Wes Hall, the sitting chairman, is stepping down, and news out of the West Indies Cricket Board is that instead of the present three members, plus the captain and the coach, it will be three, plus the captain and minus the coach.
According to Hall, there are two reasons why he has decided to call it a day - the pressure on the selectors from all quarters, and business commitments.
``It's becoming more and more difficult to serve as a selector,'' said the former fastbowler and manager recently. ``You try to do what you believe is best for West Indies cricket, and everywhere you go you are attacked and sometimes abused, not only by the fans but by people who you believe should know better. It is becoming uncomfortable to travel around the islands as a selector.''
In a bid to streamline the method used in appointing selectors and to get the best people available on the panel, the Board has put in place a set of criteria and the procedure for appointment as a selector.
According to the criteria, a selector must have played, at the minimum, first class cricket and preferably Test cricket, has been retired from the game for at least three years, be resident in the West Indies, possess a deep knowledge of the game and be able to analyse players, be able to devote time to watch the regional first class games, possess good communication skills, and be actively involved in domestic or regional cricket for the last five years.
The procedure states that members of the Board shall nominate persons on a prescribed form which indicates that those persons meet the criteria, the names shall then be referred to the cricket committee for assessment and grading, the cricket committee can add any number of candidates it considers appropriate, the cricket committee is free to interview candidates and the cricket committee shall then recommend to the Board the most suitable persons to be elected as selectors.
The Board is also putting in place a junior selection committee and has stated that the senior selection committee will consist of three persons with the Test captain as an ex officio member.
The senior selection committee will be responsible for the selection of the West Indies team and the ``A'' team, the junior selection committee for the Under 19 and the Under 15 teams.
The present members of the selection committee are Hall, Joey Carew and Michael Findlay and all three may be replaced. It is understood that in an effort to keep pace with a changing game, the Board is looking towards appointing younger selectors