THEY offered opportunities for Keiran Powell to entrench himself as the West Indies opening batsman, as his palpable potential indicates that he should be.
Instead, the tall left-hander from Nevis couldn’t wait for the ill-starred tours of India and New Zealand to be over. It was a mood brought on by a combination of his long absence from his idyllic island, the constant intensity of the cricket, his own disappointing form, the lack of unity within the team, identified by ODI captain Dwayne Bravo, and, not least, the repeatedly heavy defeats.
“This week will probably be the most difficult week of my life for sure, having been away from home for longer than anyone else on this tour,†Powell said one match and a few days away from last Thursday’s departure from New Zealand. “It takes a toll on anyone to be away from home for such a long time.â€
It is a problem that confronts all teams for basically similar reasons. England are encountering it now in Australia. It presents administrators everywhere with the challenge of how to limit the likely physical and mental strain protracted tours place on players.
TRINIDAD EXPRESS
