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Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) dropped a bombshell Saturday when former captains Saeed Anwar and Moin Khan were not considered worthy of a place in the two squads named for next week’s tour of Zimbabwe.PCB’s stance to ignore claims of world record-holders Moin and Saeed tantamount to great injustice to the two senior players who had given yeoman services to Pakistan. Why then, were these two asked to prove themselves in the farcical trial match 24 hours ago?PCB’s decisions to overlook these two great players is nothing short of disparaging as far as Moin and Saeed are concern.Wasim Bari, the chairman of dummy selection committee, gave unsatisfactory reasons at the press briefing in Lahore without caring so much for what Saeed had gone through over past 14 months with personal bereavement when his baby daughter died. “He lacked confidence and his fielding has also deteriorated.”In a match on Friday on his home turf, he batted t No 4 which also confirms our apprehensions,” Bari told the newsmen. “However, the curtain has not fallen on his career and he’ll be considered for selection in future.”Bari also clarified that Moin’s career is not over as yet. “We attached a youngster (Kamran Akmal) who could be groomed for future. We have maintained that policy this time also when Rashid Latif is the first choice wicket-keeper. The impression that Moin’s career is over is totally incorrect.”At the same time, the decision to pick Saleem Elahi and Shahid Afridi in both Test and one-day teams alongwith uncapped Kamran Akmal comes as a major surprise as are the inclusions of Inzamam-ul-Haq and Azhar Mahmood despite big question marks over their fitness.The selection of Kamran means the claims of a better wicket-keeper like Atiq-uz-Zaman were ignored.Waqar Younis, in a way, has succeeded in ensuring that he would not stand the presence of more than two senior players as long as he is captain.What was the wisdom of staging Friday’s trial match in Lahore and what was the criteria of team selection?Afridi, about whom Waqar himself has gone on record to say that he was not Test material, now finds a place in both squads. He was out for a duck in the trial game.The 22-year-old was flown out to Sharjah after Abdul Razzaq was sidelined by a fractured left wrist but then reported on the eve of final Test against Australia that he was unfit and overweight.One thought Saleem Elahi’s international career was over after a disappointing tour of England last year. But now, for the umpteenth time, he is back in favour inspite of the fact that he crawled to nine off 34 balls in the so-called trial fixture. It seems somebody up there likes him.Saleem went through a lean period last season where in 14 first-class matches accumulated 753 runs in 25 innings. PCB owes an explanation as to why Imran Farhat has been now cast aside.The left-hander, at 20 is six years younger than Saleem, played in the final Test in Sharjah where he enjoyed some success and should have been persisted on the less demanding trip to Zimbabwe.Bari defended recall of Saleem. “An extended run was given to all the youngsters. But after their failure to perform at the highest level, we reverted to the best opener available in domestic circuit.”Saleem Elahi happened to be that player. Besides, the skipper and the coach (Richard Pybus) also had confidence in his abilities. “As regards Imran Farhat the boy showed flashes of brilliance in the third Test against Australia but at the same time he showed that he needs sometime to mature,” the former Test wicket-keeper added.Bari failed to justify the omission of leg-spinner Danish Kaneria, who took three wickets in that trial game, from the Test squad. As things stand, Saqlain Mushtaq, the off-spinner, is the sole slow bowler retained.Inzamam’s return as vice-captain could back fire since he is