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Okay, I'll admit it. I was unhappy as hell when West Indies went down like ninepins to India in the 1983 final.
It was an oddball contradiction because I was equally delighted that we were the World Cup champs. Yet, to see the likes of Lloyd, Greenidge and Haynes fall by the wayside was tough for someone who had grown admiring the Calypso brand of cricket.
Sure, when they lost, they would do so big time, but you would never see these guys cringe and battle it out for a dreary draw. One recalls that even the great Sir Garry Sobers was pilloried when he made a sporting declaration at Port of Spain over four decades ago and promptly lost the test and series to England.
On Sunday, India meets the West Indies except that I am sure it will be a non-contest from the word go. This is not going to be a 1983 when an infinitely superior side had a bad day and lost. This West Indies team just does not have the magic and killer instinct of its predecessors of the 1980s. Will a Gayle and Pollard stand up to the combined might of a Tendulkar, Sehwag and Pathan? Not a chance, unless we mess it up like they did in 1983.
The gradual demise of West Indies cricket has been a terrible sight to behold for cricket aficionados. My dad's generation was bedazzled by the magic of a Sobers while mine stood transfixed when Richards was at the crease. We loved his arrogance, courage and commitment to the game. If he were playing today, I am sure he would still scoff at a helmet and would rather look the speedsters in the eye.
Remember what Jeffrey Archer had to say about his son's tribute to this great West Indian? “My son William, aged nine, was reading an article in The Times about the (1981) Brixton riots, and when he finished I tentatively asked him how he felt about the (British) National Front's view that black people were somehow inferior. ‘Pathetic,' he replied, ‘none of them can have seen Viv Richards at the crease.'”
Today, West Indies cricket continues to be in a shambles and it is going to be one hell of a task putting it back on track. I almost cringe when the once invincible men from the Caribbean look like novices on the field. Remember, these were the guys who brought so much joy to the game. And as much as winning was important, cricket was always the victor.
Should I still keep my date with the idiot box on Sunday?
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