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Around the Wicket - V 3, Calypso Crisis - Part II
“Doesn’t matter what they make, they’ll bowl the others out for less.”Time after time, we saw that quote proven to be true, as the fearsome West Indian bowlers toyed with, and then destroyed, opposition batting line ups.
Sadly for Caribbean cricket fans, that’s no longer the case. The Windies simply do not take enough wickets to win test matches.
Only 1 West Indian player has taken 100 plus wickets in test matches since 2000. His name is Mervyn Dillon – a man who hasn’t played a test since 2004. By comparison, Australia has 5 with 100 plus wickets, and 4 of those have over 200. All average less than 31. India has 4 players with 100 or more. 2 have over 200. They all average between 30 and 35.
Behind Dillon, there is Pedro Collins with 98 ( he hasn’t played a test since 2006), and… Courtney Walsh. He retired in 2001. Mind you, he took 93 wickets in those two calendar years, at an average of 19.73.
But, the good news for the Windies is that they’re starting to put it together. Numbers 5 through to 9 on the list of wicket takers for this decade are all in the current bowling attack. Fidel Edwards, Darren Powell, Chris Gayle, Dwayne Bravo, and Jerome Taylor all have between 55 and 80 wickets, early in their careers. The problem is that they all average between 35 and 45 with the ball. So even if they do take all 10 wickets, they concede between 350 and 450 runs, giving the batsmen a massive task from the get go.
Dave reckons: The Windies should recall Mervyn Dillon. He’s getting back to his best form at domestic level – with 4/35 in last years KFC Cup Final (domestic one day competition), and has the experience of playing all over the world, in all conditions. Big Merv would be a great foil for the youngsters, who tend to bowl with too much emotion at times. He would offer that consistency and patience that test match cricket requires, and would be quite happy to bowl maiden after maiden if need be.
Cricket teams need experienced bowlers, even when they’re trying to rebuild from scratch. And if they don’t go for Dillon, they could just wheel Courtney Walsh out to the middle in his wheelchair, and have someone swing his arm over for him.
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They certainly need a quality fast bowler to head the attack - but Dillon is approaching 34 and has had issues of work ethic in the past. And - the Indian Board is unlikely to allow him to be selected for the Windies - because he played in the Nov-Dec (private) ICL - figures were: 1 wkt at 160 (rpo: 8.00).
Well, Dillon is experienced at test level. OK, I accept you don't think he's the man - can you suggest another one?
That's the current problem of West Indies cricket. No world class fast bowlers and the cupboard appears bare (palm trees are empty) - and the IPL weren't looking at any of the current crop either.
In the last two series (SA in SA, SL in WI) the consistent one was Jerome Taylor - but his record has been up and down.
I do think Powell has a lot of potential - but again - they're all youngsters. They need a cool-headed, experienced veteran to help them along. But - the palm trees are indeed empty. I guess the only thing to hope is that these current bowlers stick around, and they can add more youngsters over the next 5 - 10 years. It's a long way back for the Windies.