India will begin their 2011 tour to West Indies with one-off Twenty 20, a 5-match ODI series and a 3-match Test series from June 4, 2011 to July 10, 2011.

West Indies vs India One-Off Twenty 20

Only T20

Saturday, June 04, 2011

Queen’s Park Oval, Port of Spain, Trinidad

Time: 23:30 (IST) 14:00 (Local)

India vs West Indies ODI Series Schedule

1st ODI

Monday, June 6, 2011

Queen’s Park Oval, Port of Spain, Trinidad

Time: 19:00 (IST) 09:30 (Local)

2nd ODI

Wednesday, June 8, 2011

Queen’s Park Oval, Port of Spain, Trinidad

Time: 19:00 (IST) 09:30 (Local)

3rd ODI

Saturday, June 11, 2011

Sir Vivian Richards Stadium, Antigua

Time: 19:00 (IST) 09:30 (Local)

4th ODI

Monday, June 13, 2011

Sir Vivian Richards Stadium, Antigua

Time: 19:00 (IST) 09:30 (Local)

5th ODI

Thursday, June 16, 2011

Sabina Park, Kingston – Jamaica

Time: 20:00 (IST) 09:30 (Local)

India vs West Indies Test Series Schedule

1st Test Match

Monday, June 20, 2011 to Friday, June 24, 2011

Sabina Park, Kingston – Jamaica

Time: 20:30 (IST) 10:00 (Local)

2nd Test Match

Tuesday, June 28, 2011 to Saturday, July 2, 2011

Kensington Oval, Bridgetown, Barbados

Time: 19:30 (IST) 10:00 (Local)

3rd Test Match

Wednesday, July 6, 2011 to Sunday, July 10, 2011

Windsor Park, Roseau, Dominica

Time: 19:30 (IST) 10:00 (Local)

Ireland won the toss and elected to field, probably because they had performed much better when it came to chasing targets. West Indies got off to a stable but slow start. This was probably part of their gameplan, considering they had a knack of losing early wickets. The strategy did help them later in getting them to the total of 275.

It took Kevin O’Brien, the man of the match in the game against England, to get the breakthrough. Chanderpaul chipped one in the air to a slower delivery by Kevin O’Brien to be caught by the captain Porterfield just inches off the ground. Post this wicket, O’Brien was on a roll, taking two more wickets in quick succession. West Indies were 130/3 in the 30th over, when Pollard walked into the crease. Pollard, who is known for his hard hitting exploits in the Windies as well as in the Indian Premier league, put quite a performance for the crowd at the Punjab Cricket Association Stadium. He knocked 94 runs off 55 balls, scoring 8 boundaries and 5 massive sixes. This helped the Windies improve their run rate. But while Pollard was creating a storm at one end of the crease, wickets were tumbling at the other end. West Indies lost 6 wickets in the last eight overs. Just goes to show how important retaining wickets is for them in the start.

The Irish were put up against a total of 275. This seemed a tough task, especially against the mighty West Indies pace attack, but the Irish had chased an even higher total a few days back and were onto the challenge. Ireland got to a good start, with Ed Joyce and wicketkeeper Niall O’Brien in fine form. Not only were they scoring runs freely, but also had the required the run-rate under control.

Spin proved to be the enemy for Ireland this time as well. Just how Swann from England and Yuvraj Singh from India had made it hard for the Irish to catch their movement! Suleiman Benn too confused the Irish batsmen with his offbreak. Both the teams were equally stacked to win until the 35th over. The turning point came when debutant A Russel got his first wicket in One Day International Cricket, that of Ed Joyce who was playing an anchoring role in the Irish side. Joyce was bowled by a yorker by Russel that went on to hit the middle and leg stump. Ireland was not able to cope with the pressure after the fall of Joyce’s wicket. They lost wickets at regular intervals and finally got all bowled out for 231, 44 runs short of their target.

Ireland’s performance has been admirable, to say the least, this world cup. Considering the performance of other associate member teams who have had much more international exposure than them, Ireland have done exceptionally well.

Match Summary:

West Indies 275 (Smith 107, Pollard 94, K O’Brien 71-4) beat Ireland 231 (Joyce 84, Wilson 6, Benn 53-4) by 44 runs.

Man of Match: Kieron Pollard.

India took on West Indies at the MA Chidambaram stadium before a packed capacity crowd. The colour of Holi was in the air, a perfect occasion for the Blues to take on the Reds, as it went along with the festive spirit. It was also a big day for Ashwin who was playing his first World Cup game at his home stadium.

