Hope Windies can be that force again!

When West Indies ended up on the losing side in the second oneday international against India on Sunday they had lost their eighth ODI on the bounce And even if you wake up today to the news of them winning Game 3 after two wellcontested games the fact stays that they have lost yet another series against a major cricketplaying nationAfter beating the Sri Lankans 30 at home in March 2021 they lost to Australia Ireland India Pakistan and Bangladesh The only victorious series after that win was against The Netherlands this May and hence itrsquos no surprise to see West Indies ranked ninth on the ODI chartsBefore Wednesdayrsquos encounter against India West Indies competed in 849 ODIs out of which they have won 409 and lost 400 Ten games were tied while 30 ended in no results The number of lost games is soon catching up with the win tally and when that happens it will be a sad day Sad because the West Indies boasted of some great oneday sides teams that rarely lost a game in the 1970s and the first part of the 1980s Indeed they were true masters of the oneday game and that is manifest in their triumphs in the first two World Cups in 1975 and 1979 It must be stated that this was achieved without losing a game and in 1979 they conquered opponent after opponent with the same playing XIWest Indian dominance came to the fore in the two seasons of Kerry Packerrsquos World Series Cricket WSC as well Ian Chappell Australiarsquos WSC captain provided more than just an indication of how formidable the West Indies were in an interview to Harsha Bhogle in the buildup to the 1996 World Cup ldquoWe seemed to be playing each other every day in World Series Cricket And there were times when I didnrsquot think we could beat them in oneday cricket Whatever target you set them they would get it They were very very tough to beat I always fancied our chances of beating them in a lsquoTestrsquo match but in the oneday game there was a period where I thought they were unbeatablerdquo reckoned ChappellThe strong West Indian force was also there for all to see when fast bowling tailender batsman Wayne Daniel clubbed Mick Malone for a six to win a onedayer in the WSC era A few years later Greg Chappell remembered that and didnrsquot want to experience it again so he ordered brother Trevor to bowl underarm to deny New Zealand a tied result at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on February 1 1981India too have been at the receiving end of West Indiesrsquo brilliance in limited overs cricket Kapil Dev amp Corsquos 1983 World Cup win which constituted two wins Manchester and Lordrsquos over the then reigning champions not withstanding After their Cup glory India couldnrsquot get the better of the West Indies for nine matches in a row October 13 1983 to December 23 1987 The only game India won in the 198788 sevenmatch series was at Kolkata where the visitors failed to get near the 223run target in a 45 oversaside game The above mentioned series came in between two whitewashes ndash 50 in India in 198384 and 50 in the Caribbean in 198889The annual triangular series in Australia was a thriving ground for the West Indies in oneday cricket It was almost a given as to who would earn the silverware Lloydrsquos teams clinched these honours on each visit in 197980 198182 198384 and 198485 Viv Richardsrsquos side couldnrsquot make the fiinal of the 198788 Perth Challenge final where Mike Gattingrsquos England beat Imran Khanrsquos Pakistan but regained oneday glory when they won the 198889 triangular with Lloyd as managerPakistan were the side which denied the West Indies a chance to have a crack at the 1985 World Championship of Cricket trophy by beating them in the semifinals Pakistan were not a team any side could take lightly and enjoy success over them often Remember they came very close to beating West Indies in the Edgbaston game of the 1975 World Cup where Deryck Murray and Andy Roberts put in 64 runs for the 10th wicket to see their side home Yet in their first 10 years of ODI rivalry 1975 to 1985 comprising 24 games Pakistan could win only fiveProbably the beginning of the end in Caribbean dominance of ODI cricket coincided with the exit of RichardsHis successor Richie Richardson albeit leading the team to the 199293 triangular triumph Down Under was captain in the 199192 edition of the event the World Cup in the same season and the 1996 World Cup where West Indies lost to KenyaHaving said all this the current West Indies ODI team have the makings of a good ODI side Theyrsquove got some new faces and thatrsquos always a positive in a period of transition But mention the word transition to veteran Caribbean commentator Reds Perreira and hersquoll say ldquoWersquove been in a transition stage for quite a while nowrdquo He reckoned the side badly missed Jason Holder who was down with COVID19 But where therersquos good attitude there is hope and it is likely that the West Indians wonrsquot lose as often as they have in the recent past One blokemdashShai Hopemdashrepresents the West Indies and hopemiddayrsquos group sports editor Clayton Murzello is a purist with an open stanceHe tweets ClaytonMurzello Send your feedback to mailbagmiddaycomThe views expressed in this column are the individualrsquos and donrsquot represent those of the paper