A Humiliation that unearthed Champions who then went on to rule the world for more than 15 years that no sporting team ever done in any sporting discipline.
India “Stand up”, West Indies danced from death
Fresh from the victory champagne of the first ever one day international world cup, West Indies next assignment is a trip to down under for a 6 match test series. The contest is dubbed as world championship with West Indies being ODI world cup winners and Aussie being uncrowned Test champions ultimately in either way the winner will be the champions of the cricket. But once the series started, it’s pace, aggression and words from Australians. The Aussie pace attack of Lillee, Thomson and Gilmour just brutally assaulted the West Indies to clinch the series 5-1. West Indies were outplayed, outclassed, out parked and out smacked resulted in a humiliation that burned the world of cricket for decades.
The powerful words from the great Sir Viv Richards “I remember Clive saying never again! Never again!” is the best way to describe their road to glory. After that disastrous tour, West Indies tasted victories after victories yet it didn’t healed their wounds from the humiliation as they tormented the sides for years. Barring their controversial series loss against New Zealand in 1980, West Indies won each and every test series until Feb, 1995 from 1976. They may or may not be the best sporting team ever, but they laid the path for champions. They combined the sheer passion with aggression that bought a team together that was actually separated by government.
In almost similar situation, history has indeed repeated itself. India after that sublime world cup win went to England, a team that enjoyed a series of splendid test performance in recent years and suffered a whitewash in four match test series which was dubbed as the world championship. India was humiliated by England with the performances that rightly earned the host a No.1 place in test. There aren’t any bruises or wounds by opponents that West Indies suffered but India were thrashed so hard that they have to dig their glories in graveyard by the way they lost each match. India just can’t handle the heat of English pace attack in cold weather as they bundled out for score of not more than 300 in 8 innings of the series and in contrast, English had their early Christmas at the cost of Indian bowlers.
After that inglorious loss against Australia, Clive Lloyd thought if they can find some fast bowlers then they too can give it back what they have tasted. Lloyd went around the islands of Caribbean from one ground to another and day after day to find fast bowlers, very fast bowlers for his team. He had exactly one month for his next assignment against India and a month did prove enough for him. Lloyd fought hard with the selectors and finally succeeded to get Wayne Daniel, Andy Roberts and Michael Holding, the first fast bowling combination of an era that followed many.
Both Lloyd and Dhoni had more than one thing in similar be it their smashing batting style or respect gained from his team mates. Clive Lloyd may not be the great tacticians or a great captain but he was a Leader. A leader who never afraid to take challenge and destroyed the barriers for his countries pride, Clive Lloyd simply carried his team in hands and country in shoulders as he took them to glory.
Can Mahendra Singh Dhoni do Lloyd for India? Is he having the will power to break the barriers in Indian cricket to take us to glory? Dhoni is not alone like Lloyd. He has all the power within the board plus the God and Wall of Cricket with him. All he needs to find a “Macko” or “Big bird” or “Little bird” or may be unearth a “whispering death” from the billions. Dhoni needs to become a leader, inspire his team and nation. Not only Anna, we all wanna put our nation ahead and work harder for glories to happen rather waiting for it. There is nothing impossible, (billion) hopes never ends, dreams never die and thinking never stops. India has more than month after England tour and it’s in Dhoni hands to either make or break.
It’s history that we never forget because we take pride in emulating it. West Indies is history!
Tags: Andy Roberts, Clive Lloyd, Cricket, India, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Michael Holding, Sir Viv Richards, Wayne Daniel, West Indies