Dhoni won the toss and elected to bat. Dhoni and co. had been working hard in the nets to pull this one through. India had not won against a major team in the tournament so far. And it was a good opportunity for the country too, as it was playing a team with some of its key players such as Chris Gaye and Kemar Roach out with injuries.

Ravi Rampaul gave the Indians something to think about, by taking the openers out cheaply. It seemed the beginning of another collapse, when the in-form batsman Yuvraj Singh walked in. He, along with Virat Kohli, brought some stability to the situation. The two added more than 100 runs together.

The stage was being set for India to post a massive total to the Windies. Rampaul provided the breakthrough once again. This time he took the wicket of Virat Kohli who had been looking impressive at the pitch so far. India still was at a comfortable position till then, with almost 20 overs to play and well set in batsmen on the crease.

The ‘collapsing batting order’ syndrome which India had caught over the tournament continued, with no one being able to form a partnership with Yuvraj for a long period of time. Rampaul terrorised the batsmen throughout the evening. He had scalped half the side by the end of it, also his career best.

India’s tumble continued till the end. The last batting powerplay was  proving to be a curse for Dhoni and his men. The last 4 overs of the innings added just 30 runs at the total at the loss of 4 wickets. Finally, thanks to a yet another match winning innings from the Indian Vice Captain Yuvraj Singh (113), West Indies was set a target of 268 to chase — a fairly achievable target, compared to the games so far in the tournament.

West Indies started off well, with a quick partnership between Devon Smith and Kirk Edwards, and Devon Smith and Darren Bravo. The Indian pace attack seemed to lack the extra punch that would bring wickets. Ravichandran Ashwin who had to dig his way into team did show that he was cut out for the main stage. Not only did he take up the challenge given by the captain to bowl the new ball but he also picked the wicket of Edwards, conceding only 18 runs.

West Indies, though losing wickets at regular intervals, was going along at a moderate pace, causing much anxiety in the Indian dressing room. Devon Smith had scored a half century with Sarwan on the other side, also looking good. The wicket of Devon Smith proved to be the turning point of the game. Zaheer Khan was brought in for his 2nd spell. He produced a slow full-length delivery, making the ball swing reverse, which beat Smith and knocked his stumps over.

Devon had been looking dangerous at that point of time having already scored 81 runs. Post this wicket, the dynamics of the game changed completely. Wickets kept on falling. The other set batsman Ramnaresh Sarwan also fell shortly, putting more pressure on the tourists.

Yuvraj’s great form continued, with him picking 2 wickets as well. Zaheer was the pick of the bowlers for the Indians. He picked 3 wickets at the cost of only 23 runs. West Indies was not able to get back in the game post that. They was all bowled out for 188 runs in the 43rd over.

With the quarterfinals next, both the teams have one last break to get things right. India has been experimenting with its team combinations. Hope it gets things right next time. India is slated to play Australia in their quarterfinal encounter while West Indies would be taking on neighbours Pakistan.

Match Summary:

India 268 (Singh 111,Kohli 59, Rampaul 5-53) beat West Indies 188 (Smith 81, Sarwan 39, Zaheer 3-23) by 80 runs

Man of Match: Yuvraj Singh

While dedicating the centre to fans “who are longing for the glorious past of West Indies cricket to return”, Hunte said it was not an isolated move but part of a “four-pronged focus of the board” to revive West Indies cricket and respond to the loss of pride, dignity and standards in Caribbean cricket over the past 15 years.

The four “prongs” the board is focusing on are strengthening the institutional framework, generating resources, developing cricketing excellence, and improving operations.

The full text of the board’s plan, as laid out by Hunte, is below:

Enhancing the institutional capacity of the WICB: We accept that the management has been ineffective in meeting the demands of a modern day sport’s governing body. A management audit was undertaken previously and, with the assistance of a human resource consultant and the Human Resource Committee, formulated a comprehensive organisational redesigning plan. The plan will be implemented from July 1 2010 and will include a new structure with each employee given a new job description and appropriate placement. Changes will take place in staffing, including the creation of posts with responsibilities for player relations, sponsorship management and event management, and the appointment of new personnel to strengthen our department responsible for cricket operations.

In addition, we are about to undertake the development of an action plan that outlines our response to the changes in the international landscape and the implications for the future of cricket in the region. This will be a seminal action plan that will shape the future model for the administration and financing of cricket in the region. It is expected to cover all the critical areas of cricket.

We are also committed to examining ways in which we can improve the governance and administration of the affairs of the board and other committees to ensure, among other things, accountability and transparency.