handicapped by a heel injury which requires surgery. PCB has taken a huge gamble with the burly batsman by naming him in both one-day and Test teams.Inzamam has not featured in a Test since he made that colossal 329 against New Zealand at Lahore six months ago. On the one-day front, Inzamam had been something of a failure this year, scoring only 250 in 22 innings with two fifties.Azhar Mahmood is another diabolical selection. He pulled out of the trial game Thursday with a shoulder problem. He must have had made a remarkable recovery overnight to make the squad.Azhar’s gain is poor Rana Naveed-ul-Hasan’s loss. Naveed, an upcoming all-rounder, served as a drinks carrier against Australia. It’s a pity that an ideal opportunity to blood a young player has gone abegging.Taufiq Umar and Faisal Iqbal, who were certainties for Tests, are welcome addition in the one-day party. But Mohammad Sami’s exclusion from the limited-overs squad is rather harsh for the young fast bowler.Wasim Akram, the former skipper, as widely tipped, is considered only for the one-dayers and is now almost certain to end his illustrious career at the World Cup next year.Immediately after Zimbabwe’s tour, Pakistan are scheduled to play two more Tests and five further One-day Internationals in South Africa. Squads for that tour will be finalised during the Zimbabwe series.Squads:For Tests: Waqar Younis (captain), Inzamam-ul-Haq, Taufiq Umar, Shahid Afridi, Saleem Elahi, Yousuf Youhana, Hasan Raza, Younis Khan, Rashid Latif, Kamran Akmal, Shoaib Akhtar, Mohammad Sami, Mohammad Zahid and Saqlain Mushtaq.For One-day Internationals: Waqar Younis (captain), Inzamamul-Haq (vice-captain), Taufiq Umar, Shahid Afridi, Saleem Elahi, Younis Khan, Yousuf Youhana, Misbah-ul-Haq, Faisal Iqbal, Rashid Latif, Kamran Akmal, Wasim Akram, Azhar Mahmood, Mohammad Zahid, Shoaib Akhtar and Saqlain Mushtaq.Team officials: Brig Khawaja Mohammad Nasir (manager), Richard Pybus (coach), Sikander Bakht (team analyst), Dennis Waight (physiotherapist) and Riaz Ahmed (doctor).Itinerary:Nov 1: Leave for Harare via Johannesburg.Nov 4-6: v Zimbabwe ‘A’ (Harare).Nov 9-13: First Test (Harare).Nov 16-20: Second Test (Bulawayo).Nov 23: First One-day International (Bulawayo).Nov 24: Second One-day International (Bulawayo).Nov 27: Third One-day International (Harare).Nov 30: Fourth One-day International (Harare).Dec 1: Fifth One-day International (Harare).Dec 2: Leave for Johannesburg.

Anniversaries and important dates are always fondly remembered.Can anyone even remotely associated with Indian cricket forgetJune 25, for example? That was not just the day India made herdebut in Test cricket in 1932 but by happy coincidence also thedate of the greatest moment in Indian cricket ­ the World Cuptriumph – 51 years later and at the same ground to boot.

March 10 may not be as easily remembered as June 25, but that wasthe day two very significant triumphs were notched up. First, in1971, India registered her first ever victory against the WestIndies at Port of Spain. Fourteen years later to the day came theunexpected triumph in the World Championship of Cricket final atMelbourne.Indian cricket fans will also vividly recall August 24. Afterall, that was the day in 1971 when India registered her firstTest victory in England and with it claimed the rubber. Doesanyone remember the significance of March 7, 15 years ago? Afterjogging one’s memory for some time, perhaps cricket fans willrecall that was the day in 1987 when Sunil Gavaskar became thefirst batsman in Test cricket to cross the 10,000-run barrier.Old-timers will probably have an easier time recalling thesignificance of February 10, 1952, for that day saw Indiaregister her first victory in Test cricket, against England atMadras.Those over the age of 50 will perhaps remember with a glint intheir eye Christmas Eve in 1959, the day India registered one ofher most significant victories ­ the