West Indies on backfoot (18 May 1999)

18 May 1999

West Indies on backfoot

Tony Cozier

The formula for success in the Seventh World Cup has quickly taken shape but the West Indies will be hard-pressed to meet it.

The three key matches have all been won by the teams stronger in all-round and seam bowling depth, a predictable sequence in early season in England with the white ball that is likely to continue.

England used six bowlers varying in pace between medium and fast and four all-rounders to win the opener at Lord's over the 1996 champions, Sri Lanka, who included only three quicks and depended primarily on the spin of Muttiah Muralitheran.

South Africa, the justifiable favourites, had the pace and swing of Shaun Pollock, Jacques Kallis, Alan Donald and Lance Klusener and batted down to No.9 against India at Hove.

India could respond only with two fast bowlers of their own, Javagal Srinath and Venkatesh Prasad, and predictably lost. Slow to heed the signs, the West Indies carried only three main bowlers into their opening match here Sunday against Pakistan, none of them batsmen.

Their opponents dealt themselves a full hand of five, three of them genuine all-rounders, two of whom contributed significantly with the bat.

It was a policy that repeatedly cost them in the preceding series against Australia in the Caribbean where the attack had a similar configuration.

At the new Queen's Park in Grenada, Australia recovered from 116 for four to finish with a winning total of 288 for four.

At the old Queen's Park in Trinidad, Michael Bevan and Shane Warne converted 104 for eight to 189 for nine that proved enough for victory.

At Bourda, in the reduced 30 overs match, Warne and Steve Waugh took 119 for seven to 172 for seven and the contrived tie. At Kensington, 171 for five became 253 for six.

Each time, the absence of a fourth strike bowler was keenly felt. Both captain Brian Lara and manager Clive Lloyd grudingly acknowledged that their selection erred on the side of caution, restricting their attack to avoid an elongated tail.

They made the acceptable point that the ankle injury that put Keith Arthurton out of action after a solitary over upset the planning, forcing the expensive use of Jimmy Adams tossed up left-arm spin that was out of place in the gray, chilly conditions. But Arthurton was unlikely to have made the same impact as one of the faster bowlers looking on from the pavilion, Hendy Bryan or Reon King.

The unpalatable fact is the West Indies do not have, at present, anyone near the quality of Wasim Akram, Azhar Mahmood, Jacques Kallis, Lance Klusener or many of the other allrounders who are so critical to the composition of good limited-overs teams.

The only equivalent they could claim, at a push, would be Vasbert Drakes, who is carrying his form for Border in South Africa last season into the current County championship for Nottinghamshire. As he did not play in either the Red Stripe Bowl or the Busta Cup last season, he is unqualified under the present West Indies Cricket Board (WICB).

The policy is certain to change for the remaining four matches in the first round, the most critical of which is against New Zealand in Southampton on Monday.

Defeat there would almost certainly eliminate the West Indies since only three of the six group teams advances to the second round Super Sixes and Pakistan and Australia are seemingly too well balanced and confident to be denied.

At least, by then, the selection should be right.

Source :: The Trinidad Express (https://www.trinidad.net/express/)