I must also make mention of the West Indies Cricket Board’s recognition of the need to build effective and meaningful relationships with all stakeholders of the game. It means that we must engage in a dialogue that presents to us an understanding of the expectations of stakeholders but likewise expresses our views on the roles and responsibilities of the WICB. This will be a delicate yet necessary process in paving the way for a successful future.

Generating the resources for the financing of West Indies Cricket: Critical for the implementation of any development plans and managing the operations of the board is the availability of resources. In January, the board engaged a marketing consultant to assist management in formulating proposals which could be presented to the market and commencing the efforts to build a commercial department that can adequately raise the resources required. The immediate result was the production of a publication titled “Transforming West Indies Cricket”.

This document has served as the basis for frank interaction and discussion with potential sponsors for long term relationships. We are excited by the reaction to the document and our proposals, although we recognise that there is a lot of confidence building which has to take place to overcome past failures and disappointments.

The board will soon make a major announcement on the arrangements for the broadcast of the Caribbean Twenty20 which will be held in July. For the first time, our regional cricket will receive global coverage and I am certain that this will start a process of breaking down barriers to secure further sponsorships.

Cricket Development: If there is no product to sell then there can be no commercial programme to implement. There are four critical activities under consideration with our cricket development:

1. We need to get our senior team more competitive. The Board immediately sought to employ the best cricket coach to lead the development of our teams and coaches. We are proud to have engaged Mr. Ottis Gibson and look forward to his continued efforts to change the mode of the team and the positive results this should soon bring. We are totally committed to making the resources available to make the team more competitive.

2. We need to prepare the players on the fringes of international selection through the reactivation of the “A” Team programmes. We have all seen the immediate success of this action in the short time since it has been implemented. While we are committed to the extension of the first-class season that will be implemented as soon as it is affordable, we believe that this action is of greater priority.

3. We need to prepare our next generation of international cricketers, those between 19-23 years. This is the reason we are here tonight – the establishment of the most advanced training programme in the region.

4. The implementation of a talent development programme which, together with the Scotia Bank Kiddy Cricket Programme as our talent identification programme, will provide WICB with a clear player development pathway for 7-11 year-olds, 12-15 year-olds and 17-19 year olds. Accordingly, in the next few weeks the WICB will announce a US$ 2 million grass roots and community coaching programme that will provide opportunities and a pathway for young people from the streets and community playing fields to Kensington Oval, Lords, Eden Gardens and the Wanderers.

Cricket Operations: This has been undoubtedly a major area of repeated failures and shortcomings. In addition to the strengthening of our implementation capacity, the Board has introduced an injury management system that will incorporate every player, from regional teams to the international team, registering every medical condition, injury and rehabilitation programme. The system will offer a real-time, interactive and user-friendly resource that will manage the injuries and avoid the present situation of incoherence which exists. The system is already being implemented at the level of the senior team.

The purpose of the centre is to help bridge the gap between youth cricket and international cricket. To that end, 15 young cricketers between the ages of 19 and 27 have been selected to spend three months at the centre, where they will be exposed to state-of-the-art training facilities, coaching techniques, equipment, education and sports science.

Players selected for the high performance centre: Shamarh Brooks, Jason Holder, Shane Dowrich, Kyle Corbin, Kevin McClean, Brandon Bess, Ravindra Chandrika, Veerasammy Permaul, Nkrumah Bonner, Andre Creary, Kieran Powell, Devon Thomas, Shannon Gabriel, Keron Cottoy, Delorn Johnson.

Management Team: Toby Radford (Director and head coach), Andre Coley (Assistant coach), William Bourne (Spin specialist coach), Shannon Lashley (Strength and conditioning coach), Courtney Browne (Wicketkeeping coach), Roddy Estwick (Fast bowling coach) Simon Grayson (Performance coach), Jacqueline King-Mowatt (Physiotherapist), Jessica Reid (Administrative assistant).

“I’m basically disappointed that we’ve lost so many games but, generally, everyone gets on well with each other,” Gayle said after the fourth ODI which his side lost off the final ball. “The one downside is to get that win, but we’ve worked extremely hard, preparation-wise. It’s just unfortunate that we are not getting the results out there in the middle.”

That defeat was West Indies’ fourth consecutive loss in the ODI series, following a 2-0 drubbing in the Twenty20s. Gayle felt his side was doing the basics right, but was struggling with the mental aspect of the game. “It is a mental situation we’ve actually reached now, but we have to come out of the situation as quickly as possible because, unfortunately, losing is becoming a habit and it’s a bit difficult to get out of. That means that you don’t know how to win games anymore, so we need to try and turn things around.”

