The three phases of the development of West Indies cricket since the late nineteenth century

Essay by Dipset_13University, Bachelor's November 2014

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The three phases of the development of West Indies cricket since the late

nineteenth century.

During the origination of cricket competitively in the nineteenth century, the distance and unreliable expenditure of inter-island transport caused Jamaican cricket to be closed off from the other islands. This resulted in more English touring teams than Caribbean teams and the mental effect of this also brought about disagreement over the assembly of cricket events (Beckles, "Liberation Cricket" 10). Alongside the growing development of cricket followed the deception of community and harmony which would make one assume that the game broke the normal barriers of race, class and prestige but it did not. In the beginning of the 20th century Barbadian cricket had a huge cultural impact. There were participants from exclusive groups of the community and encouragement from the lower class who got little time to engage in the cricket activities. The exclusive groups intellectual model was also a copy from English heritage (Beckles, "Liberation Cricket" 14).

In the Caribbean cricket was established on an altered version of the English game. The results from Australian and English matches were announced in the media and the English served as the authorities on how the game should be played. When any English team visited the Caribbean there was always loyalty shown to the mother country. West Indian cricket adopted the same structure as the British political system by electing captains and the other members of the team also gave the captain the needed support. As Hilary Beckles mentioned "This bred honourable behaviour because team members would not let each other down on or off field" ( "Liberation Cricket" 15) . The growth of West Indian cricket was also due to the involvement and promotion from the exclusive high schools such as Harrison College, The Lodge and...