Speaking on WESN TV’s Face of Sports last week, TTCB (Trinidad and Tobago Cricket Board) chairman Azim Bassarath, who is also a CWI director, said it was doubtful that the regional first-class competition would be limited to one round again next year due to CWI’s limited finances.
He also did not support having separate coaches for the West Indies white-ball and red-ball cricket teams, he said.
“We are very concerned about the finances of Cricket West Indies and we don’t have the resources at this time to hire two coaches and two sets of back-room staff.”
“I think we have to focus on one coach and one set of people assisting that coach. Again, funding is an important factor in CWI and that is the reason why we cannot even have two rounds of four-day cricket for 2023.”
“So, I doubt we will be able to get funding from anywhere to sustain that two-coaches scenario in Cricket West Indies. It is something I will not support but we can look at one coach and one set of back-room staff because that is what we can afford at this time.”
Also, regarding the T20 World Cup, Bassarath is of the opinion that the team was well prepared for the tournament, but the West Indies team had two bad days (Scotland,irlend).
“I think what happened is that we had two bad days. We lost and we accept the fact we should not have lost to those teams. I think we had two bad days in Australia hence the reason we had to return home.”
After the defeat in the World Twenty20, head coach Phil Simmons announced that he would step down as head coach after the upcoming tour of Australia. However, Bassarath stated that Simmons should continue as a coach with West Indies.
“I don’t agree with the people who are saying he (Simmons) should have gone earlier. I think Phil would have done his part to take West Indies cricket further. We didn’t get all the results we wanted under Phil but I think he was an excellent coach.”
“Also, when you look at Phil Simmons in the dugout, you would have seen the passion and the hurt where we were not doing well. You would have seen the love he had for WI cricket. I think Phil would have done an excellent job, but I think he made the necessary sacrifice that was necessary at the time.”
“Not all the time you will get the results you want from the hard work you put out but I applaud Phil for taking the decision that he took. He took responsibility for what transpired in the World Cup and he must be applauded for that.”
And while the coach would have shown a passion for the job, he said you are not seeing the same from the present-day crop of players.
“We have been saying it that we are not seeing the passion from the present-day crop of players. Not all of them but of course, that is one of the most important ingredients in merely wanting to represent West Indies and wanting to do well for yourself and the Caribbean people.”
“If we don’t have the passion, we are not going to out there and give 100 percent. You may feel as a player you are giving 100 percent but really and truly you not giving 100 percent because you don’t give off the passion and you don’t show the passion.”
“And the cause of that maybe is because we don’t employ into the young players the history of West Indies cricket where we came from and of course what our past great players would have done for cricket for the Caribbean people.”
Another Idiot trying to represent a failed Phill Simmonds ,I would say it again ,with out any apologies,Trinidad have West Indies cricket where it is at ground zero.
There is no wonder Windies cricket can’t inprove when such rubbish is said by officials who have not idea what is inprovement, “I think Phil would have done his part in taking West Indies cricket forward” said Azlm Bassarath, TTCB. He should have continued his comments by saying “Further downward”. That would have been the honest thing to say because the players need honesty and support from officials if they are to take them seriously in order to turn Windies cricket around and upwards.