Happy New Year to all. Let us try to remain vigilant with all that is happening in our beloved country; the countless and brazen murders, home invasions and robberies that are taking place daily make all our law-abiding citizens feel as if we are no longer in a paradise but in some sort of uncivilised world just waiting to be pounced on by monsters.
Indeed, it is sad, and I suppose my one non-sporting wish is that the Commissioner of Police, together with the Minister of National Security, gets a grip on the crime situation. Surely, someone or some place on the planet must have had a crime situation similar to Trinidad and Tobago’s and have been able to deal with it.
Honestly, I am tired of all the old talk about how the powers that be are trying to come to terms with the situation, but nothing seems to be happening, and year after year, it worsens and nobody, yes, nobody feels safe.
I was asking a friend of mine where he went on Old Year’s Night, and he said with all the crime, he was not going anywhere to be out until after midnight. His decision can best be described as a microcosm of what this society is faced with. It made me think back to when I saw a poll on the television and a few people said to bring back the former CoP Gary Griffith. There is too much pride and arrogance for those in charge to try something different, we just bury our heads in the sand, and every day we count the number of people murdered. Many have become so desensitised to crime and criminality that all we can do is feel unsafe.
On the topic of wishes, as you all know, last week, I gave my 28 wishes for 2024 in all sports. Now, I do accept that the list was long, but it had to be as it encompassed all our sports and those administrators who run some sports for their gain. I also suggested that I would be happy if I were to get one-third of the wishes to come to pass. The great news is on the second day of the new year, one of my wishes came true with the Trinidad and Tobago Cricket Board (TTCB) reintroducing three-day cricket. I have said for players to develop for the four-day regional competition, they must play three-day cricket. It would give the batsmen a chance to play longer innings and make hundreds, and once batsmen can make hundreds, it becomes a habit.
It will also encourage bowlers to use guile and variation to get batsmen out, not getting wickets because batsmen are trying to hit out by scoring quick runs to declare and then trying to bowl out the opposition quickly to force an outright victory.
Unfortunately, my joy turned to dismay when I saw a headline indicating the clubs were against three-day cricket. I immediately thought, “These clubs don’t care about Trinidad and Tobago’s cricket; all they care about is themselves.”
Naturally, I dug a little deeper into the rationale as to why the clubs would oppose such a great idea as I have no doubt it would improve our cricketers, and their main reason is it would be too costly for the clubs. While I agree with that sentiment, they are wrong to just shoot the idea down. One club indicated that they are aware the TTCB is trying to get funding through the Sports Company of Trinidad and Tobago (SporTT) to help cover costs, but nothing is confirmed, and they have not heard from the TTCB.
My question is—what is the club doing to help itself? I understand the clubs need help but can the clubs also try to get some help on their own? I also know sponsorship is hard to come by but then what about fundraisers such as a small all-inclusive party? That can be a start, and there are many other suggestions that you can come up with by brainstorming.
Another reason I understand the clubs are saying to look at the data and see how many clubs would have lasted three days, and while that may be true, the two-day game is played at a hustle—win the toss, send the opposition in, try to bowl them out quickly then bat at T20 pace, declare, send the opposition back into bat and, with some luck, chase down a total in pp x amount of overs to win the game. How in heaven’s name is that helping our cricketers develop their skills?
The TTCB may just stick to 50 overs and T20 games, and then, hurray—Trinidad and Tobago are regional 50-over champions! Have any of the clubs sat back and looked at the Test squad selected? There is one Trinidad and Tobago player—Joshua Da Silva. Isn’t that sad and a terrible indictment on the state of Trinidad and Tobago’s cricket in the longer version of the game? Jayden Seales would have probably been selected had he not been suffering from a shoulder injury, but where are the rest of the talented players representing clubs? I also accept that the weaker clubs would be beaten easily, but they are still being beaten easily in the two-day format, so allow our batsmen to take their time and score big runs and let them get accustomed to making centuries. I remember former West Indies player Charlie Davis saying to me once, “When you get bad bowling beat it and make as many runs as you can because you won’t get it all the time.” Clubs will have to work harder on the preparation of their teams.
The one point I agree with is that playing on a Friday has to be rethought, as players have to work. In the past, games would be played on a Saturday or a Sunday and completed on the following Saturday. I also know the thought of people setting wickets on the third day, but there are umpires and match commissioners to deal with that, play can be halted, and the points awarded to the opposition if the home team sets the wicket on the final day.
Come on, clubs. Think about the development of Trinidad and Tobago cricket in the longer format of the game the regional title has eluded Trinidad and Tobago since 2006.
In closing, I would like to offer my deepest condolences to the family of former prime minister Basdeo Panday. Undoubtedly, he was a man to admire, full of fight, but most of all, with his wit and humour, you could have never fallen asleep in any of his addresses. He loved this country dearly. May he rest in eternal peace.