miracle at Kanpur againstthe redoubtable Australians led by Richie Benaud. More middleaged cricket-lovers on the other hand will probably never forgetthe significance of April 12, the date in 1976 that India scoredarguably their greatest ever Test victory, making 406 for fouragainst West Indies at Port of Spain.Also of considerable importance are January 15, 1962 ­ the dayIndia registered her first rubber victory over England at Madras­ and February 20, 1968 ­ the day India notched up her first winabroad, against New Zealand at Dunedin. There are some for whomMarch 6, 1971, is also a special date, being the date ofGavaskar’s Test debut; after all, many of the subsequent upswingsin the country’s cricketing fortunes can be traced back to thatdate. The newer generation of Indian cricket followers, Isuppose, will rate November 15, 1989, as significant, beingSachin Tendulkar’s first day in Test cricket. Not very far behindfor them will be February 8, 1994 ­ the day Kapil Dev took his432nd wicket and stood on the pinnacle all by himself.Unfortunately, in Indian cricket, not all anniversaries and datesare associated with memorable deeds or notable triumphs. Thesetbacks and reverses, the defeats and disasters associated withthe game in India are innumerable, and though one may not care toremember these, they cannot be ignored. For example, does anyoneremember the significance of June 24, 1974? Offhand, maybe not,but mention ‘Summer of 42’ and it will jog unhappy memories. Thatwas the day India were shot out for 42 at Lord’s to lose thesecond Test at Old Trafford by an innings and 285 runs, thesecond-heaviest margin of defeat in Indian cricket history. Longmay it remain India’s lowest total in Tests!And what about the significance of June 7, 1952? That was the daywhen, in a batting collapse of the first magnitude, India losttheir first four wickets without a run on the board. Playingagainst England at Leeds, India had started their second inningsmidway through the third day of the first Test only 41 runs inarrears. But in just 14 balls, Freddie Trueman and Alec Bedserhad swung the match irrevocably England’s way. Such was theimpact of the collapse that when a reporter of an evening dailyrang up the desk to give the latest score as a stop-press item,the story goes that the sub-editor, refusing to believe thescore, gave it as, “India in their second innings were four forno loss when reports last came in.”When the seamier aspects of Indian cricket are recalled, July 19,1952, will rank very high, but few will care to recall it, andmost certainly not the survivors of the Indian team that facedEngland at Old Trafford in the third Test of that one-sidedseries. For a Test side to be bowled out once in 58 overs orinside four hours is bad enough. But what can one say when a sideis bowled out TWICE in that time? And yet that was the sickeningexperience of the Indian team on that fateful day.It was the third morning of the match, and England over the firsttwo days had scored 292 for seven in between interruptions forrain and bad light. Resuming, England carried on till Len Huttonapplied closure at 347 for nine. What happened thereafter wasbeyond the belief of even the most cynical Indian cricketfollower. In just 21.4 overs, India were bundled out for 58,equalling their record lowest total registered against Australiaat Brisbane in November 1947. Trueman, striking terror in theIndian ranks, finished with eight for 31. Ten minutes later,India were following on, 289 runs behind.And in just 36.3 overs, they were dismissed in the course of thathideously unforgettable day for a second time for 82. This timethe damage was done by Bedser (5 for 27) and Tony Lock (4 for36), with Trueman being restricted to eight overs and one wicket.It remains the only time that a Test side has been bowled outtwice in a single day ­ an unwanted record that has unfortunatelystood for half a century.

