“Unfortunately his job will be measured in terms of how successful the West Indies team is”
Image courtesy of: ESPNcricinfo
Legendary West Indies batsman Gordon Greenidge has called on the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) to refrain from judging former captain Clive Lloyd, who was recently named convener of the selection panel, on his short-term results.
Greenidge also wants Lloyd to have the freedom to do what he feels is best for the national team.
“It is a bit like what’s happening at Manchester United,” Greenidge told Reuters. “Everyone’s expecting the new managers there to just pick up where Alex Ferguson left off – that’s impossible. The new man needs to transfer a serious input of his thinking to his team and the way he wants them to go. He needs to build a team and explain how he wants them to go forward.
“It’s the same thing with Clive Lloyd. Unfortunately his job will be measured in terms of how successful the West Indies team is, that’s always been the case, but I think a change around is necessary and he needs to do that straight away.”
Lloyd recently stated that he one of his main aims would be to “harness talent from the regional Under-19 tournaments” and let them be groomed at the High Performance Centre in Barbados.
Greenidge, who played 59 Tests and 57 ODIs while Lloyd was captain, also noted that the WICB should not take advantage of Lloyd and should also ensure that he is given the resources he needs to do his job properly.
“The powers-that-be need to accept Clive, appreciate him and look upon him as the person he is, someone who can get the job done,” Greenidge said. “I feel in recent times there has been a lot of disrespect shown to players who have played in the past and there has been more dictatorial behaviour happening around cricket in the Caribbean.
“I haven’t been involved for a while which is a damned shame because a lot of players who played in the past have got so much to contribute and have not been given a chance to do so.
“I just hope they recognise Clive’s contribution to the West Indies and give him the necessary tools to work with. I don’t see a problem at all with Clive but it may be a problem with the people he’s working with or the people he reports to.”
Greenidge added that the WICB also have to be patient in their search for a new head coach after Ottis Gibson resigned just prior to the start of the recently concluded ODI series against Bangladesh.
“People are going to expect the new coach to bring an immediate turnaround and I don’t think that’s going to be possible,” he said. “It’s going to take time for whoever takes over. I just hope that whoever it is can mould the group into a better fighting unit. It’s been very fragmented over the years and hopefully the new coach can make a difference and we can get away from the insular thinking.”