Kolkata: In black tights and maroon floppy hats, those big, strong men played keepy-uppy, their laughter bouncing off the empty rafters. Through knock-downs and nets on Saturday afternoon, West Indies looked relaxed. Nobody is winning this World Cup if they don’t go through India, head coach Daren Sammy had said here before “the dance” began. Well, here they are with all the unease and exhilaration that a must-win match entails – against India on Sunday.
A lot has changed at Eden since West Indies won their last major world title here in 2016; joining the Maracana, Brasilia’s Mane Garrincha stadium, Santiago Bernabeu and the Billie Jean National Tennis Center as a public health facility during Covid-19 among them. It was the first for a venue that had seen a worldwide flu pandemic, wars and natural disasters.
Sammy is the bridge between then and now, a connection with a glorious past West Indies seek to draw inspiration from as they rebuild their present. “I know it feels like the same scenario 10 years ago where everything that was against us, nobody gave us a chance,” then captain, and winner of two successive T20 World Cup titles, now head coach had said before opening against Scotland here on February 7.
On Saturday, five wins in six matches later, he said: “It will feel like a David and Goliath showdown, but in 2016, David beat Goliath. That’s what I’m going to tell my boys tomorrow.”
That was when West Indies eliminated India in the semi-final at Wankhede stadium; Lendl Simmons flew in and played a blinder. “I would say history could repeat itself although it’s a different venue.”
Shimron Hetmyer did a Simmons this time. Flying in from South Africa 24 hours before the game against Scotland, one of the two West Indies have played here though neither was under lights, Hetmyer stemmed an early collapse before Romario Shepherd took a hattrick.
Hetmyer has since scored 221 runs and is fifth on the run scorers’ list. “I see he’s the most relaxed and focused I’ve seen him in the dressing room since I’ve been around. He’s enjoying the game,” said Sammy. With that comes responsibility, sending “a lot of positive, confident messages in the dressing room when he’s batting.”
In large oyster-framed glasses and gold necklaces including one with a cross prominently displayed, Sammy epitomised the flamboyance associated with generations of West Indies cricketers. And he spoke with the assurance associated with them.
Let’s bin the South Africa game, he said. “Leave it in Ahmedabad.” In the same breath, Sammy spoke of the “stronger message about how deep our batting is” that the nine-wicket defeat conveyed.
“We’ve shown throughout the tournament, we don’t really rely on one person. We get performances from different players and, hopefully, that all-round game we’ve been searching for, it comes to light tomorrow.”
Sammy also referenced “Sir Viv” and Clive Lloyd saying the current team are benefitting from the mark their men had left on Indian fans.
As head of the selectors in 2002, the sight of Richards being caught by surprise by a man prostrating himself as he stepped out of lift and on to the hotel lobby in Kolkata will not be forgotten by those who saw it. Appreciation replaced apprehension when he was told it conveyed unalloyed love and Richards embraced the man.
Kolkata’s love for entertainers from the Caribbean goes back a long way and it is no coincidence that the annual blood donation camp organised by the Cricket Association of Bengal is named after Frank Worrell.
It is a relationship that has endured through the 1989 MRF World Series final and didn’t waver when West Indies complained about Roland Holder’s dismissal in the 1993 Hero Cup final: it needed television umpires to declare him bowled because the on-field umpires had missed it. Bucket seats have replaced craggy concrete benches but the bond deepened through Kolkata Knight Riders’ Andre Russell and Sunil Narine and when West Indies danced on the field after the men and women were crowned world champions here in 2016.
“Every time we come to Eden, it brings back good memories,” said Sammy. “I love being here,” he said, at another time during the press conference before the final Super 8 match.
Sammy knows it will be different on Sunday. “They still say ‘best of luck’, but I ask them: do you mean it,” he said, breaking into a smile. He had barely drummed the table and said “thank you” when a roar announced India’s arrival.
“We are most people’s second favourite team, but you know, we’re playing against their favourites,” Sammy had said minutes earlier.
