Sammy: One of WI's many problems

In addition to marking the retirement of India's greatest batsman, the second Test of the 2013 Tendulkar Farewell Series should also have marked the end of Darren Sammy's tenure as West Indies captain. The visitors suffered two humiliating defeats, each in less than three days, and their leader did not exactly recommend himself to the fans by his performance. But his has been such an uneasy reign that losing the crown might have come as some sort of a relief.

The St. Lucian all-rounder has taken fire from all sides, especially from the Caribbean fans who thought him an impostor who was perpetrating a fraud upon West Indies cricket; a player undeserving of a place in the side and one who certainly has no right being captain.

If there is some merit to the substance of some of the criticism, the manner in which it was frequently delivered was mean-spirited - riddled with name-calling and abuse. All of this, of course, is unfair to Sammy. He did not select himself to the position, and no one has ever accused him of giving anything but his best in the service of Caribbean cricket.

Sammy's elevation to the captaincy in October 2010, replacing Chris Gayle, was a reasonable decision by the selectors. At the time it occurred the West Indies authorities had issues with the other likely candidates that needed to be resolved. Three years later, however, it is mystifying that he still occupies the seat.

His character should not really be questioned (though it has been). Smart and seemingly affable, the St. Lucian is a most conscientious member of the team -- a real inspiration to his countrymen and a good example to the youth at a time when boorish behavior is too often associated with our athletes and celebrities.

But Sammy is a good man forced into the wrong line of work. Sammy's tactical awareness, while not being the best, is serviceable. His much larger problem is that he would have struggled to find a place in the side were he not captain. He is neither a potent enough fourth bowler to command a regular spot, nor a skilled enough batsman to bat at six or seven.

Sammy's bowling was never troublesome to begin with, but at least he could shut down an end while more penetrative practitioners operate at the other. Now, if recent outings are anything to go by, he is suffering from a loss of both direction and confidence, evidenced by a reluctance to send down his share of overs.

A very clean striker of the cricket ball, Sammy lacks the technique and temperament to toil through the tough times. His big hitting will occasionally allow him to escape tricky situations; but more often he will perish like he did in the recent Kolkata test, caught by deep-set fielders.

To be fair, West Indies' problem goes far beyond the scant skills of its captain. The real cause of its predicament is its failure to produce enough world-class players to compete with the world's best teams. Big hitting players like Chris Gayle, Marlon Samuels and Kieron Pollard, and the bowling of Sunil Narine made them World T20 champions and formidable opponents in cricket's briefest form, but a general lack of quality means they often fall short of the demands of Test matches.

The last really great batsman to emerge from the Caribbean was Shivnarine Chanderpaul who made his debut in 1994, and the last really great bowler was Curtly Ambrose, who stormed on to the scene in 1988. Compare that reality to those of top Test playing countries like England, India and South Africa.

Consider this list of players who made their Test debut since January 1995: Dale Steyn, Jaques Kallis, Hashim Amla, AB deVilliers, Shaun Pollock from South Africa; Rahul Dravid, VVS Laxman, Virender Sehwag, Harbhajan Singh from India; Kevin Pietersen, James Anderson, Andrew Flintoff, Alastair Cook from England.

The streak of world-beaters that gushed from the Caribbean like cars off an assembly line in the seventies and eighties suddenly came to an end in the nineties, as did their reign of world domination. Since then only rarely have they been worthy challengers to the top teams. This is a predicament the West Indies authorities need to investigate, if they are not already aware of its causes, and take action to fix; otherwise the former kings of cricket are doomed to occupy the lower rungs of the rankings for the foreseeable future.

The throne was snatched away under Richie Richardson's watch in 1995 and none of Courtney Walsh, Brian Lara, Jimmy Adams, Chanderpaul, Jimmy Adams, Carl Hooper, Ramnaresh Sarwan, Gayle or Sammy could reclaim it, as each one, in turn, bore the brunt of the blame for the teams abysmal results.

Yet the main reason for the West Indies' extended poor run has little to do with who is at the helm. No matter how cunning the captain there is not much he can do with a bad team. Even the best tactician in the world still needs players capable of executing whatever plans he may devise.

There is nothing a captain can do during a game to protect batsmen intent on committing suicide, or to improve the technique of those unable to counter the opposition bowling or the prevailing batting conditions. What can he do to impose discipline on bowlers adamant in serving up half-trackers or have difficulty hitting the cut strip? All the great captains: Frank Worrell, Richie Benaud, Clive Lloyd, Mike Brearly, Ian Chappell, Mark Taylor, had one thing in common - they all led good teams.

Darren Sammy does not. Nevertheless a captain should ideally warrant his place in his team. As veteran West Indies journalist, Tony Cozier, writing in the Trinidad Express recently stated: "Any captain is in an impossible position if he cannot command a place in the eleven on cricketing merit; it diminishes his authority."

It is not that Sammy's results are worse than those of his predecessors. Simply, his continued presence disrupts the balance of a side that cannot afford to carry passengers. A more penetrative bowler, or a more capable batsman -- depending on the construct of the team -- would add some logic to the selection process.

The fact that Sammy was reinstated for the coming New Zealand tour means that the selectors, for the time being at least, have resisted the many calls for his head. With the chatter likely to get louder, especially if they are defeated in New Zealand, it is doubtful that Sammy will have their blessings for much longer. After that, however, they will still have a myriad of other problems to tackle.

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