Rude awakening

JOHANNESBURG - West Indies manager Ricky Skerritt made a telling observation on his team following their World Cup defeat against New Zealand at Port Elizabeth four days ago.

"It was a very good test for the lads and perhaps a reminder that we haven't gone as far forward as we would have liked to have gone," he noted.

Skerritt was not taking a swing at anyone, but rather touching on the point that the West Indies team still needs to be more analytical in their approach and clinical in the execution of their duties.

The West Indies let the Kiwis off the hook at the death of the innings, and then could not find the resolve to reach what was a challenging but not insurmountable target.

"We have the opportunity still to show we can do well in this competition and we now have the real test ahead," Skerritt added.

Many observers believed the West Indies turned the corner from their barren run when they played brilliantly on recent tours of India and Bangladesh.

With the return of Brian Lara and the excellent win over South Africa in the opening match, the Windies announced themselves as a good bet for at least the semifinals.

The manager noted that the team is mentally very strong and the defeat against New Zealand served as a reminder that the other sides are very competitive and hard work must be put in to gain the necessary results.

Some of this hard work was put in yesterday morning when the team had an intense three-hour net session at the Woolmore Stadium in Benoni, 20 kilometres outside Johannesburg.

The only worry is a back complaint to left-arm fast bowler Pedro Collins, and he is being well looked after by physiotherapist Suzette Liebenberg, who has been hired on contract for the World Cup.

She is the wife of former South African wicket-keeper Gerhardus Liebenberg and has worked with the Free State team for the past six years.

The West Indies also have other South Africans in their camp. Russell Metzer, a young business graduate who is pursuing a degree in physiotherapy and who has worked with Eastern Province, was hired as massage therapist for the duration of the World Cup. An architect is the baggage officer and a business manager is liaison officer.

Today, the team goes to Actonville for a coaching clinic with junior players from Guateng, but it will be Tuesday's match against Bangladesh at Benoni which will be foremost on their minds.