There was speculation that the side’s excessive partying had a part to play in the poor on-field displays, but Gayle denied the claim. “Those days are over, to be honest with you. We are playing so much cricket, we don’t really have time to do that,” he said. “But guys need to be free. We don’t want to put any burden on anyone.”

“All of them are big men and we don’t want to treat them like kids, but at the same time, the conditions are very hot and you don’t expect anyone to be partying,” Gayle said. “We are past that stage. We have been criticised for that over the last couple of months and years and we’re just trying to turn things around. We are making a lot of sacrifices in every department.”

Despite the run of losses, Gayle was happy leading the side, but admitted it was time to start grooming a successor. “At the end of the day, the way I look at it, I’m not going to be captain forever. At some stage, you are going to have a new captain, but I’m going to look at the situation. It’s just one of those things and I’m sure they will be looking to groom someone at some given time. I’m not sure when (but) I’m really all for it and giving it my best shot.”

“It is a pressure situation,” Gayle said. “The mindset is just not right. They’re maybe a bit too worried about the position.”

South Africa finished with a modest 120 for 7 but West Indies struggled from the start, losing Gayle for a duck, and the rest of the batsmen never quite got going. With 15 needed from the final over, Darren Sammy managed two boundaries, including an all-run four thanks to some loose fielding, but Ryan McLaren held his nerve to leave West Indies a run short.

“It’s blatant,” Gayle said. “It’s not right. We need to have discussions on it. The guys need to free up and go out there with a free mind to play some good cricket. We should have won that game…no doubt about it. To chase 120 runs, I don’t see why we shouldn’t get it, but we didn’t get it.”

It was the second straight game in which the West Indies batsmen failed to perform. On Wednesday, they lost by 13 runs, chasing 137 to win.

“It’s very disappointing but credit must go to the bowlers. I thought they bowled well on an on-and-off pitch,” Gayle said. “In the end, we allowed the run-rate to climb up a bit too much. We should have tried to take a few more chances.”

He denied experience was the problem, saying, “We have quite a few experienced guys in the team, guys who have been in big situations before. Experience is not a problem.”

The problem, according to him, lay with individual players, who need to start taking responsibility for their performances. “It’s up to the individual. They have to look into themselves and try and redeem themselves as quickly as possible. I can’t do it for them. I have a lot to think about as well. It is up to the individuals to try and get over these situations as quickly as possible.”

In contrast, South Africa’s captain Graeme Smith was full of praise for his team’s ability to keep calm in the clutch, although he couldn’t resist a wry comment on the team’s history of coming up short in high pressure situations.

“It was a bit tense at the end so we had to find somebody to remain calm, and Ryan kept a good sensible head, although we had a few guys running all over the place. It was an exciting finish, and nice again to get over the line,” he said. “We have performed well enough in tense situations like this before, although our record in such situations in competition play is quite poor, but we have performed really well again under pressure in a game that we probably shouldn’t have won, so it’s to our credit, and the confidence is definitely growing.”

A staunch critic of cricket’s slam-bang format, Holding said he did not bother to watch the World T20 even though it took place in the West Indies.

“Not one ball. I don’t watch Twenty20. It is dumbing-down cricket. They should find another name for it,” said the 56-year-old Jamaican, who was called ‘Whispering Death’ in his playing days for his quiet approach to the bowling crease.

Holding wasn’t in a mood to mince any words saying that T20 specialists like Kieron Pollard cannot be called cricketers. “Pollard in my opinion is not a cricketer,” Holding told The Times, alluding to the fact that 25-year-old all-rounder, who is the costliest player on the IPL roster, may be a T20 star but is yet to make his Test debut.

Post-retirement, the outspoken Jamaican quit ICC Cricket Committee, the West Indies board and Allen Stanford’s league after falling out with the authorities.

Appalled at players chasing easy money, Holding blamed cricket boards and the International Cricket Council (ICC) for not guiding the youngsters. “I can’t say to a young man ‘don’t make a living’, but they need responsible guidance,” he said.

“It is your parents who guide you and in cricket the parents are the boards and the ICC. They need to show some leadership. It saddens me that the West Indies captain is allowed to show up one day before a Test series because he is playing for the IPL,” he said, referring to Chris Gayle’s late turning up in England last year after completing his IPL commitments.

“It’s a good way to start off the tour, having practiced indoors and not outdoors for the last few weeks,” said McLaren. “But it’s only the first day, and there’s plenty more cricket to come, so hopefully, I can better this performance. We all know the nature of T20 cricket – the bowler is always up against it.”

