The 2023 Cricket World Cup in India will be the first edition without the West Indies. The two-time champions missed out on the ticket to the World Cup after a poor performance in the World Cup qualifiers held in Zimbabwe last month. This marked the lowest point in the history of West Indies cricket, with an abysmal run since their triumph in the T20 World Cup 2016.
Cricket in West Indies has been on a downward spiral, as a result of various reasons on and off the field. Marred by poor performance in last year’s T20 World Cup, where they had a group-stage exit followed by an abysmal outing in the home test match series. All of this was further worsened by the breakdown in relations between the Cricket board and players, which resulted in players preferring foreign T20 league contracts over national duty.
It is where I went for my first tour and I know a lot of people there – Sunil Gavaskar
Sunil Gavaskar was having a chat with the media and reminisced on his first tour in the West Indies. He showered praises on some of the greats of the game, who left behind a legacy in the region. Indian batting legend Sunil Gavaskar suggested the decline in performance on significant occasions can be attributed to the shift in the financial dynamics of the sport in the West Indies. Gavaskar opined that the laid-back temperament found in the region, might not fetch you results on big occasions.
“To Clive Lloyds, Malcolm Marshalls, Viv Richards, Andy Roberts, Michael Holdings, Garners, the wonderful era for West Indies Test cricket, every Test match that they played, was extra income,” said Sunil Gavaskar.
Don’t give players central contracts- Sunil Gavaskar
Sunil Gavaskar pointed out an inherent flaw in the financial dynamics of West Indies cricket, where the players irrespective of the format are guaranteed few thousand dollars as per the central contract. This scheme, according to Gavaskar reduced incentives for players to perform as they knew they had the big bucks in their hand.
“Today the West Indian players, whether it is Test player or T20 player, all the players are guaranteed by their central contracts, a hundred thousand dollars or whatever,” said Sunil Gavaskar.
The former Indian skipper suggests an alternative method to solve this quandary where the players are paid according to their performance and not as per a central contract.
“My suggestion would be to increase the Test match fees but don’t give them central contracts. You are paid for your performance. Then probably they will have a different attitude.” he added.
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