BY BRYAN DAVIS
THE West Indies, nations very proud of their cricket history, succumbed to their opposition in their first game on October 23.
At the Dubai International Cricket Stadium in the United Arab Emirates, the innings of the defending champions in the T20 World Cup 2021 imploded. On the opening day of the tournament, postponed from Australia in 2020 because of the dreaded world pandemic, WI were bowled out by England for 55 runs.
What brute force or magic tricks did the Englishmen possess to completely annihilate a WI team in 14.2 overs after winning the toss and sending Kieron Pollard’s team to bat?
To maintain our sanity, the less said about that performance the better. It is remarkable that all the batsmen (“batters” may be a more acceptable description in this circumstance) clawed their way to single-digit scores, with just one getting a double figure, 13, which certainly turned out to be unlucky.
As this drama unfolded before my eyes, with batsmen showing no signs of cricket intelligence, I tried my best to analyse the situation. I recalled the basics of the study of good batsmanship, plus, the application of it in any circumstance a batsman may find himself in, in any format of the game, in various situations.
In all cricket, whether batting, bowling or fielding, practice is the key to success.
I’m more concerned today with batting because of this horrifying exhibition I witnessed in the WI’s batting application and technique.
[caption id="attachment_920951" align="alignnone" width="683"] England’s Adil Rashid celebrates after taking the wicket of West Indies’ Akeal Hosein, during the ICC T20 World Cup match at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium, in Dubai, UAE, on Saturday. West Indies’ were all out for 55, Rashid took four wickets. - (AP PHOTO)[/caption]
This team obviously did not do the work required at practice. These players are out of touch, and plainly so. When a team bats that badly, they are either incapable of playing at the standard desired for the game in which they are participating, or, possessing the ability, did not put in the work demanded of them to meet on an equal basis the level necessary to be competitive.
This was noticeable in the warm-up games against Pakistan and Afghanistan. The lackadaisical manner in which WI approached those fixtures made me wonder.
The way a team applies itself to practice is the result one should expect when the real test comes.
Although losing to both teams in the two games, the captain still maintained before the England challenge that his team was full of confidence.
In this case, the practice is way below par.
Any batting team of some quality, regardless of what natural ability they possess, would flounder if their practice sessions are insufficient or of a low standard.
[caption id="attachment_920949" align="alignnone" width="900"] -[/caption]
The Caribbean batsmen are not “seeing’” the ball early enough to ensure a suitabl
