THE West Indies’ serious World Cup intentions were made plain last night when they maintained the same eleven they used in the triumphant opener against second favourites South Africa for today’s match in Centurion against the weekend club cricketers of Canada, the bottom seed among the 14 teams.
The recall of Pedro Collins,the left-arm swing and seam bowler who missed the last two matches with a back injury, is the only change from the team in last Tuesday’s abandoned match against Bangladesh from which they had to share the four points.
Nixon McLean filled Collins’ place in the loss to New Zealand and Corey Collymore got the preference against Bangladesh but didn’t bowl a ball before rain ended proceedings.
It means that the two youngest members of the team, batsman Marlon Samuels, 21, and fast bowler Jermaine Lawson, 20, are yet to get a match - and are unlikely to get one barring injury.
“We’re not in a position where we can say we have qualified for the Super Sixes,” coach Roger Harper said by way of a straightforward explanation. “We’re still fighting to qualify.”
And Harper indicated that there would be no shifting of the order in which four left-handers - Chris Gayle, Wavell Hinds, Brian Lara and Shivnarine Chanderpaul - fill the first four places.
“If we happened to have four right-handers at the top we might not have seen it as a problem,” he said. “While I appreciate it’s a bnefit to have a left and right combination that makes it more difficult for the bowlers, you have to look at the batsmen you have as well.”
The implication was that the system has worked so far with right-handers Ramnaresh Sarwan and Ricardo Powell, down at Nos. 6 and 7, contributing important runs.
Following the artificially shared points against Bangladesh, the West Indies must win their three remaining preliminary group matches, against Canada, Sri Lanka in Cape Town next Friday and Kenya in Kimberey March 4, to clinch their place in their Super Sixes.
The table is so tight that every match is critical for every team.
Sri Lanka are the only ones with 100 per cent record and 12 points from three matches. Only defeat in all of their remaining three, against Kenya, the West Indies and South Africa, can deny them their spot among the final three.
New Zealand, who forfeited their points to Kenya because they refused to go to Nairobi for the scheduled match, have eight points from four matches with only Canada and Bangladesh left.
With the New Zealand donation and a win over Canada, Kenya have eight points from three matches but still have Sri Lanka and the West Indies, along with Bangladesh.
South Africa, virtually out of contention following losses to the West Indies and New Zealand, were handed a reprieve by the West Indies’ misfortune with the weather against Bangladesh.
They took their first step towards the next round with their comprehensive 10 wickets victory over Bangladesh in Blomfontein yesterday but must still beat both Canada, a foregone conclusion but for the intervention of the elements, and Sri Lanka, an altogether more difficult task, to be sure.
The weather remained true to the forecast throughout yesterday - hot and sunny - and more of the same is predicted for today. But the West Indies won’t be satisfied until victory and four points are safely in the book.
The teams:
West Indies: Carl Hooper (captain), Chris Gayle, Wavell Hinds, Brian Lara, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Ramnaresh Sarwan, Ricardo Powell, Ridley Jacobs, Vasbert Drakes, Merv Dillon and Pedro Collins.
Canada : Joe Harris (captain), Ishwar Maraj, John Davison, Desmond Chumney, Ian Billcliff, Nicholas deGroot, Fazil Sattaur, Asish Begai, Sanjay Thuraisingham, Austin Codrington, Davis Joseph, Barry Seeberan, Nicholas Ifill, Ashish Patel and Abdool Samad. Umpires: Asoka deSilva (Sri Lanka), Daryl Hair (Australia). TV replays: Nadeem Ghouri (Pakistan).