Twenty-five year old Sri Lankan pacer Chamika Karunaratne tapped his temple and then tapped his heart, after dismissing West Indies all-rounder Andre Russell for two runs in today’s ICC T20 World Cup contest. And, just to be sure nobody missed it, Karunaratne repeated the gesture. By then, West Indies were …
Read More »T2021 W/C: S/African hypocrisy? WI put eggs in one basket and retain un-Chase batting line-up
If Mark Nicholas, of these West Indians ‘have no brains’ fame, were an active cricketer representing one of the teams in the 2021 T20 World Cup, I feel certain he would have no problem taking a knee. Quinton de Kock does. He declined to comply with the South Africa Cricket …
Read More »T2021 W/C: Is West Indian mindlessness a mere figment of Mark Nicholas’ imagination?
Tuesday morning in the Caribbean. South Africa are on the verge of victory in the second of the West Indies five Super 12 games in the 2021 World Cup. England’s Mark Nicholas is saluting the pair at the wicket, whose 83-run partnership will soon steer the Proteas to their crushing …
Read More »T2021 W/C: WI in trouble after 8-wkt loss to S/Africa despite de Kock pull-out after refusing ‘the knee’
South Africa star Quinton de Kock’s refusal to take the knee today in a now commonplace gesture against racism, even at the expense of his place in the squad, is likely to have a long-term effect on his team’s chances at the 2021 ICC T20 World Cup. Today, though, the …
Read More »T2021 W/C: WI have explosive batsmen and wily death bowler, but large boundaries can be factor
“[…] No fewer than eight of the 15 players chosen, namely Evin Lewis, Lendl Simmons, Chris Gayle, Shimron Hetmyer, Nicholas Pooran, captain Kieron Pollard, Andre Russell and Fabian Allen, have repeatedly proven themselves to be fully capable of winning T20 matches on their own, with their very powerful, often destructive …
Read More »T2021 W/C: Simmons’ bonding concern, body blows and bruised egos, as WI prepare for T20 title defence
“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: 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: 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: Gayle’s last dance: in defence of the West Indies’ pick for the ‘Universe Boss’
“Yes, I want to play for West Indies—that’s where my heart is,” veteran West Indies cricket star Chris Gayle told ESPN, during an interview in March 2021. “I am never going to turn down anything pertaining to West Indies cricket at this particular time. “[…] Hopefully I can perform, help …
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