West Indies vs India 2016: WICB President hints at steps to improve Test fortunes

Perturbed by the flagging response from Test cricket supporters in the Caribbean, West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) President Dave Cameron has admitted that steps need to be taken in order to galvanize the format in the region.

ESPNCricinfo reported him opening up about the red-ball game’s current state in West Indies. Till now, the hosts have been found wanting during the ongoing Test series against India.

Cameron felt, “As the West Indies Cricket Board, we need to do a lot more in terms of entertaining people at the ground. Right now, a lot needs to be done. We need to have Wi-Fi in the grounds, we need to be able to cater for children in a better way.”

Despite winning the 2016 World Twenty20 and also showing signs of improvement in the ODI Tri-series at home, West Indies continue to languish at number 8 in the ICC Test rankings.

As a consequence, crowd support has been quite sparse for Test matches even though huge numbers are thronging the stadiums for the Caribbean Premier League (CPL). Acknowledging the necessity to address the issue, Cameron hoped for a change in the coming months.

He believed, “Cricket, especially Test matches, is an entire-day experience. Parents want to be able to take their kids to the cricket, to be able to enjoy the cricket, and not be too mindful that their kids are going to drop off a chair. So I think there's a lot that we can do, in terms of 'sportainment', to ensure that the fans come out to the game and not just sit at home and watch the game.”

“A lot of people, fans out there, are interested in what is going on. So it's not that the game is dead, it's how do you get eyes coming into the ground and watching it versus those who are watching on social media or on television.“

When asked about West Indies’ struggles in the Test arena for quite some time, the 45-year old sustained faith in the domestic circuit and was confident of a revival during the next year or so.

Cameron affirmed, “Part of why we don't have as much crowds today is the team is not the best team, and when I say the best team, meaning we're not winning at this point in time. But that said, I can assure you, based on our Professional Cricket League and where we're at right now in terms of development, in another year or so we'll see people coming back to watch Test cricket.”