West Indies Cricket Team: Relaxed but focussed

West Indies / Frank Gregan / 07 March 2011 / Leave a Comment

Too cool for school. Benn is a fine spinner

"There's nothing wrong with that, in fact quite the opposite is true. A relaxed and ‘chilled out’ lifestyle where one works to live rather than lives to work has to be conducive to healthy mental well being. But as far as sport is concerned, in order to be the best, the very best, apathy has to be replaced with obsession."

They may be the kings of cool and the greatest exponents of the laid-back cricketer but this West Indies team means business and could prove to be dangerous opponents.

One of my mates is a bit of a military legend. He's probably the only bloke that's been kicked out of the SAS - for fighting! Seriously, you couldn't make it up, the Regiment frowned upon a bar room brawl in America and returned him to his parent unit.

Such is his popularity that even though he elected to marry at the same time that England played their opening game of the 2006 football World Cup finals, his friends made the trek to Newcastle from the four corners of the earth to witness him getting hitched.

Another one of my pals had returned to his native Jamaica (he held dual citizenship) after his days in the Army ended but he flew in to be at the gig. We were Brothers in Arms as members of a four man team on an operational tour during which we were together pretty much round the clock every day of the week. I know him better than my siblings and have a great affection for him.

The night before the wedding we all met in the hotel bar and re-fought battles as we put the world to rights. There was tremendous excitement and anticipation about the following day - all except for my Jamaican buddy who confessed to me he could "take it or leave it."

He'd made a 10,000 mile round trip to be there but wasn't in the least bit excited about the event or meeting mates that he hadn't seen for over a decade. His attitude was typical Caribbean, relaxed and unfazed by everything going on around him. This sounds like I'm stereotyping all of the people from the islands that make up the cricketing union of the West Indies. But I guess I am because everyone, and I've met loads through the Army and sport, that I've come across from that region are so laid back they are horizontal!

There's nothing wrong with that, in fact quite the opposite is true. A relaxed and 'chilled out' lifestyle where one works to live rather than lives to work has to be conducive to healthy mental well being. But as far as sport is concerned, in order to be the best, the very best, apathy has to be replaced with obsession.

You don't get to be top of your profession by not applying yourself 100%. Brian Lara and Sir Viv Richards were just that, the very best of their generation and there's a whole host of other great West Indian cricketers who have left their mark on the game. Giants of international cricket such as Gordon Greenidge, Clive Lloyd, Malcolm Marshall, Wes Hall and Sir Garfield Sobers who were all great cricketers but also tenacious competitors. They made use of every ounce of their talent.

Many pundits believe that the same can't be said about this crop of West Indian cricketers. They've got undoubted ability but their application leaves a lot to be desired. They've been underachieving for the last couple of years and the players seem unperturbed by the situation.

They now have a great opportunity to earn a place in history by winning this World Cup and it would be a classic case of coming good at exactly the right time if they manage to pull it off. They lost their opening fixture when they were comprehensively beaten by the South Africans but since then they've walloped the Dutch and hammered Bangladesh without breaking sweat during a game in which many believed there would be an upset.

As a consequence they have been backed into [23.0] to win the tournament from a high of [38.0]. That's a very big price for a team that can sometimes afford to have Shivnarine Chanderpaul coming into bat at number seven but no doubt many Betfairians have been put off by the West Indian laid back approach.

So do the West Indies really want to win this trophy? You bet they do. Don't be put off by the chilled, cool, "do I look good in these sunglasses" persona. It's all a front. Unless you care, you don't travel 10,000 miles to go to a wedding and you definitely don't get to play international cricket for the West Indies.

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