Trinidad and Tobago: Putting A Whole Region To Shame

(Photo by Duif du Toit/Gallo Images/Getty Images)

They say cricket is a gentlemen's game. Not so anymore, I beg to differ. With all the ridiculous amounts of money that is being bandied about these days, especially after the emergence of T20 and a certain Lalit Modi or His Modiness, as many call him, cricket is beginning to put an end to its innocence, and how!

Let us put this into perspective. The basis of the game for the last 125 years has been a battle between nations, where nations were represented and a whole country rooted for them. Now, it seems some of the best players in the world might jump ship and actually choose club over country, and some might not play for country at all (think the two Andrews, Messrs Symonds and Flintoff).

Some players have been seen to be considerably disinterested when playing for their national teams. The attitude of the West Indian players during their recent test series in England was a disgrace to the game. But then again, isn't it to be expected when their captain (who is, ironically, one of the best players in the world and certainly one of the most exciting) doesn't really care (well, he NEVER seems to care).

You read the papers, and you see the stories of contractual disputes, problems with the board, unhappy players, second string squads getting hammered by Bangladesh (I'm happy, I'm Bangladeshi, but this is a neutral article and hence I have to have sympathy for the West Indians, which, in the heart of my hearts, I sincerely do), and it is easy to forget that this is the land, sorry, region (for the distinguishment between the different countries has recently come up quite strongly) is the one that gave birth to Marshall, Lloyd, Kanhai, Richards, Garner, Holding, Walsh, Ambrose, Lara et all.

The team has been in a free-fall for way too long now, too long for us to be blamed in yearly 90s. The present team has talent, but it is difficult to perform when you are supposedly, as Dwayne Bravo alleged recently, 'treated like club cricketers', with poor management and unmet payments.

All this has led us to have a very grim assessment of the team and where it is going, with an obvious lack of unity and cohesion both on and off the field.

And so it is wonderful to see a tiny, individual island from the Caribbean bring back flashes of an era bygone by playing a brand of cricket which is thrilling and brings back memories of why our previous generation knew nothing but the West Indies when it came to cricket. The Champions League T20 has been an absolute blast, with teams playing different brands of cricket and pitting their wits against each other (Of course, it helps when the pot of gold is worth a small 2.5 million USD).

But the team that has caught everyone’s imagination has been Trinidad and Tobago. Led by the intelligent and highly articulate (read his interviews) Daren Ganga, they have been a breath of fresh air. What has been most impressive has been the unity and cohesion in the team, so lacking in the West Indian team. Every match, someone has put their hands up and been counted. Barath, Pollard, Bravo, the brothers Ganga, everyone has put in big match performances. Who would say that there is no talent in the Caribbean? They play with joy, they play with passion, they play with fervour and they play with a will to win. T and T have epitomized the real flavour of cricket in their region, playing with flair and not an ounce of fear, paying the opposition respect but no more than they deserve.

They have expressed fully, free from the problems that the combined team faces so frequently. It is a testament to their fighting abilities, and their never say die attitude, that they have found a way to win every time we thought they were going to lose. They have gone into every game as the underdog, and yes, they’ve won every one of them. Instead of caving in like the West Indies, they have brought themselves out and found a way to come out on top. They have also enjoyed themselves, unlike the combined team who give the impression sometimes that they don’t want to be out on the field and would rather play the IPL and run with the pot of gold for six weeks of light work.

They have caused such a positive stir that now, the focus of discussion has shifted to whether the islands should be allowed to play on their own. I, for one, would agree to that. For one, it would give the players a greater sense of patriotism and identity. It would also take away much of the legal and logistical troubles, not to mention allegations of favouritism towards players of certain islands (especially Jamaica and Barbados). Yes, some of the smaller islands, who have insufficient players of quality, can make combined teams, but I am certain that T and T, Jamaica, Barbados and maybe Guyana can be more competitive than this current West Indian team, the main team that is, not the joke that was being led by another joke, Floyd Reifer.

This T and T team has proved that playing with joy and passion and a will to win can make up for a lack of big names, and playing for the love of the game more than makes for a great spectacle and will earn you the respect of all, including your opposition.

I will be supporting the T and T team in the final. They deserve no less than to win. But, win or lose, they have certainly captivated us and caught our imagination with their enthusiasm and flair, their will to win and their charisma, and they have put their combined team brothers to shame and forced the administrators to look at the mirror and finally understand (hopefully) that when a team plays without negative external influences, they can perform to their best.

You're currently logged into Facebook

Do you want to share your Bleacher Report activity on Facebook?