Greenidge flays West Indies batsmen

Gordon Greenidge sees a lack of application and concentration as contributing to the modest performances of most present-day West Indies batsmen.

He made these observations when delivering a brief but thought-provoking address at the Barbados Cricket Association's (BCA) awards ceremony at Accra Beach Hotel, Rockley, on Friday.

One of the best batsmen Barbados and West Indies has produced, Greenidge, was in a no-nonsense mood.

He questioned the need for West Indies players to be counselled by psychologists or psychiatrists.

He said it was believed that psychological counselling was necessary because many of the players recently selected to the regional team were playing under considerable pressure.

He wondered where this pressure was coming from since the regional team was being selected from a skeleton cupboard.

The West Indies icon dismissed any notion that the poor performances of the current crop of players resulted from external pressure, suggesting that it was largely self-inflicted.

He said that too many excuses were being found for players who kept coming up short, and added that none of the excuses were relevant.

Some young players tended to listen more to the friends with whom they limed, rather than seek the advice of senior players who have succeeded at the higher level, said Greenidge.

He said that as a young batsman, he sought the advice of senior players such as Sir Everton Weekes and Sir Garfield Sobers.

Greenidge observed they were many capable former senior players around and admonished the youngsters to approach them for help at every opportunity.

He said that although some rule changes favoured the batsman more today, the game of cricket had not changed that much.

He found it difficult to understand how a player could perform very well at the regional level but fell down badly at the higher international level.

Greenidge then told of a particular dilemma in which he was placed when in 1973 he had to choose between playing for England or the West Indies.

He elicited a chuckle from the audience when he said he was not too enamoured with the thought of opening an innings with Geoff Boycott.

He said that when he was selected for the West Indies, he recognised it was up to him to determine whether or not he remained in the team. He knew he had to score lots of runs and this was what he had set out to do from his first match.

Greenidge said that the young players who were selected to play for the West Indies should be given a more extensive run in the team - enough time "to come through".

He added that the selectors should not look back, but look forward; and that they should not say one thing and then do something else.

This appeared to be a veiled reference to the selection of Stuart Williams and Junior Murray in the first two Tests against India.

Greenidge said he was disappointed that no assistance was being given to the young cricketers who won the Under-15 World Championship, and challenged the authorities to pay more attention to junior cricket.

Donna Simmons was Master of Ceremonies, while British High Commissioner John White was also a featured speaker.

The prizes were presented by Sir Clyde Walcott, Sir Everton Weekes, Seymour Nurse, Peter Short, Keith Walcott, Jeff Broomes, Anne Reid of Courts, Hugh Durant of Cave Shepherd, and Fay Best-Walker of British American Tobacco.