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At 34, Darren Bravo probably did not have his eyes on a place in the West Indies squad for the 2027 ODI World Cup. West Indies lead selector Desmond Haynes is certain that he should not have been looking towards the South Africa/Namibia/Zimbabwe tournament.
But was Bravo a shoo-in for a place in the West Indies squad for the forthcoming three-match One-day International series against England, starting in Antigua on Sunday?
Both he and his older brother, former West Indies star all-rounder Dwayne, answered yes. Haynes and his selection panel, however, took a different view, omitting the elegant left-hander from the 15-man party.
Saying that he “just can’t make sense of it”, DJB adds that he is “not surprised” by it and dismisses the decision to leave DMB out as “NOT acceptable”.
“What’s the criteria for West Indies team selection?” the ‘Champion’ all-rounder asks, writing on his Instagram page last Tuesday. “Surely, it can’t be solely based on performance?”
It’s hard to disagree. As captain of the victorious Trinidad and Tobago Red Force in the 2023 CG United Super50 Cup, Lil Bravo was the tournament’s leading run-scorer, tallying 416 runs at an average of 83.20. He scored one century and hit three half-centuries.
Photo: Daniel Prentice/ Wired868
Included in the 15 are the almost 25-year-old Alick Athanaze and the 26-year-old Keacy Carty, who already has 11 ODIs to his credit. Neither player distinguished himself in the recently concluded tournament with the Sint Maarten player managing only 147 runs in his eight innings.
In his six innings, the Dominican left-hander totalled 276 but it is noteworthy that his Wikipedia profile says this: “[W]ith the potential he possesses, he could easily become a mainstay in the West Indies middle order for years to come.”
Haynes has a ready explanation for what seems like a lack of internal logic in the selection panel’s decision to overlook Bravo. He conceded that DMB “has performed well at (the Regional Super50) level”, which made it “a very tough decision for us to make as a panel.”
The panel, he pointed out, “had to take into consideration that the World Cup 2027 is something that we have got in mind”.
(Copyright SW Londoner)
He added that “we have invested in players like […] Athanaze and […] Carty” [and] “we need to give them the opportunity to play against a very strong England side.”
“If we do the knee-jerk reaction where we just decided to invest in guys one year and then get rid of them next year, I am not too sure if that’s good for the development.”
Also included in the squad is T&T opener Kjorn Ottley, who turns 34 on December 9. His nine-innings Super50 aggregate was 317, almost exactly 100 less than Bravo’s with one hundred and one 50.
“Ottley got picked,” Haynes pointed out, because “we had an injury to Justin Greaves” and “we wanted somebody to bat up front”. In other words, Bravo lost his middle-order place to the more youthful up-and-coming pair and Ottley was preferred to him for the opening slot.
How does DMB himself feel about all this? According to him, he has “taken some time to ponder and wonder what’s my next step”, is “in a very dark place” but thinks he is able to read “the writing on the wall”.
“At this point in my career,” he posted on Instagram on Saturday, “it’s not easy or should I say it takes a lot to continue to find the energy, the passion, commitment and discipline to be able to perform to the best of my ability and put myself in a position to make my return to international cricket.
Photo: Daniel Prentice/ Wired868
“Without any level of communication I’ve been left in a very dark place.”
The message from the powers-that-be, he continues, is clear.
“At the moment there’s three teams representing the region in multiple formats/series. That’s approximately 40–45 players and […] I can’t be in any of these teams after competing in our regional tournaments and scoring runs […]”
(Copyright Daniel Prentice/ Wired868)
Of course, Bravo’s contribution to West Indies cricket has been much more than “competing in our regional tournaments and scoring runs”.
Bravo made his West Indies debut against India in June 2009 and his Test debut against Sri Lanka in Galle the next year in November. He went on to play 56 Tests and 122 ODIs for the West Indies, scoring 3538 (8×100, 17×50) and 3109 runs (4×100, 18×50) respectively in the two formats.
In T20Is, he was less successful, his 26 matches yielding only 405 runs at an average of 21.31.
(Copyright AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)
A paragraph in his Wikipedia profile says that “[t]he player he eventually became was not quite the Prince (of Port-of-Spain, his cousin) but a talented left-hand batter with the same walk, the same backlift, the same flourish, the same footwork, the same mannerisms, and incredibly, for a while, the same stats as well—their runs and batting average were identical after their first 12 Tests.”
His international career was put on hold for two years between 2016 and 2018 after he had a very public spat with then CWI president Dave Cameron, whom he branded a “big idiot”.
On his return to active duty in January 2019, he managed an even unbeaten 50 against England at North Sound but seven of his 10 knocks after that ended in single-digit scores.
(Copyright Randy Brooks – CPL T20/Getty Images)
Since replacing Roger Harper as lead selector in January 2022, Haynes has recalled at least two players whose careers had come to a halt. Kemar Roach was included in the ODI team for the 2022 series away to India for the first time since 2019. He played all three matches, took only one wicket and was never seen in the ODI squad again.
Opening batsman Evin Lewis was also recalled to the 2022 T20 World Cup squad for the first time since the 2021 T20 World Cup.
Haynes, who had been openly critical of Lewis for failing to meet fitness standards, explained: “Sometimes we have to move on and appreciate when people come to us and explain their position to us, and if we agree, we give them a chance.”
(via CWI Media)
Lewis got his chance, sustained a hamstring injury in the match against Ireland and has been left on the sidelines since.
There are also the cases of the hard-working but limited leg-spinning all-rounder Yannic Cariah and the underachieving all-rounder Raymon Reifer, which those who follow West Indies closely will not have forgotten.
Despite never having played a T20 International or a major T20 match since the 2016 Caribbean Premier League, Cariah was named in the WI team for the 2022 T20 World Cup. In two pre-World Cup matches against Australia, he claimed one scalp and was promptly dropped.
With Shamarh Brooks on international duty, Reifer was used as a make-shift number three by Barbados Pride in the 2022 Regional Four Day Championships. The underachieving all-rounder amassed 345 runs at an average of 49.28 with three half-centuries and earned a Test call-up for the home series against Bangladesh.
In his next seven Tests, Reifer posted three half-centuries and bowled sparingly and without distinction before he was dropped during this year’s home series against India.
Although Bravo has made no public reference to the lead selector, he is certainly aware of the above. So unlike his 35-year-old T&T teammate Sunil Narine, who recently announced his retirement from international cricket, Bravo is withdrawing from the spotlight but not making his exit from the stage.
Is his parting shot perhaps aimed directly at the lead selector?
“I’m not giving up but I believe it’s best to step away just for a bit and maybe make some room for a young and upcoming talent.”
Translation: I am willing to move over when there is some youngster good enough to take my place.
(Copyright Allan V Crane/CA-Images)
“I will end by wishing each and every one all the very best.”
Translation: But these guys you say are better than me, well, good luck with that!
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