“You can take five wickets one day, and the next day, take a thumping, but I enjoyed it. It was not an easy day for the batters, and you had to graft pretty hard. Playing shots was not easy, and there was a strong wind, so there were a lot of things you had to take into consideration. It was obviously nice to start with a win. This was the most important thing for us. We have worked really hard over the last few days here in Antigua, had a few discussions, the energy has been good around the team, and a lot of new faces have come in. We want to have a good tour of the Caribbean, so success in this match was very important to get us off on the right foot,” McLaren, who was later named the Man of the Match, added.

Proteas captain Graeme Smith lauded Mclaren’s performance and said his spell of bowling was the decisive factor in the match.

“Ryan’s bowling today was extremely important for us. At the moment you would say he is more of a bowling all-rounder and he did a great job for us. He certainly has a lot of skills with the bat and I am sure he will keep working on those. He can certainly cement a place for himself in the squad in the short format going forward,” Smith said.

The series is very important for the confidence of both teams after they failed to reach the semi-finals of the World Twenty20. The two Twenty20s are followed by five ODIs and three Tests and the West Indies captain Chris Gayle said there was plenty of room for improvement from his men.

“It was a disappointing start for us,” Gayle said. “We wanted to put our dismal performance in the T20 World Cup behind us, but this was not the best way to do it, and was not the best start to the series. We still have a match on Thursday, so we have to pick ourselves up. This is no time for pointing fingers. We have a lot of corrections to make out there, and we have to return to the drawing board to try and get the best out of the players.”

Samuels was banned for two years by the ICC for leaking vital team information to a bookie in India, but the 29-year-old had always maintained he did nothing wrong.

“I am an honest person. My conscience would not allow me to come back if I knew within myself I had done something wrong,” Samuels said.

“They need to spend time on situations like this, it is delicate and very important because you are dealing with players’ careers,” Samuels was quoted as saying in Sydney Morning Herald. “When they looked at my case, they used me as a scapegoat… the ICC wanted to make an example out of me when I was never in a position for them to be able to use me as an example. The way they dealt with my case was very unfair.”

“I really didn’t have a case; when I went to the hearing, I thought it would be just a fair process but it wasn’t like a hearing at all, I was just banned,” he said.

Samuels was charged with sharing team information with the bookie ahead of a one-dayer against India in Nagpur on January 21, 2007. The case against Samuels centred on a police-tapped telephone conversation he had with Dubai-based Indian national Mukesh Kochhar whom he had first met in Sharjah in 2002.

The conversation occurred the evening before the match, which India won by 14 runs and included accurate revelations of the Windies’ batting line-up and bowling order. The chat included both men saying they would be in Mumbai.

The ICC investigated the matter and found Samuels guilty of breaching its code of conduct, which could bring him or the game of cricket into disrepute.

In fact, during an internal hearing by a West Indies Cricket Board disciplinary committee it was noted, “There is no evidence before us that Samuels exchanged or had any intention of exchanging for reward the information he shared with Kochhar. If anything, the evidence is quite to the contrary.”

“The majority therefore accepts that Samuels is an honest cricketer; that he has never betted on cricket matches and that he was unwittingly and innocently sucked into an unhealthy vortex by an unscrupulous gambler posing as a mentor and father figure,” the committee added.

Samuels said that he can’t predict when he would make a comeback to the West Indies national side but maintained, “I’ll just let my bat do the talking.”

“These two years have been a blessing. Cricket had taken me away from my family and I used these two years to get closer to them,” he added.

“The West Indies holds a special place in the international cricket family, having contributed some of the all-time greats of the game. But I believe there are still great times ahead for cricket in this part of the world and the successful staging of this event is part of that positive future,” Morgan said in an ICC statement.

Morgan also wished luck to all the participating teams while picking Afghanistan, who will be making their international debut, and Ireland for special praise.

“I want to congratulate Afghanistan and Ireland for making it through the tough qualifying stages to be here and I would like to extend my best wishes to all 12 of the men’s teams and the eight women’s teams as they will all play their part in this festival of cricket. Good luck to all of you,” he said.

The mega event begins on Friday, with New Zealand taking on Sri Lanka in the opening match. The second match of the day is between the hosts West Indies and qualifier Ireland.

The ICC President also called on the locals to throng stadiums with the great West Indian fervor. “Over the next 17 days, I am looking forward to a celebration of all that’s good about West Indies cricket. We’re encouraging the people of the Caribbean to bring their enthusiasm and passion for cricket to the matches and make it a memorable event for everyone involved. Bring your musical instruments, your songs and cheers, your flags, banners and colourful costumes. And, above all, bring that party spirit for which cricket matches in the West Indies are famous,” he said.