The CEO of the West Indies cricket board Johnny Grave has come up with criticism towards the International Cricket Council (ICC) for their lack of support and funds to save the cricketing atmosphere in the Caribbean. Grave made these comments in a recent interview where he mainly went at the ICC for not doing enough to preserve West Indies cricket.
It will be fair to say that Johnny Grave is highly agitated with how ICC treated West Indies cricket off-late. What used to be the place of famous cricketers like Sir Viv Richards, Clive Lloyd, and Chris Gayle among others, has become a place for cricket to forget. Last year, it was for the first time in their history that West Indies failed to qualify for the 50-over World Cup for the first time.
After the CWC, West Indies had positive results against England in a white ball home series. And then earlier this year when West Indies went for an all-format tour of Australia, the visitors scripted history. They became the first team in more than 2 decades to register a Test match victory at the Gabba.
Johnny Grave claims world cricket is doing everything possible to destroy West Indies cricket
Johnny Grave in a recent interview given to Wisden Cricket Monthly Podcast, made a very bold as well as emotional claim. He stated that even if there is a wave going around to help and revive West Indies cricket, the world’s cricketing fraternity is doing everything possible to make sure the nation never revives again.
At times it does come as a shocker that West Indies who were a great cricketing-playing nation in the last decade, have suddenly gone down like a house of cards. In the 2010s, the Windies bagged the same number of ICC trophies as India and more than England and Australia combined. Those trophies were the ICC T20 World Cup in 2012 and 2016 when Darren Sammy led the team to do the unthinkable.
“I think everyone is a bit sick of the phrase – world cricket needs a strong West Indies, when we feel that world cricket is doing everything they can at almost every level to make sure that West Indies Cricket is never strong again. If we all just are looking after ourselves then are we acting as a community? Are we putting the best product on the field?” Johnny Grave said via Wisden Cricket Podcast.
Grave hits at ICC for decreasing their revenue percentage from 7% to 5%
Johnny Grave would then explain the real reason why West Indies cricket is not able to become a superpower again. He lashed out at the ICC’s revenue sharing system to the nation and failed to understand why ICC has lowered their share from 7% to 5%.
“I think that is the borne of the frustration of that as Ian Bishop says in his own words that this is a patronizing tone. If you want a strong West Indies Cricket, it would not be that hard to do a bit more. ICC is giving us more money in headlines but our percentage of revenue has gone down from 7% to 5% which we struggle to understand,” Johnny Grave concluded.
