“Till when can you carry on with them as a Test-playing nation?” - Aakash Chopra in favor of West Indies’ relegation from red-ball format

Former Indian opener Aakash Chopra reckons that the International Cricket Council (ICC) must strip West Indies of their Test-playing status because they haven’t done anything of note in international cricket for a few years now.

West Indies cricket hit a new low recently when they failed to qualify for the ODI World Cup in India. This is the first time in history that an ODI World Cup will be played without the inaugural champions of the event. Their performances in Tests and T20Is too have left much to be desired.

In a Q&A session on his YouTube channel, Chopra was asked if the time has come to remove West Indies from Test cricket and instead give associate member status to individual islands like Jamaica and Antigua among others.

He nodded in agreement and said:

“Not a bad point. They won’t be playing in the World Cup. In all three formats, they are lagging behind in the rankings. Eventually, there has to be a threshold. I have been talking about that tier system - promotion and relegation. Just because they are an erstwhile champion side, till when can you carry on with them as a Test-playing nation? The team, as such, is doing nothing.”

Backing the idea of separate West Indies teams in associate cricket, he added:

“Their case is unique because they have separate islands. Their pitches are so slow. You saw it in Dominica and you will see it at Port of Spain as well. It’s not a bad idea. May be the island teams might play with more pride. All said and done, West Indies’ state of cricket is quite bad."

A hapless West Indies outfit was recently hammered by an innings and 141 runs by India in the first Test in Dominica.

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“The five fingers are split and everyone is thinking about themselves” - Chopra on West Indies’ unending woes

Elaborating on West Indies’ constant struggles both on and off the field, Chopra opined that lack of unity and improper coordination among various islands have been responsible for the team’s shocking downfall.

He also referred to the fact that a number of top players prefer franchise cricket over representing West Indies.

“The five fingers are split and everyone is thinking about themselves - be it Jamaica, Barbados, Antigua or Guyana. There is hardly any coordination. During their prime, Clive Lloyd kept them together. This team needs leadership, because it’s a scattered side. Every island nation has them own anthem. As it is, things were difficult and then players became T20 journeymen. The pride in playing for West Indies has reduced,” Chopra said.

Meanwhile, West Indies will take on India in the second Test at Port of Spain in Trinidad from July 20 to 24.