Cricket's Olympic Sheen Might Spark Once Mighty West Indies

Forbes

16 hours ago

West Indies have found things difficult in recent decades after dominating cricket (Photo by RANDY ... More BROOKS/AFP via Getty Images)
Shortly after West Indies plummeted to a measly 27 - the second lowest score in 148 years of Test cricket - in their humiliating home defeat to Australia, Chris Dehring copped a barrage at the airport as he departed his native Jamaica to attend the International Cricket Council meetings in Singapore.
'What are you going to do about it? It's a disgrace! Someone needs to get fired,' were just some of the barbs hurled at Dehring, the new Cricket West Indies chief executive having been the managing director of the 2007 World Cup in the Caribbean.
From the airline counter to immigration officials, everyone had their two cents worth at a beleaguered Dehring who could see the silver lining. 'It was a tough, tough walk through the airport,' Dehring told me recently in Singapore.
'But it could be worse, they could be saying nothing. If I would walk through the airport and nobody said a word, I'd be terrified. We know the passion is there and people do care about West Indies cricket.'
Even though West Indies' pace bowlers were highly dangerous, evoking the lore of their predecessors, a lack of batting depth - which could have been propped up by several players opting to play in America's lucrative Major League Cricket - was exposed by Australia in three fairly one-sided Tests.
Australia thrashed West Indies in the recent Test series (Photo by RANDY BROOKS/AFP via Getty ... More Images)
None of the Tests reached the fifth and final day, while only the second Test made it to the fourth. Crowds were generally modest, with Australian tourists inflating the numbers.
'It was loss making. There is no money to be made from an Australian tour,' Dehring said.
There was an air of melancholy from Australians in the Caribbean, with a feeling that this might be Australia's last Test tour of the West Indies. It was once a marquee contest that was played over 5 Tests just 22 years ago, but this series represented Australia's first Test visit there in a decade.
Dehring does not believe this marks the end of the rivalry on Caribbean terrain. 'We absolutely want to host Australia in the next FTP (Future Tours Programme) and hopefully for three Tests,' he said.
"Even if it's loss making, that's nothing new because it's always been loss making. You can't become the best if you're not willing to play the best.'
While West Indies' heyday - when this group of mostly British Commonwealth countries and territories ruled cricket in the 1970s and '80s - conjures much nostalgia, there is a realization that those giddy heights will never be reached again.
But as gleaned through so many West Indian players being in hot demand on the T20 franchise circuit, there remains an abundance of talent. Activating the grassroots is key and cricket's newly-minted Olympic status might help ignite this across the Caribbean.
Cricket will end an 128-year Olympic absence at Los Angeles 2028. As I reported last week, regional rankings are set to mostly decide which teams make the cut for the men's competition played from July 12-29 in Pomona, 30 miles east of Los Angeles.
Cricket will be played at the LA Olympics (Photo by INDRANIL MUKHERJEE/AFP via Getty Images)
With host U.S. set to be given an automatic berth in the men's competition, a regional competition in the Caribbean is expected next year to determine which nation will represent the West Indies at a global qualifier set to feature eight teams battling for the final men's Olympic spot.
'It's a massive opportunity to change the game of cricket the Caribbean,' Dehring said. "When it was finally announced that cricket was back in the Olympics, I knew that this is our moment.
"We've seen what the Olympics does for track and field in countries like Jamaica and Saint Lucia and so on. It pulls so many kids into the sport and into that sport's pipeline.
'This is a huge opportunity for corporates and governments to invest in cricket, especially at the school level.'
As the only Full Members - granted to 12 top nations who receive more funds, playing opportunities and power - in the Americas, the West Indies have an important role in developing cricket in the U.S, the ICC's No.1 target market.
They occasionally host limited-overs series in nearby Florida, while a couple of U.S. teams competed in the West Indies U19 50-over championships recently in St. Kitts & Nevis. The West Indies and U.S. co-hosted last year's T20 World Cup.
The emergence of cricket in the U.S - despite the continual tumult of its governing body - has seen infrastructure start getting put in place for MLC, providing left-field options for its high-profile neighbors.
'The U.S. is a very important market because of the diaspora,' Dehring said. 'It's a huge income source for the Caribbean.
"We would love to play in New York and it doesn't have to be West Indies. A Jamaica versus Trinidad game in New York would be massive. Some regional games could be played there and be huge."
The U.S. may be the focus, but shoring up the entire Americas - where cricket does not have much of a traditional footprint - will be particularly beneficial for West Indies, who have to go deep into the pockets to cover travel costs of playing in far-flung cricket countries.
'The stronger the Americas get, the better it is for us," Dehring said. "Our youth teams just don't play enough because it is too costly going to the other side of the world.
'We have to help develop our own backyard.'
West Indies have staged series at the Central Broward Regional Park in Lauderhill, Florida (Photo by ... More CHANDAN KHANNA/AFP via Getty Images)
CWI is advocating for the implementation of a regional body, which could then lead to the creation of annual tournaments across the Americas with powerhouse regional countries Brazil and Argentina starting to emerge from the cricket wilderness.
Four teams from the Caribbean will compete in the Bolivarian Games later this year in Peru, while cricket has been included in the 2027 Pan American Games in Lima.
'We want to formally create a wider association to look at creating a calendar of events over many years, just like track and field has done in the Americas,' Dehring said.
'An Americas Cup is the vision and should be coming together in some form down the track."