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Tour jinx continues to stalk West Indies

By Peter Deeley

26 November 1997


AS the troubled West Indies tour lurches towards the second Test here at the weekend, manager Clive Lloyd must be thinking he has been handed the mother and father of all poisoned chalices.

Disaster has stalked their every step this week. The planned three-day game in Hyderabad was called off because of a mix-up over accommodation at the town's only hotel and the one-day game to have been played instead yesterday did not take place because rain got under the covers.

Pakistan is never an easy ride, but this side - which has yet to win a game - seems to have fallen into every pot-hole on the Subcontinent, some not of its own digging.

A malaise appears to have gripped West Indies cricket. 'The bigger they are the harder they fall' is an apt description for the team which arrogantly strode the game like giants for so long.

Failures on the field have led to rumours of dissension in the dressing-room: a team divided into two - one camp behind the present captain, Courtney Walsh, the other favouring the heir apparent, Brian Lara.

Lloyd believes such talk has been fuelled by failure. ``To stop tongues wagging we need to start winning,'' he said. ``I can remember people calling for me to be sacked in 1975 when I was captain in Australia and we were taking a hammering there. But when we started winning the chatter ceased.

``Losing is as contagious as winning and that is the danger. Somehow we have got to find belief in ourselves again.

``Brian Lara has never said a word to me about wanting the captaincy. I don't believe we are divided but when a side like West Indies starts losing after all the years we have been on top, difficulties are bound to arise.''

What Lara did confirm, in Karachi last night, was that he has accepted Warwickshire's offer to captain the county next summer. ``It is an honour and I am looking forward to what will be a great challenge.'' he said.

Lara is not certain whether he will be in Birmingham for the start of the 1997 season, however. ``I certainly want to lead the side out in the first match but the programme for our own domestic season in the Caribbean has not yet been finalised.

``I made lots of friends in Birmingham when I had a good summer there with the bat in 1994 and it's nice to know they hold me in such high esteem.''

The West Indies selectors apparently wanted Lara as captain here. They were over-ruled by their board, who feared the power that would be vested in a player of his stature, and he is not even the designated vice-captain in Pakistan.

But Walsh is likely to step down - before he is pushed - if West Indies lose the Test series and there would be no option but to replace him with Lara in time for England's arrival in the Caribbean in January.

Then there is Lloyd's apparent antipathy towards the choice of some of the 15 players here. He was not on the selection committee and said tersely: ``There is young talent in the Caribbean which is not here.''

He wants a West Indies attack consisting of three quick bowlers, a left-arm spinner and an all-rounder.

``We have a young left-arm bowler, Neil McGarrell from Guyana, who I think is very promising. Then there is Reon King, a quick bowler who is on our A tour in South Africa.

``The years when we concentrated on producing fast bowlers have had their effect on the emergence of slows. In general, our cricketers are not coming through to the top as they once did. The domestic standard isn't as competitive as it was.''

After the first Test thrashing by Pakistan by an innings and 19 runs, Lloyd made his feelings known to his players. ``No, I didn't give them a big rollicking,'' he said. ``There was no need to. They know how badly they did.

``What I told them was that they are letting their people down back home,'' said Lloyd. ``Cricket is more than just a sport in the Caribbean, it is a unifying factor for all the countries.''


Source: The Electronic Telegraph
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Date-stamped : 25 Feb1998 - 19:20