The West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) sacked Coach Otis Gibson tonight, a decision known 48 hours before it was announced. Hurray for transparency. The news that he was terminated by a telephone call after just renewing a contract for 2 years makes the Gibson sacking another saga to observe for the comedic relief it offers. It is no secret West Indies has become the laughing stock of the cricket world. The inability of the WIBC to stop the slide of performance by the regional cricket team for nearly 2 decades confirms the leadership vacuum which continues to choke success in almost every facet of enterprise in our region. The most recent ICC Rankings positions West Indies at #8 out of 10 teams with only the minnows Zimbabwe and Bangladesh at #9 and #10 bottoming out the rankings.
The WICB and the UWI represent two regional entities which have served the English Caribbean people well. In recent years these two entities have struggled to stay relevant in a world advancing at pace. It seems moronic that the WICB on the eve of an international ODI series against Bangladesh would become trapped into making such a significant management change. Based on the WIBC press release the team manager, Sir Richie Richardson, will perform a dual role in the current series. While the WICB saga continues to unfold Barbadians were informed of very low registration at UWI, Cave Hill. Connect the dots.
All taxpayers in the cricket English Caribbean have a vested interest in the efficient management of regional cricket. In the build up to the 2007 regional governments mobilized several projects, including the building of new stadia, to host CWC2007. And it has been reported greater than $500 million was spent by regional governments which taxpayers will have to repay for years to come. To observe the cavalier approach how cricket is being managed by the WIBC continues to be jaw dropping stuff.
A region which dominated world cricket for almost 20 years and is unable to build on past success to sustain future success. We play musical chairs with coaches and players yet one entity remains unchanged, as rigid as it was which it was named the WICBC.
BU can blog hundreds of words to express the feelings of the fans of West Indies cricket who have become numb to the poor performances of the cricket team on the field and in the boardroom. To express disgust at the latest black eye suffered by West Indies cricket is analogous to flogging a dead horse.
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