Slump can be reversed

When Australia were in a similar position in the 1980s, the people in charge asked themselves one simple question: what is the Australian way of playing?

Is there a West Indies way?

During the Lloyd-Richards era, the team's philosophy was simple: to enjoy the game, play hard and never to give up.

Their most outstanding qualities were mental toughness and mental aggression, coping with pressure and the ability to concentrate and think clearly during the game. They were positive, confident and professional.

Can these qualities be implanted in the minds of current players? I believe so, but it will require special expertise and techniques.

How do we teach our young players the West Indies way and how do we monitor and improve what is being taught to them? That is a critical question.

Presently, this is done in a haphazard manner or not at all. There does not seem to be an integrated regional approach to coaching. These things must be given top priority.

A cricket academy can help; there is already one in Grenada.

In recent years there has been a tendency to play down the importance of the basics of the game.

This is so because the pundits now place greater emphasis on other areas: teaching, preparation and performance.

This is a bad trend because the basics are the fabric of your game. If you ignore them, your performance will suffer.

Most of our teachings should therefore be focussed on mastery of the basic skills.

Players must accept total responsibility for their results, but all the blame for failure should not be placed on them.

The Management team needs to lift its game. The selectors need to show more courage and select the players whom they think will deliver the goods.

The West Indies Cricket Board has put many good initiatives in place, but so far it has not successfully co-ordinated the important components of the success puzzle.

In some ways, it is like a jigsaw puzzle. They have all the pieces, but they don't seem able to put them together correctly at this time.

Is this because there is no clear and detailed picture on the jigsaw box?

Like previous slumps, this one can be reversed. If done professionally, recovery will be sustainable. Otherwise, we will get stuck in our losing ways and repeat the same mistakes that we have made in the last four years.

Our cricketers are hurting because they have played below their potential. Let's find the causes and rectify them. All of the blame cannot be thrown on them. Other people were involved.