‘Spoil sports’ award should go to ICC

WORLD CUP: Full marks to the local organising committee of the West Indies for the splendid manner in which they conducted World Cup 2007 and brought it to a successful completion.

Every match was conducted and worked out much to the satisfaction of everyone, under very trying circumstances.

That the final was spoilt by rain was beyond the control of the hosts. Generally this style of cricket is better suited when played under lights.

But sadly not one of the venues had lights and it was a sad indictment on the International Cricket Council for not affording or seeing that the hosts provided this all important facility.

If ever criticism has to be levelled, it has to be on the ICC, because to them must be presented the ‘Spoilt sports’ award. If ever the local organising committee earned the wrath of the spectators, it was the ICC to blame.

Every West Indian was proud that the World Cup 2007 had been offered to them and while the organisers left no stone unturned to see to its resounding success, it was the ICC that made a mess of it.

Firstly the ICC priced the tickets too exorbitantly, which was beyond the average West Indian. From time immemorial the Windies are cricket fanatics.

They like to watch the best of play and would always encourage and cheer the player or the team playing the best and exciting cricket.

With not very many West Indians able to purchase tickets, most games were played to empty houses. Then the Windies love to enjoy their cricket making all the noise possible. Here again the locals were not allowed to bring their musical instruments and it was many annoyed West Indians we met on our way to each playing venue.

The governing body for the game must also take the blame for the alleged murder, if it was murder of Pakistan coach Bob Woolmer. If the coach was murdered, it was because of the inefficiency of the ICC to get the hosts to provide the security and stall an incident of such magnitude.

When the murder came to light, many were the calls for the World Cup to be scrapped immediately. It is said that the show must go on, and the ICC stood by that and never harboured a thought of calling off the World Cup.

There was never a day that went without the ICC being taken to task by the media in the Caribbean and the world. Former Australian ‘stormy petrel’ and captain Ian Chappell rightly called for the total shake-up of the administration of the ICC, and said that the first man to be removed should be Malcom Speed the Chief Executive of the governing body.

Chappell accused Speed of not being fully up to speed on the major issues confronting the game.

How the ICC will come out of the mess that was World Cup 2007 in the Caribbean is left to be seen.

Lara’s sad retirement

Brian Charles Lara, the mercurial, twinkle-toed left hander who thrilled cricket fans with his elegant and magnificent batting should have gone out in glory, and not sadly the way he went run out in his final fling in the game.

Apparently it was a dejected Lara who left the ground, acknowledging the thunderous applause by everyone present, waving his bat. It was a standing ovation.

From what we could gather, Lara who has many more cricketing years left in him, although reaching 38 was forced into retirement by a set who had ganged up against him.

The critics who demanded he quit the game had for a moment forgotten his wonderful and record breaking achievements with the bat.

A proud holder of many batting records, he should have been given a send off reserved for greats of the game. But the way he went was sad.

Lara the 10th of 11 children was born in Cantaro, Santa Cruz to Pearl and Bunty Lara. It is said that his father and one of his older sister’s enrolled him in the Harvard Coaching Clinic in Port-of-Spain for weekly coaching at the tender age of six.

He first attended San Juan Secondary School and then enrolled with Fatima College at the age of 14 where he came under the influence of Michael ‘Joey’ Carew a former opening batsman and Windies captain. Carew worked with him on his cricketing and mental development as he showed champion potential.

In 1988 Lara made his first class debut against Barbados in the Red Stripe tourney and marked his arrival with 92 against a Bajan (Barbados) attack of Malcom Marshall and Joel Garner.

Lara’s many batting records are too numerous to mention, he broke Sir Garfield Sobers’ 36-year record for the highest Test score with a magical knock of 375 against England in Antigua in 1994.

Then he made the highest first class score making 501 not out for Warwickshire against Durham facing 427 balls and hitting 10 sixes and 62 fours. Then he went on to recapture the Test record and score 400 against England also in Antigua and go past Matthew Hayden who held the record for a few days.

He was honoured with the Trinity Cross and given the keys to Port of Spain and 23,000 square feet of land on Lady Chancellor Hill.

(More on Monday)