“Dive, boy, dive!” Many of the details which were reported here on Wired868 at the time escape me now. But who can forget Dwayne Bravo’s ringing exhortation to his younger brother to give 100%? Or forget the exasperated four-letter word that subsequently came through the stump mike when Darren Bravo …
Read More »T2021 W/C: Narine shows what WI will miss as post-CPL lessons continue in IPL play-offs
It would not be accurate to say that West Indies off-spinner Sunil Narine almost single-handedly put the Kolkata Knight Riders into the IPL semi-final on Monday. Why? Because accuracy requires that we say ‘former West Indies off-spinner Sunil Narine’. Mr Roger Harper and his selection panel were well aware that, …
Read More »T2021 W/C: Fitness fears haunt WI fast men; should Gayle mirror India’s MS Dhoni?
I wish to leave veteran West Indies batsman Chris Gayle aside for the moment and turn my attention to a not unrelated issue. My interest in the fitness of West Indies players and the granting of medical exemptions has been further piqued with the recent injury struggles faced by the …
Read More »T2021 W/C: A tale of two Gayles—veteran’s IPL exit might make Harper’s defenders blush
He was once the best of them. But don’t blush, baby! He may now be the worst of them. Or close to it… The day was 21 September 2021 and the self-proclaimed ‘Universe Boss’ Chris Gayle was celebrating his 42nd birthday. It was the first game of the re-started IPL …
Read More »CPL 2021: ‘Reds’ and McWatt review 2021 edition, suggest new franchises, umpiring reviews and more
“[…] Our suggestion would be for the CPL to explore the possibility of allowing franchises based in Florida and Toronto… The 17 member rosters of the Canada and US franchises could also comprise nine local players, five born in the Caribbean and three internationally based. “In addition to providing much-needed …
Read More »T2021 W/C: In spin-friendly conditions, will WI miss Hosein? Did Ramdin pay for ‘un-West Indian approach’?
It is time, some say, for Romario Shepherd to be on the side. Some suggest that he should have got the nod over Ravi Rampaul, a soon-to-be-37-year-old seamer whose once-blossoming international career nose-dived in the wake of injury and weight issues. That was then. Now he is back, in a …
Read More »T2021 W/C: Jackman sees flawed logic in calls to drop Gayle and add Holder to WI squad
“[…] For years the destroyer of bowling attacks, Chris Gayle is but a shadow of the fearsome figure he once was. His run production rapidly declining in recent years, he has endured a near-barren 2021 for both WI and the Patriots. “[…] If, as the multitude insists, Gayle cannot be …
Read More »T2021 W/C: F Warner muses over CPL stars who forced their way into WI plans—and those who should have
“[…] In a T20 match, four tight overs are worth their weight in gold. In [Sunil] Narine’s two IPL games thus far, after he bowled a tight over during which the batsmen played him cautiously, the bowler at the other end got a wicket. The batsmen were forced to take …
Read More »T2021 W/C: Hidden hazards; will what WI don’t see hurt our chances?
In Group 1 of the Super 12’s, Australia, England and South Africa await. When the 2021 edition of the ICC World Cup eventually bowls off in the UAE and Oman in mid-October, those three will lead the attempt to knock the crown off the head of Kieron Pollard’s defending champions. …
Read More »T2021 W/C: Polls apart? CWI and Wired868 panels agree on Gayle, differ on Bravo, Holder
Allyuh tink dis selection ting easy? Allyuh know who Joshua Bishop is? No? Well, the 21-year-old Barbados Royals’ rookie left-arm spinner’s name somehow ended up on a list of three dozen West Indies players named by the 12 panellists asked to select their WI dream team for the 2021 T20 …
Read More »T2021 W/C: ‘The best of the available candidates’, you say?! Best on differing value of the Bravos
Darren Bravo is a gifted left-hander who, for years, was the best batsman in the region and a clone of his cousin, Brian Charles Lara, the best batsman the country has produced. But that was once upon a time. Darren Bravo vintage 2021 is not vintage at all. On merit. …
Read More »CPL 2021: How a Champion and a ‘Dom’ gave the Patriots their champagne moment
“[…] Then came the finale, the most thrilling CPL final in the tournament’s nine-year existence. The home upstarts SKN Patriots, representing the Leeward Islands against the dominant St Lucia Kings, representing the Windward Islands. “[…] Videos were out, shade being thrown by all supporters. Memes galore. So much fun and …
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