The Norwich Union League season opened with what will quite possibly be regarded as the match of the season even when September 22nd is reached. The bare statistic says that Yorkshire Phoenix won by one run against Somerset Sabres. What that conceals is that the home side were chasing a target of 308. Centuries for Darren Lehmann and Matthew Wood for the Yorkshiremen looked to be enough, but a brave reply from the home batsmen featuring 99 from Jamie Cox and 79 from Ian Blackwell so nearly got them to the target. Elsewhere, there were wins for Warwickshire Bears, Leicestershire Foxes, Derbyshire Scorpions, Hampshire Hawks and Surrey Lions.Ian Bell might not have lived up to expectations since returning from the National Academy, hence his name was rubbed out from the Test side into which it had earlier been pencilled. Nevertheless, he reminded the selectors that he can still bat with an innings of 72 for Warwickshire Bears against Durham Dynamos at Chester-le-Street. The Bears reached 207 for 7 in their 45 overs, more than enough to secure victory as the Dynamos lacked the power to reach more than 163 for nine to lose by 44 runs.Trevor Ward and Darren Stevens both scored 91 as Leicestershire Foxes posted 283 for five against Nottinghamshire Outlaws at Grace Road. They put on 185 for the second wicket, and did not take long about it. Stevens took just 74 balls with ten fours and a six. Ward took a little longer, but hit 13 fours and a six in his 95 ball innings before Michael Bevan weighed in with a swift 42 not out. Usman Afzaal managed 63 to top score for the Outlaws, but there was not enough support to prevent the Foxes getting home by 32 runs.In Division Two, the Sussex Sharks batsmen never got going against the Derbyshire Scorpions at Derby. As the Sharks sunk to 166 for eight in their 45 overs, there were some pretty tidy bowling figures, with the pick of them being Graeme Welch’s 9-2-45-3, although Dominic Cork conceded just 20 runs from his nine overs and took a wicket. Michael Di Venuto led the Scorpions’ reply with 84 as his side reached the target with four wickets and three overs in hand.Nic Pothas was brought into the Hampshire Hawks side to add some international experience to the wicket-keeper/batsman role, and obliged with 53 not out against Gloucestershire Gladiators. Derek Kenway reached 50 as well. In reply, Dimitri Mascarenhas took five for 27 as the Hawks won by 46 runs, despite Craig Spearman’s innings of 82.They say lightening never strikes twice in the same place, but having lost in the championship on Saturday, Lancashire Lightening were devoured at The Oval 24 hours later by Surrey Lions. Martin Bicknell took five for 26 in his nine overs and there were five catches for Alec Stewart as the northerners were skittled for just 68. The Londoners managed to lose four wickets in reaching the target inside 12 overs.

LAHORE, Nov 14: Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) known for making mind-boggling decisions without taking into pros and cons has once again deferred the fate of Rashid Latif till Saturday.This is the third time that PCB has changed its stance on injury-prone 34-year old Rashid since the first choice wicketkeeper went to Zimbabwe nursing a neck injury. Whether the team management knew of his injury or not is another matter.A PCB spokesman said Thursday that Rashid will go through more tests on his troubled neck vertebra at Johannesburg in order to diagnose the real trouble.PCB chairman a few days earlier, had announced that Rashid would return home to be treated by PCB’s panel of doctors. But surprisingly now the decision has been delayed till Saturday which shows the mindset of PCB.Earlier the PCB chief had instructed the team management to ensure Rashid receives best possible medical treatment in South Africa.

Pakistan have stuck largely with the tried and tested in a 16-man squad for what will effectively be their toughest assignment of the year so far, the tri-series in Bangladesh involving India as the third side.Disappointingly perhaps, of the many new faces trialled against Zimbabwe and Bangladesh earlier this year, only opener Nasir Jamshed and left-arm bowler Wahab Riaz find space on the plane to Dhaka.Promising youngsters, such as openers Khurram Manzoor and Khalid Latif, fast bowler Sohail Khan and wicketkeeper Sarfraz Ahmed have been left behind. The last three are on the reserves list and will instead form part of a camp in Lahore for a pool of players to be considered for the Asia Cup and the ICC Champions Trophy later in the year. The trio, in particular