da cassino： Four years ago West Indies women were on the crest of a wave. Theirsuccess in the World Cup in South Africa had earned them an automaticplace in this year’s trophy
Jenny Roesler in Sydney18-Mar-2009
West Indies Women lost all four of their Super Six games•Getty Images
Four years ago West Indies women were on the crest of a wave. Theirsuccess in the World Cup in South Africa had earned them an automaticplace in this year’s trophy.But that wave suddenly dumped, making the women dangerously becalmedand without international cricket for an unbelievable three years.Admittedly, attempts to host India and Pakistan had come unstuck, butoverall the cash-strapped West Indies Cricket Board – mandated by theICC to take over the women’s game – seemed to show little interest.Slowly, things started to change.Only nine months ago, salvation arrived. It had to – without a minimumnumber of games, West Indies would have been ineligible for World Cup2009. It was unthinkable, not least for the PR consequences.A tour of Europe was hastily arranged and a big-name coach appointed,to the board’s credit. But talk about steep learning curves for all.So lengthy had been the team’s hiatus that the vast majority ofplayers made their debut in the opening tour match. And their newcoach was a stranger to the women’s game – cheerfully admitting nowthat he had no idea what to expect.Luckily that coach is Sherwin Campbell, the vastly experienced Testand ODI batsman. While former players do not always make the bestcoaches, he has brought to the job an enthusiastic, open and upbeatapproach, mixed in with some humour. He has also coached Barbados menand two of their junior boys’ sides.”Obviously they’re not as strong as the men,” Campbell notes of thewomen. “They’re more technical than anything else. [But] all thebasics are still the same as the men – so it’s not really thatdifferent.”Given the talent that does exist for the women, it’s almost a crimethat they have not had longer to form a unit and improve on theirpotential. While some of them may not have even picked up a bat threeor four years ago, the total absence of cricket meant a massivetransition when internationals recommenced, with only a few of the oldplayers remaining.Yet, despite everything, here in Sydney the naturally talented teamachieved their aim of a Super Six place, even without the maternal NadineGeorge who retired just before the tournament. Admittedly only one winwas needed, but that was against the well-prepped South Africa andproved the highlight in an otherwise losing campaign.Campbell, who is appointed on a tour-by-tour basis, “won’t harp onabout losing too much because obviously it’s experience for theseplayers.” But he knows mental application is what he is going to haveto concentrate on most, among everything else. “We are a talentedbunch of players, so we have to try to make teams work hard for theirruns and win key points of the game. That’s what, at the moment, we’relacking.”As for assistance to strengthen their prospects, his wish-list is along one. The side have brought with them a physio and strength andconditioner but, unlike some of the bigger teams, they have no luxuryof an assistant coach. “I think I will put that over to the board,” hesmiles, adding: “I need as much help as I can get. These playersobviously need a lot of help. The more help I can get, the better.”More training together is a realistic goal. The board apparently plansto send the squad to Canada. “That’s what the girls need, some properfacilities.” Campbell says, firmly. “We don’t do enough camps beforetour to get the girls completely ready. They have the backing of theboard so they can make trips and there is a lot more funding forthem.”Another favourable aspect is the women’s willingness to learn,particularly compared to males. “They are a lot keener actually […]and they want to do it for their country.”Not that the Caribbean in general pays much attention. “I think thistournament, maybe if they had done a bit better, it would encouragethe people to follow them a bit more,” Campbell says. “But it’s reallylacking in the Caribbean because there’s not much women’s cricketplayed there.”As for what domestic play there is, his recommendation would be torestructure and actually reduce the number of domestic teams – toconcentrate the talent. “We only have one tournament we play once ayear. The standard’s not very high. We need fewer teams, make it morelike the men’s. Men have Windwards Islands, Leeward Islands, Trinidad,Guyana, Barbados. The women have like St Lucia, St Vincent – smallerislands. Get the five main islands and just play amongst each other.”Some changes would be straightforward and easy: Campbell would like tosee, for example, domestic sides using a white ball and wearingcoloured clothing. Again, West Indies are coming from behind;countries such as Australia and England have had such itemsdomestically for several seasons already.Importantly, the next four-year cycle should see West Indies much,much more prepared for the next World Cup. The ICC has made a point ofshrinking the automatic spots from six to four to ensure such a dearth in match practice cannot – will not – happen again.With West Indies now needing to qualify for the 2013 event in India,they will simply have to play more cricket. Campbell recognises theadvantage: “I think that’s really good. Obviously they can playagainst the other teams so they can make the grade up once again. Ithink that’s a good thing.”West Indies are not the only team at this tournament to have not quitefulfilled their capabilities – even the headlining favouritesAustralia have been off-colour – but the potential for improvementgives great hope for the next 50-over World Cup. In the meantime,there is the World Twenty20 in England, another chance for much-neededmatch-play.With a young nucleus, keen coach and number of matches on theincrease, it will be interesting to see where West Indies will standby 2013. With the full support of the WICB, they could do their nationproud – and this time their countrymen may pay more attention.