Darren Sammy: Should the West Indian Cricket Board have retained him as captain?

Seldom do you find successful leaders being replaced by their lesser established peers, as it doesn’t help either the firm or the person himself; because once upon a time, before he was replaced that is, he was one of their most valuable assets, and now, he’s equivalent to a regular employee, or at best, a slightly above average asset. What happens to the company after that is hard to imagine; they could grow into a major force in the market, or they could be left high and dry only to be hammered into a corner by their competitors. What happens to the employee in question you say? Well, lets just leave that part unanswered.

Such is the story of the now ex-West Indian skipper Darren Sammy. The World T20 winning captain of the Caribbean nation is now one such ‘employee’. Darren Sammy, arguably one of the best captains West Indies have had in the last 8 years or so, is now facing a situation where he is no longer the asset he once was. Many questions were raised as to why he was replaced from his position in the ODI format. Most would say it was because the WICB was trying to find a replacement for the future, and was trying to emulate the success that England and South Africa have found with different captains for different formats.

Though the concept is sound, the implementation has been less than spectacular. The passing of the mantle from the senior to the junior should be done in such a way that the morale of the senior is not harmed and the junior receiving the coveted position isn’t overwhelmed when he gets projected as the future leader of a whole nation in the arena. Though the passing of the mantle in case of the West Indians wasn’t blown out of proportion like the one in New Zealand, it wasn’t as smooth as they would’ve liked.

Even though the elevation of Dwayne Bravo to skipper hasn’t been disastrous per se, it hasn’t been brilliant either. His place in the side is that of an all-rounder; he can bat pretty well, and not just in the T20 format. His medium pace bowling is effective in the middle overs, as we have seen in the recently concluded IPL, where he was the best bowler in terms of wickets taken. And his fielding has always been brilliant. If looked at from a cricketing perspective, this seemed a logical move. He is a charismatic player, who brought a lot more quality to the table than was previously offered, and has more experience than the current skipper in the world arena. Optimists would argue that it could yet prove to be a master stroke, but a realist would point out the shortcomings, with the Champions Trophy being the highlight.

Cricket aside, how do you decide whether a player can become a leader? Are his talents and abilities the only qualities you look for? Or are there other aspects that make or break the career of a possible ‘leader’? Let’s look at politics for a (slightly more) reasonable answer. A politician is one who represents the people he is chosen to represent, like the poster boy of his community,someone who might end up playing a large hand in determining whether the particular section of society that he represents is given everything they demanded, or rather everything they needed. His role in society is not exactly limited to winning an election on the pretext of fulfilling a few promises; rather it’s based on him keeping his job with dignity, where he doesn’t defame himself or the community he represents. He should also keep a constant tab on how things are functioning in the society, so that no one is left feeling that they voted for the wrong person i.e he should sustain his good work. A politician should also look at long term goals, because even if he is ousted from his position in the next election, he has left a solid framework on which his successors can build further.

A captain plays a similar role. First and foremost, to be a good captain he should be a regular player in the side, that is the pre-requisite. Secondly, he should be able to bridge the gap between the players and the board, meaning he should be a good communicator, a person who can be approached when a player has certain grievances, and to put in a word to the board, or someone the board can count on to get the word across to the players when they want a few goals accomplished. And most importantly, he should be a leader, in the true sense of the word. As a leader, he should be able to lead by example, he must be fearless and determined to take his team across the finish line, to be able to lift the team in times of adversity and share the spoils in times of joy, to take criticism positively and work towards improving the team, and himself. That is a true leader.

Darren Sammy is one such player. He was chosen as the captain when West Indies were going through a ‘transition period’, as a successor to Chris Gayle, one of West Indies’ and the world’s most accomplished batsman. His selection came as a consequence of Gayle and Bravo not signing their contract extensions with the Board, which led to the two of them not being selected for the tours at the time. The lack of senior players, along with the wish of the remaining seniors to not take up the captaincy, led to the projection of Sammy as the prime candidate, and he didn’t disappoint. He worked hard with the team and built a strong foundation on which his future successors could grow and maybe one day bring glory to the nation. Even when they won the T20 World Cup in 2012, he didn’t wish to hit back at his doubters; instead he took the criticism in his stride and worked towards achieving the impossible. Such was the quality of the man, fighting for his team even through adversity, and coming out on top. He wears the crest of his nation on his sleeve with pride, and he led them with honour. His captaincy may have been the best thing to happen to the West Indies since Brian Lara, but he never once made anyone feel it; one of the virtues a person looks for in a captain.

Recent performances from the West Indies have shown that they are a team in a good position to regain their status as a super power in world cricket – extremely talented youngsters and gritty seniors, they have it all. The only thing stopping them is the captaincy, or lack of it. Darren Sammy seemed to be the answer to that problem. Being brilliantly adept at pacifying struggling team-mates and spurring on the successful ones, Sammy could do it all. His performances in the T20 World Cup speak volumes of his abilities as a captain. Trusting his brigade of youngsters against established players from other nations, he slowly nurtured them into one of the most formidable group of players, especially in the T20 format. The way in which he performed and captained the side in the T20 World Cup is a testament to his capabilities. He may not be a born leader, but he sure did grow into the role. His ouster from the position in the ODI format was met with a lot of questions, just like his appointment, but no matter how much controversy he faces, he will still be the one man that brought the West Indies World Cup triumph after 33 years.

Coming to the issue of Dwayne Bravo becoming the captain, we shouldn’t judge his reign as skipper this soon. Bravo’s experience should be taken into account before any decision is taken on his future as captain, because if the confidence shown by the board in him goes down, his performances may take a hit, and the WICB cannot afford to let him become a ‘lost asset’. Until then, I personally feel Sammy is best equipped to lead this wonderfully talented team for the near foreseeable future. Call me a hypocrite, but I do believe Bravo should be given a decent amount of time to prove his mettle as well. Should he succeed, it will only benefit the whole country; and should he fail, they still have Plan B – bring back Sammy. Whatever happens from here on will determine where West Indian cricket is going to go, but till then, it’s safe to say that the future of West Indian cricket is in safe hands. Bravo or Sammy, the future looks rosy for the once mighty Caribbean nation.