The journey from emerging to elite

The decision by the ICC to remove the Associate nations from the 2015 World Cup has generated considerable debate. While the majority of comments have been against the move, some have been supportive and this support has mostly centered around the view that the emerging nations cannot truly compete on the world stage. It is, unfortunately, true that emerging nations will find it hard to reach the consistency that marks the truly elite. Yet, it is worth remembering that the cricketing elite were not always so; with perhaps one exception – England.

As the founding member of the international game, England’s position is, at the same time, privileged, unique and somewhat awkward. It is privileged in setting the rules and style of the game in motion. It is unique in being the national cornerstone from which the game spread. And it is somewhat awkward in that it was doomed to, at times, being regularly beaten by those that followed – eventually. The first to follow was Australia. It is a well-known point of cricketing history that Australia won the first Test in 1877 by 45 runs, co-incidentally the same margin with which they won the Centenary Test one hundred years later. Australian sides, however, weren’t always winners. A succession of English touring teams sailed Down Under in the 1860s and 1870s. These teams were not national teams in the current sense, but rather private affairs for which profit was not an inconsiderable motivation, yet they did contain a number of the best players of the day. The legendary WG Grace was one such drawcard.

The Colonial teams that were drawn to play the Tourists varied. Some were 15-strong, some pitted 18 against 11 Englishmen. Ultimately, it was only by combining under an “Australian” banner that the Colonies could hope to win on even terms. The regular tours also helped, along with developing local competitions. Yet, when New South Welshman Charles Bannerman scored 165 to propel Australia to that maiden Test victory, another part of the English legacy rose to the fore. In the 1860s Surrey allrounder Billy Caffyn had toured Down Under. He eventually decided to stay and took to coaching. His star pupil was Bannerman. Despite continuing Australian success though, England still won the majority of Tests before 1889.

That year, South Africa joined the fray. Like their southern hemisphere counterparts, South Africa enjoyed some early wins, particularly in 1906. Yet, even by the 1920s South Africa had hardly developed into regular world-beaters. They had some fine players but perhaps lacked the special quality that makes a team greater than the sum-of-its-parts. It is a recurring problem for emerging nations.

The Caribbean islands combined, as West Indies, suffered a similar fate, at least against Australia. Two early Caribbean cricketers, George Headley and Learie Constantine are among the game’s greats. West Indies, however, were thrashed by 10 wickets or an innings in their first four Australian Tests. They did, however, bounce back to win the fifth.

India, too, began the hard way. When Frank Tarrant took an unofficial Australian side there in 1935-36, India had already lost a Test series to England both home and away. Opportunities to play were still few and far between, yet the situation in India had improved markedly since the days when the great Ranji had to bat for England. Players like Vijay Merchant were doing well. Eventually, India progressed as a team and, in 1983, won the World Cup for the first time.

Pakistan also won the World Cup nine years later, and like India, their success had been gradual in the making. A successful series against New Zealand in 1955-56 had punctuated losses and draws. New Zealand’s road to the cricketing summits was particularly long.

History undoubtedly shows us that all “emerging” nations go through a period of difficulty where they adjust to the demands of elite cricket. This is only natural and is not necessarily grounds for limiting the growth of the game. Sri Lanka is the latest success story to emerge from a “minnow”. Two World Cup finals in a row and a win in 1996 is a fine achievement. Maybe they will be a force in the next one too. It wasn’t that long ago though, that Sri Lanka were in the same position that Ireland find themselves in now.