disappointed" BCCI. Dwayne Bravo and his men, have so to say, shot themselves in the foot. (West Indies Pullout: A Timeline)
But the crux of the problem lies not in the well-publicised and long-standing feud between WICB and its cricketers. In fact, it resonates in the differences created between Wavell Hinds - a former West Indies player, a star in his own rights- and Dwayne Bravo, one of the Caribbean Islands' greatest all-rounders in modern times.
Hinds, former West Indian opener, now president of the West Indies Players' Association and Bravo, the captain and representative of the players, had fallen out over the way the former represented the cricketers in front of the board. Bravo had, in a letter dated October 7, 2014, clearly expressed his "disappointment with the lack of proper representation." Earlier on September 18, Hinds on behalf of the players, had signed a new Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) and Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between WIPA and WICB.
But Bravo and his players were not impressed and they accused Hinds of "hoodwinking" them, alleging a significant loss in pay. Consequently, the board sided up with Hinds and the players were pushed to further resentment. The internal strife between the three parties, led by Hinds, Bravo and WICB president Wycliffe Cameron caused much heartburn. Though the contracts reflected a significant raise in fee for Tests, ODIs and T20Is, the players were not amused with the discontinuation of the $ 35,000 appearance fee per day, which was split among the players. According to the new contract, the money would be sourced to a fund retainer for 90 more players of WIPA. (India Can't Afford Hardline Approach Against West Indies)
The fact is, Hinds was aware of the clauses and the West Indies board, tired and deflated with the stand-off against its own players, was finally happy to see one of their representatives, a man those players trusted, to see their side of the story. The fact is, the players felt that Hinds, one of their own ilk, backstabbed them in their hour of need. Hence, they decided to first threaten, wait and finally take the extreme step of pulling out of the tour.
There have been several rumours doing the rounds since the players pulled the plug on the series. Will they lose their IPL contracts, will India think of taking stern actions against the players and their board? But at the end of the day, the likes of Bravo, Darren Sammy, Kieron Pollard, Andre Russell, Dwayne Smith, Chris Gayle and Sunil Narine may not suffer given their 'brand names'. What about the others, the less significant names that happen to live on the meager incomes their board affords them. Were they probably coerced into taking a step they would rather not have?
The Indian Premier League continues to be the most attractive T20 tournament in the world. The same group of glitzy stars, who don colours for Chennai Super Kings, Kolkata Knight Riders and Royal Challengers Bangalore inevtitably turn up at the Big Bash League. Gayle is almost a professional T20 cricketer now, with plenty to pick and choose from.
Irrespective of what happens to exisiting IPL contracts for the top West Indian stars, the team as a whole has got itself into a rut. Other boards around the world are naturally going to be circumspect about inviting them and reports already suggest that the BCCI might call off its tour in 2016. A cancelled tour against India could cost the home board millions.
And the West Indian board, unlike its rich Indian counterpart, is ill-equipped to deal with such financial losses. Unlike WICB, BCCI has steady sources of incomes, thanks to sponsorships, TV rights and the immensely profitable IPL. The dark days for West Indies' cricket may have just begun.