Visitor To Zimbabwe: Sir Clyde Walcott interview

Sir Clyde and Lady Walcott are currently in Zimbabwe as guests of the Zimbabwe Cricket Union. Sir Clyde speaks to John Ward about his visit.

JW: First of all, Sir Clyde, I've always wondered about one thing concerning your own career. Normally tall batsmen like yourself are strongest off the front foot, but you had a reputation for being most devastating off the back foot. Was there any particular reason for that?

CW: Well, it was just my style of play. I don't think it had anything to do with my height; I just batted that way. I was pretty strong off the back foot, but that doesn't mean I didn't play off the front foot as well. It depended on the bowler and on the pitch of the ball, you know, so it was just my style.

JW: What are the reasons for your visit to Zimbabwe?

CW: I am here as the guest of the Zimbabwe Cricket Union. I have never been to Zimbabwe before; it was the only Test-playing country I have never visited. They thought it would be a good idea to have me out and see what the cricket is all about here, and the conditions and the country itself. I appreciate that, and I'm enjoying it.

JW: When did you actually arrive?

CW: I arrived on the first day of the last Test, and I'm leaving on the last day of this Test, and going back to Barbados.

JW: What are you actually doing in the ICC at the moment?

CW: At the moment I am chairman of the cricket committee. When I finished as chairman of ICC the structure changed, so we had three committees. One is a cricket committee which is divided into two sections, playing and administration. I chair those. Then there is a chairman of the finance committee and a chairman of the cricket development committee.

I chair the cricket committee which deals by and large with the rules and regulations, the umpires, the match referees - the actual playing of the cricket. Because you are chairman of a sub-committee, then you are a member of the executive board. So it calls for a lot of travelling.

We have several associate member countries who are members of ICC and are looking to improve their cricket and become Test-playing countries. At the moment Bangladesh and Kenya are striving to reach that. There will be others, so we are trying to help these countries develop their game, so eventually cricket can be like other sports, a world sport, which it is not at the moment.

JW: What are your main observations about Zimbabwe cricket?

CW: Well, I think that Zimbabwe has a long way to go to reach the high standard that one would expect. I think there is reason for that. While I have been in other countries so many people have asked me about cricket, but here they don't seem to ask so many questions about international cricket because they haven't really been involved in international cricket for too long.

At least one has to consider the problems in this part of the world. The indigenous people here have never really played the game until recent years and they've come a long way. So I can understand why more people do not play and why the standard isn't higher than it is - because there are not all that many people playing.

JW: Have you any suggestions as to how that situation can be improved in this country?

CW: I think that any country wanting to get more people playing will have to ensure that cricket comes to the schools, to the young people, and that the schools will have to get them involved in the cricket and to know the names of all the other players out in the world and emulate some of them. With all the television there is these days, the young people will watch the better players and try to emulate them. And of course coaching has to be important too because there are certain techniques in cricket that one should use to become better.

JW: What other problems do you see in Zimbabwe cricket at the moment?

CW: I haven't seen much of Zimbabwe cricket; all I have seen is the Zimbabwe team play and this is the second match. I haven't seen any youth cricket or club cricket to form these opinions. When I have walked around the first thing people ask me is where I come from. And I tell them Barbados, West Indies, and many of them don't seem to know where that is. If they don't know that, how do they know in what countries cricket is played? So they don't know anything at all about cricket. They haven't been brought up in a cricket environment. So it is going to take a long time to get them to know exactly what the game is all about.

JW: Lack of cricket literature, which plays such a part in educating people about the game, is also a major problem in this country. The press largely ignores the domestic game, and many of the sports writers know little about it. Publishing books in this country is very expensive, there is such a small market for cricket literature, and the cost of imported books is prohibitive. We are finally able to produce a yearbook; we have had a couple of magazines in the past which have failed when the publishers lost interest, but we are hoping to bring out a new one next year. But this is a major handicap to the knowledge of cricket in other part of the world, as well as in Zimbabwe.

CW: I have recently written a book which was published during the World Cup, and one or two people who travel a lot said they were trying to get a copy, but there is not one copy available in Zimbabwe.

JW: And if there were, probably few people would easily be able to afford one.

CW: The whole game has to grow and there are lots of things to happen.

JW: Have you any other thoughts about the game here?

CW: You need cricket played at schools and that sort of thing, all to get the young kids interested; videos of cricket so they can watch it.

JW: Also very expensive! As I am sure you've been told, most of the government schools in this country are very short of money, and there are very few teachers still there with much knowledge of cricket, largely because the salaries are so low that many of them have gone into commerce or the private schools.

CW: This is the problem. It's going to take a long time for cricket to reach that standard for people who are really interested in cricket in this country.

JW: Are you able to give your thoughts on what you have seen in the Test matches here?

CW: The facilities are good, the pitches are good, but the matches have been slow, I think because far too many of the Zimbabwean players have been coached! Now they have to be coached, but there is little natural talent. When they are coached they come good, but there is little natural talent.

To some extent I would think the same is true about the Sri Lankans. I haven't seen Sri Lanka play a lot of cricket but I have always thought they were an attractive side. It wasn't so evident in these two Test matches, but again it could be the pitch which could be slow. Coaching is good, but you can be over-coached and lose your natural talent.

JW: Have you any other comments to make about cricket in Zimbabwe?

CW: I think cricket in Zimbabwe has come a long way. In the World Cup this year they played relatively well which shows that they are improving, but it will take time, so people must not expect too much from the team at this point in time.

JW: Are there any ways that other countries in the world might be able to help Zimbabwean cricket? We do have some actually who help by sending us kit which is very expensive here.

CW: I can only speak for West Indies, and I don't think West Indies are capable of helping other countries because of its poor financial position.

JW: We still have to play our first Test match against West Indies, so we are looking forward to that.