England Cricket / Frank Gregan / 16 February 2009 /

Sir Viv Richards' West Indies team terrified opposition with a combination of superb batting and devastating bowling and the great man deserves a more fitting monument than a stadium built on sand, says Frank Gregan.

Jerome Taylor and Fidel Edwards managed only 10 balls between them on Friday before the umpires and match referee called it a day and decided that the world's biggest sandcastle was not a suitable surface for the second test. The match was abandoned and a hastily arranged third test commenced yesterday on a pitch which was expected to be more akin to pub cricket than test cricket.

The postponement was more than disappointing - there were two aspects that were downright sad. The first was that the great name of Sir Vivian Richards had been linked with a total non-event. Sir Viv has given cricket more than its fair share of golden moments and deserves a more fitting monument to his talents.

The second was the sight of a West Indian fast bowler Fidel Richards powering into bowl, looking about as scary as Winnie the Pooh! At the end of his run, having trudged through a two inch layer of the Sahara, he just gave up.

What must the watching Sir Viv have thought? His West Indian side terrified the opposition and the combination of superb batting and devastating bowling made them the envy of their generation.

These days the West Indies have lost their focus. The fact that the Sir Vivian Richards stadium is built on sand is indicative of that fact. It should have been built on a concrete base with a one inch layer of topsoil and a mix of plastic grass and rubber pellets. Their wickets should produce bounce equal to the height that the ball is dropped from, wickets as hot as chillies dipped in Reggae Reggae sauce! That is what great West Indian cricket is all about. Sadly, as a cricketing force they have gone as soft as their pitch and their fast bowlers are just too easy going - they strike no fear and even Strauss and Co filled their boots against their insipid attack yesterday.

However, don't start believing that they are as poor a side as England. They are leading 1-0 and although the tourists restored a little pride yesterday with a tremendous first day at the crease it must be remembered that the wicket was predicted to be full of bounce and demons. In reality, it looked flatter than a witch's chest!

It appears the majority of Betfairians agree with that train of thought as England are still [2.68] to back - marginally bigger than they were at the start. The West Indies are [26.0] and the draw is [1.69]. The value looks to be in backing England but I have such little faith in this current crop that I'll be waiting until they go odds on and then laying them! I just wish the wicket was livelier and the West Indian quick bowlers were a little nastier.

I was at testimonial dinner with a county cricketer a few years back and he told a great tale of facing Joel Garner. It was during the later stages of a domestic one day competition and the guy I was talking to was a traditional number 11 complete with big ears, buck teeth, carrots and a hutch. He had been dreading the encounter, particularly if he were to face Big Bird in a situation where every run counted and he would have to stand his ground.

His side batted first and he came to the crease with two balls left in the innings and the ball in Garner's hand. He was shaking as Garner stormed in and fizzed in a delivery at neck height. The Rabbit held the bat in self defence and the ball hit near the handle and rolled out towards the mid-off boundary with little pace. His relief knew no bounds and he was grinning as he passed his batting partner safe in the knowledge that his ordeal was over. That was until his team mate said, "there's two there!"

If the West Indies are ever to strike fear like that again they need to produce quick wickets and even quicker bowlers.

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