Sohail, remain in contention for the Asia Cup, say the selectors..”It is the best available team and a well-balanced squad,” Salahuddin Ahmed, chief selector, told Cricinfo. “We are aiming for some continuity in selection and that shows with the selection of players such as Nasir Jamshed and Wahab Riaz.”The team was chosen after extensive discussions between the selection committee and Shoaib Malik, the Pakistan captain. The coach Geoff Lawson, however, wasn’t present, having not arrived in time from Sydney. Lawson has had, at times, a testy relationship with the selection committee and his absence, it is believed, has not gone down particularly well with the PCB.Though the squad was largely agreed upon, certain positions and players will be under the scanner during the tri-series, with the selectors keen to plan ahead for the Asia Cup and ICC Champions Trophy later in the year.It is learnt that Kamran Akmal will open the innings with Salman Butt, a combination that Malik has publicly backed. But it has also been made clear, according to one of the selectors, that this is the last chance for Akmal to make an impact as an opener and failure could mean ouster from the team.Shahid Afridi’s form with the bat will also come under scrutiny during the tournament, one source close to the meeting suggesting that the captain was keen on Mansoor Amjad replacing the veteran all-rounder.Bazid Khan, who made a fifty in his last ODI against Bangladesh is retained in the squad, as is Naumanullah, the middle-order batsman who made his debut against Bangladesh in the last ODI of the series in Karachi. Naumanullah has been among Pakistan’s leading domestic run-scorers in the last five seasons, though at 32, an international debut appeared to have passed him by. It was felt he deserved another chance, having batted lower down the order on his debut.Pakistan will be pleased that they can at least call on the services of their three premier fast bowlers in Umar Gul, Sohail Tanvir and Mohammad Asif, who has seemingly recovered from an injury to his bowling hand, sustained during the IPL.Pakistan squad: Shoaib Malik (capt), Salman Butt, Nasir Jamshed, Younis Khan, Mohammad Yousuf, Misbah-ul-Haq, Shahid Afridi, Kamran Akmal (wk), Mohammad Asif, Umar Gul, Sohail Tanvir, Rao Iftikhar, Wahab Riaz, Fawad Alam, Bazid Khan, Naumanullah

New Zealand domestic cricket lost one of its longest-serving players of the modern generation today when Northern Districts stalwart Grant Bradburn decided to retire.His announcement completed 16 years of first-class cricket for Northern Districts.In the summer of 2000/01, Bradburn had reward for his unstinting service to his province when regaining his international status after a 10-year absence.The tall, off-spinning batsman played 127 first-class matches and scored 4978 runs at 27.81 while taking 250 wickets at 32.69. He scored 2289 runs in limited overs matches and took 101 wickets with a career economy rate of 3.73.He played seven Test matches and 11 One-Day Internationals and ended his career as the player with most matches for ND with 115 matches, 4614 runs at an average of 27.96.Bradburn remarked: “My love of the game is still very much alive and I will certainly miss the enjoyable moments that playing the game brings, however, with a wife and two young boys to share time with and a sports retail store to run, it is time to close the book on my playing days.”ND chief executive John Turkington said today: “Grant’s record stands for itself. He has been a loyal servant of Northern Districts cricket since 1985 and in that time his dedication to the Association has been exemplary. We know that Grant will maintain an interest in Northern Districts cricket and wish him all the best for the future.”

BRISBANE, Nov 3 AAP – England insisted there was nothing to read into its bumbling display against Queensland today as the tourists prepared for a shot at the world champion Australians at the Gabba on Thursday.England dropped six catches on the second day of the three-day tour match against Queensland as Martin Love (250) drove the Bulls to a first innings total of 582 at Allan Border Field.But the tourists were smiling at stumps after Michael Vaughan (49 not out) and Marcus Trescothick (46) reeled off a slick century stand to take England to 1-106 with one day remaining.Both openers were impressive but that did nothing to wipe away the question marks hanging over the Test bowling attack, which toiled for 158 overs against a Queensland team missing Australian opener Matthew Hayden.The wicket was flat and the outfield relatively