Apathetic West Indies contribute to one-sided series

West Indies bold attempt to chase a world record 455 to win against England in the third test at Old Trafford gave the cricket viewing public a glimpse of what might have been.

The chase fell a valiant 60 runs short and it was the first time in the series that the tourists showed some intestinal fortitude. Had they been this gutsy at the beginning maybe the test series would have been less one sided.

The West Indies were outplayed in the first test at Lords and were destroyed in the second test at Headingly losing by an innings and 283 runs.

The absence of retired ex-captain Brian Lara has been a massive blow and there batting order is obviously much weaker without him. However, his retirement says much more about the state of West Indian cricket than it does about him.

Without him in the time the West Indies have rarely looked like they can bat for a full 90 over day. Without him in the side it is hard to see where there next victory will come from.

The loss of big players was compounded when Ramnaresh Sarwan was ruled out of the remainder the series after injuring his shoulder on the first day of play. However, the tourists suffered a bigger loss…a loss of desire.

Never before have I witnessed a test series where one side has looked like they didn’t care less about the result. The resistance offered by Shivnarine Chanderpaul on the final day was refreshing in a contest where his team-mates, Darren Sammy aside, seemed so indifferent.

Chief among them is Chris Gayle, I have heard Gayle called relaxed, laid-back and cool but I think the best way to describe him is apathetic. He looks like he doesn’t care. He fields lazily, runs a single like he is strolling in the park and bowls no balls from a three step run-up.

The third test was simply a case of to little to late. It was the first time in the series that the visitors went down fighting and they have fully deserved to lose.

It is a tragedy that a side like the West Indies that dominating the cricketing world for two decades cannot produce a side that is capable of challenging the best of them but it is a travesty that the current crop do not seem to understand what it means to represent a team steeped in history and to follow in the footsteps of true legends.