The Demise of the West Indies Cricket Team

West Indies Cricket Team:- While the concept of sporting events and the concept of competitive sports itself has been massively popular since as far back as the Ancient Greek times, it has only gained popularity since, and as a result, sports has resulted as one of the most popular events in the entire world.

Sports has neatly inserted itself into the top tier of human interest, becoming one of the few pursuits that have appeal to almost every single person in the world, as almost all of us have taken part in competitive sports, at least once in our life, with more than most being fueled to go on to take part in almost every single sporting event within their reach.

The Glorious West Indies Team

Over the course of Modern Sporting History, there have been many teams that have enamored the crowds and held the scoreboards hostage, scoring run after run, wicket, and wicket. These are the very legends of the cricketing, those players who could bat a six with their eyes blindfolded and take a wicket with the strength of one arm. However, one team that captured the attention of the crowds for close to thirty consecutive years was the esteemed glorious West Indies, cricket team.

History

West Indies was never a nation that got all the creature comforts that other nations had, and perhaps this was one of the things that made them the very best of the best. Before the 60s, they had faced colonialism on a huge level, as only white people (only men, so gender discrimination too!) were allowed to construct, establish or join actual sports clubs. This horrible thing forced the natives to establish their own sporting clubs, clubs which one day not only defeated the white clubs but drove them into the very ground.

The West Indies Cricket Team itself was formed due to the efforts of the noble Sir Frank Worrell, who worked day and night, never ceasing his efforts to form a cricket team comprised solely of West Indian natives.

Their players came from all of the islands that compose the West Indies, mainly, Trinidad, Antigua, Jamaica, and other such nations.

The West Indies cricket team faced open and admitted racism, as even a past Caucasian captain claims that he got appointed solely because of his skin tone. Even after this, they did not give up or rebel, and continued to be the very best in the field. It was not only before they received their independence in sports, as after their performance on the field left few with the words to argue.

The Undefeated Champions

The West Indies Cricket Team dominated (and we mean, dominated!) the cricket industry for almost the whole latter part of the 1900s. They were literally invincible, and could not be defeated: no matter which cricketing legend went up against them, they were defeated by the mighty West Indies Team.

Almost no one dared to go up against the West Indies team, some even coming up with sudden emergencies and situations that prevented them from playing against the famed team and losing by a head’s length. The West Indians, in their matches all over the world, went up against some of the very best sportsmen, and not only lived to tell the tale but emerged victorious in almost shockingly good scores.

The West Indians were famous, as they won almost all the matches they competed in, and had the best win to loss ratio of the entire 1900s. They dominated the cricketing for almost a consecutive 50 years.

The Legends Leave, Decay Sets In

The West Indian Cricket team, for all their expertise and fame, experienced the roots of decay quite early. In the early 90s, due to various squabbles, petty fights, and silly decisions by the West Indian Cricketing Board, almost all of the legends on the team ended up leaving the team for good, leaving just a few to steer a team of rookies through championships.

Richie Richardson was one of the players who refused to quit, despite all of the silly behaviors of the West Indian Cricketing Board, as the team could be called his ‘baby’, and the result of the hard work that he and his best friends put in. However, for all his loyalty, he was put in charge of a team that was full of rookies new to the sport.

The rookies still managed to defend their titles for almost four years, outperforming expectations. However, one can reliably say that the team fell to ruins after Richie Richardson led them no more. This made Courtney Walsh don the mantle, and though he was a good player, he was nowhere near the level of the legends. Players like Desmond Haynes and Roger Harper quit, with the WCIB making no effort to get them back. This attitude that could almost be called negligent, combined with the abnormally low payout of the West Indies sports Matches, led to most of the West Indies athletes traveling to foreign lands, where their natural athletic-ness and strength were well compensated.

In the early 2000s, the team had almost disintegrated, with a few, tired veterans still battling. However, they have made a good comeback in the T20 2012 and 2016 cups, so their future is still undetermined, a fact that some take with hope and others are dread.

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