small but the tourists had themselves to blame after dropping Love on 124, 166, 170 and 180.Some of the catches were difficult but England must take similar chances if it is to support its bowlers against Australia.Assistant coach Graham Dilley agreed with captain Nasser Hussain’s assessment that England’s attack lacked potency on flat wickets.That is an uncomfortable admission against an Australian team possessing one of the most dangerous attacks ever assembled in Test cricket, regardless of the conditions.”You can this series the problem is going to be how we get 20 wickets against the Test side on flat pitches,” Dilley said.”Although it’s not the way we would choose to have done it, it’s good that we’ve had a long bowl before the first Test.”It’s a very flat pitch – I’ve not seen a flatter pitch anywhere.”But we’ve got to take all the chances we get. You can’t afford to give the great players of Australia more than one chance.”Love rode his luck as he posted his fifth career double century and the lower order batsmen joined in, with Ashley Noffke (30) and Nathan Hauritz (31) both hitting sixes.Noffke was caught on the eastern bank by a spectator who showed England how it was done, putting down his meat pie, taking the catch and then saluting the crowd.Love hit one six and 27 fours in his 542-minute stay, which was outstanding despite the dropped catches.”It must have looked like I was trying to get out but that’s how it goes. When you’re having some luck, that’s what happens,” Love said.”But the bowling today was probably better than yesterday and the wicket quickened up.”(Andrew) Caddick bowled the best line and length of the quicks and (Ashley) Giles turned it a bit today.”Caddick (2-89 from 31 overs) and Giles (3-124 from 40) were the busiest bowlers while Simon Jones (1-96), Matthew Hoggard (1-112) and Andrew Flintoff (2-112) will appreciate any assistance in the Gabba wicket this week.But the tourists showed they could also score runs as Vaughan and Trescothick shone in the final session.Both batsmen drove strongly while also playing some excellent shots square of the wicket in a clear sign they can challenge the Australian quicks.

England had to work hard – rather harder than might have been expected – to secure their victory, but at half past two on a hot and sultry afternoon, Craig White bowled a ball to Ashish Nehra who pushed forward to give a catch to Graham Thorpe at second slip and England had won by 170 runs. Ajit Agarkar, who had gone into the match with a Test average of 7.81, was left not out on 109 as he and Nehra had forced England to sweat through a record last wicket partnership of 63 before they were separated and celebrations could begin.Unlike their more illustrious colleagues, VVS Laxman and Agarkar provided stubborn resistance to England’s bowlers on the final morning. With England moving in for the kill, the batsmen refused to be flustered as they showed great resolve in face of the inevitable. Both passed fifty and runs flowed as they exploited the vast areas left vacant so that close catchers could be deployed all round the bat.Sixty runs came in the first hour as Nasser Hussain juggled his resources until he found the right answer. For the fourth time in the innings, a bowling change resulted in a wicket in the new bowler’s first over. The pair had added 126 for the seventh wicket and had defied the attack in all its guises for 209 balls when Simon Jones induced Laxman to drive on the off side. The ball flew to point where Michael Vaughan held the catch.Still runs accumulated; still the slips, gullies and short legs were in attendance. The new batsman, Anil Kumble might not have appeared as comfortable as Laxman had, but he survived in company with the admirable Agarkar until giving Matthew Hoggard a simple return catch. Zaheer Khan’s stay was a short one before he edged Craig White to Alec Stewart, but Agarkar and Ashish Nehra at least ensured that the catering staff were required at lunch.They probably had the dishes washed and dried when Nehra brought up the fifty partnership with a disdainfully hooked six off Andrew Flintoff. Then Agarkar reached his hundred by pushing Jones through the covers for two when on 99. His first run was a mixture of single and celebration, while he probably floated back for the second without his feet touching the ground.Of course, it could not last and after the batsmen had enjoyed their fun in delaying England’s inevitable win, White found the ball that brought the entertainment to an end and England head for Trent Bridge leading the series one-nil.

