The much-vaunted emergency summit promised to West Indian cricket fans to solve the declining fortunes of the regional team, which began in Trinidad on Monday, with most of the cricketing legends and top officials attending the two-day meeting.
In a weekend release, Antigua-based Cricket West Indies reminded an embarrassed region of the conference, saying decisions made at the Hyatt Regency Hotel will be implemented immediately.
The reactionary summit stems from the West Indies Team’s humiliating defeat at the hands of a weakened Australian test, being bowled out for a mere 27 runs in Jamaica’s third and final Test recently. The 27 was the second lowest score compared to 26, made by New Zealand against England in 1995. The team had batted only 14.3 overs, less than the 20 allowed in T20 limited overs cricket. The defeat prompted calls for immediate solutions from fans, cricketing legends, the private sector, and regional governments, among others.
“This summit represents a critical turning point for West Indies cricket. We hope to engage in frank, honest, and solutions-oriented discussions with coaches, former and current players, and administrators,” said Director of Cricket Miles Bascombe.
“What we hope will emerge is a unified vision and a clearly defined, comprehensive framework designed to correct systemic inadequacies and close the performance gap at the elite level. This is not about quick fixes but identifying the structural reforms necessary across our development and high-performance systems and strategic short- and long-term initiatives required to drive the necessary change,” he said in a CWI statement.
Former players Desmond Haynes, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, and Ian Bradshaw attended the meeting. Notably absent from the list submitted by CWI was batting legend and former Captain Brian Lara. No explanation was given for his absence.
The governing board stated that day one of the talks will focus on “High Performance Strategy and Structural Reform,” with wide-ranging panel discussions examining current team performance challenges and identifying immediate improvement strategies. Day two will shift to “Player-Centered High-Performance Solutions,” with direct inputs from current senior players and coaching staff about performance gaps and team ambitions,” CWI stated.
When the summit ends late on Tuesday, a mixed panel will address the local and regional media to update the region with implementable decisions.
