Cricket
Gloomy point
Alan Gibson
The tour of the West Indies has so far been a disaster. I am not referring to the cricketing results. We could not be seriously expected to win (besides, we have made unexpected recoveries there before, and honour may yet be saved). We have not the batsmen, and they have the four dreaded fast bowlers. Nor am I referring to the lamented sudden death of Ken Barrington, though it must have given the side a severe shock at a time when they could least sustain it. Nor am I referring to the supposed deficiencies of captaincy. It was generally recognised that Botharn was not mature enough for such an exacting task, but also that there was nobody else in sight likely to do it better. He is a fighter, and still has plenty of time to learn.
No, the real worry has been the Jackman affair. I must say that I am delighted that Jackman has at least got his England cap. He is a worthy cricketer if ever there was one. It was puzzling that he was not chosen for the tour in the first place. It did cross my mind that a reason, perhaps subconscious, may have been because of his South African connections. It is true that several of the chosen players had also coached in South Africa, but none had been quite so closely involved in it as Jackman, who married a South African. That he was not quite good . enough seemed a little like the England selectors' decision on D'Oliveira in 1968. Two of the England selectors knew, when choosing the side, that D'Oliveira would be unacceptable to South Africa, and the tour would be off. As it happened, Tom Cartwright was unfit, and D'Oliveira was chosen after all, and there was no tour. As it happened this time, Willis became unfit, and Jackman went out as a replacement, and there was very nearly no tour. It is interesting that many of the people who were in favour of South Africa's attitude then, are vehement in the denunciation of the West Indies' attitude now.
Ah, but what about the Gleneagles Agreement? This vague document was skilfully written so that any signatory could make what it liked of it, and was bound to cause trouble sooner or later. We are told that it will be 'clarified' at the next Commonwealth meeting, but I bet it won't be. It is obviously impossible, within our laws and traditions, to stop an Englishman who wishes to earn his living in South Africa in the winter from doing so. But we must face the fact that other countries take different views, and this problem will recur.
It is not sufficiently realised by cricketers in this country that 'West Indies' is now a meaningless term except in cricket. The West Indies Cricket Board is the only important unifying interest left in what we once hoped would become .`His Majesty's Dominion of the Caribbean'. It cannot control the assorted, scattered territories. I remember a good many years ago asking Frank Worrell if a player from St Pierre, or Martinique, or Cuba, turned out to be a good enough cricketer to play for 'West Indies' would he be chosen? That was still when there were high hopes of Federation. He thought about it for a bit, said he could see no logical reason why not, and added that he did not think it would arise in his lifetime. Then the only considered 'West Indian' cricket countries were Jamaica, Trinidad, Barbados and British Guiana. Now Antigua and St Vincent have produced Test players, and England recently played in Montserrat. It would not surprise me if the next mighty West Indian fast bowler came from Martinique, and there is no doubt that when Cuba gets its first Test, anyone with the remotest associations with South Africa will be unacceptable.
The gloomy thought is that, since we are not going to stop our cricketers coaching in South Africa, and since this upsets some of the West Indian governments so much, Test matches with the West Indies may end. This would be a loss to the game. It would be possible that Test cricket became divided into black and white sections: England playing Australia, and South Africa, and New Zealand, West Indies playing India, Pakistan, and possibly Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. There are some people, both in England and the West Indies, who might quite like this solution (there are even more in South Africa).
I have never thought that cricket, especially Test cricket, was one of the more important things in life, but I have no doubt this would be a pity. Everyone concerned, both cricket authorities and the Commonwealth prime ministers, should take a little thought about it, instead of blundering majestically into absurd statements and positions, from which they cannot extricate themselves without loss of face. In the meantime, I wish Botham and the lads good luck, and ask them to remember the old line, 'We gotta get better 'cos we can't get worse'.
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