The return of Shaun Pollock to Warwickshire after the Morocco Cup saw the South African captain demolish Somerset with both bat and ball. After taking 4-36 in his nine overs Pollock went on to score an undefeated 43 to see his team home by eight wickets in this 45-over match.Earlier in the week Warwickshire drew with Somerset in the 4-day version with Neil Carter putting on an undefeated 42 run partnership for the last wicket denying Somerset the win. Carter scored 17 not out in the first innings and then took 4/46 before his 27 not out in the second innings.Kevin Pietersen has had a two week period in England that most cricketers can only dream of. Three hundreds in as many matches was added to when he scored 116 in a win against Gloucestershire. In the same match Greg Smith took 1/31 and 3/45.Pietersen, at an invitation from Nottinghamshire and Clive Rice, left South Africa and KwaZulu-Natal in 2001 after becoming disillusioned with the South African system. By way of his mother, Pietersen qualifies to play for England in 2004. He has committed himself fully to England only visiting South Africa on holiday.Hampshire was on the losing end with Nic Pothas scoring 58 and 24 and Neil Johnson scoring 15 and 32. The win sees Surrey move closer to winning the championship.For Andrew Gait (3 and 8), Sven Koenig (1 and 0) and Mark Davis (8 and 5*) it was not a good week.Across in the Lancashire League Martin van Jaarsveld scored 84 and 47 for Enfield who will have to settle for second place in the league after Bacup clinched the title.Andrew Hall continued his form with a 58 not out and a 32 with the bat and a 2/68 and 1/61 with the ball.Jacque Rudolph scored 30 while Andre Seymore’s run of fifties came to an end with a 14.Claude Henderson made a major impact on his debut taking 7/42 but only scoring two.

When a batsman earns the tag of “Mr Dependable” in Clive Lloyd’s all-conquering side of the 80s, among stalwart team-mates such as Gordon Greenidge, Desmond Haynes, Viv Richards and Lloyd himself, his stature is beyond question.Larry Gomes now resides in Toronto and coaches the Overseas Cricket Club there, but he is a frequent flier between Toronto and Trinidad as his mother resides in the Caribbean island.The long, curling hair is no more, so it was difficult to recognise him at first sight at the Queen’s Park Oval. But when the interview began, it was unmistakably Gomes; the pride at being an indispensable part of Lloyd’s side was evident.Among so many great batsmen, how did you earn a nickname of “Mr Dependable”?Well, if you ask the older people here, you will get an idea about how attacking a batsman I was. But in our team, I had to play the role of anchor. Very often, I had to do the job of anchoring the innings since everyone else was, more or less, an attacking bat. So someone had to dig in, and I played that part. It was in the interest of the team, and I had fully enjoyed doing so.So many stars, but there were not many controversies. How did you manage that?We all were very proud to be a member of champion team. That sailed us through, and we were never distracted from our goal. I feel that county cricket had instilled some amount of professionalism in us. That professionalism was the key to our stupendous success. Nowadays, no West Indian cricketer plays in county cricket. They don’t have the time either. But we benefited from our county experiences.What happened in the final of the 1983 World Cup?That is one thing I, or for that matter, any member of that side, can never forget. That was the biggest shock for us during our playing days. I still ask myself: How could we lose that match even after getting the opposition out for 183. I’ll continue to do so till death. The tragedy will always be with me.In the early part of the 80s, cricket was free of match-fixing scandals…Yes, and that is the reason I always jokingly refer to this match (the 1983 World Cup final) whenever anybody from the newest generation of the media asks me about such things. Cricket’s boundaries were limited to the cricketers and cricket-lovers only. This is a modern disease. We played cricket enjoying every day of our outings on the field and were eager first to prove that we were the best and then to defend that title.What about the current lot of West Indian cricketers? Will they be ever able to revive the past glory of Caribbean cricket?See, Carl Hooper is doing a great job. You have the experience and exceptional talent of Brian Lara. Shivnarine Chanderpaul and Ramnaresh Sarwan are playing well too. The new boys are coming. This is the transition period for the team, and the time for combining has to be given to them. Yes, at the moment, the bowling is a bit weak. But with time, they will gro,w and I strongly feel that under the able captaincy of Hooper, they will bounce back.You are coaching in a club in Toronto. What about coaching a West Indian club side?Well, Caribbean cricket has given me everything. So I am ready to do anything for the betterment of the cricket here. Any day the call comes, I’ll definitely be here.