Deandra Dottin, who retired from International cricket last year, has highlighted a significant concern, underlining the demand for changes and corrective actions. In her forthright statements, she pointed out that the future of cricket in the Caribbean would face issues if corrective actions weren’t taken. Dottin has underlined the need to provide players with increased resources and a greater degree of respect. Her statements underline the need for good adjustments to ensure a favorable future for cricket in the region.
In August of the previous year, Deandra Dottin made public her desire to step away from international cricket. Her journey included 143 One Day Internationals (ODIs) and 127 Twenty20 Internationals (T20Is), adorned with achievements like securing the T20 World Cup championship in 2016 and etching her name in history with a 38-ball century during the 2010 tournament – a record that still stands as the quickest century in the realm of Women’s T20Is.
“To be honest, there’s been a lot going on in the camp and so much I’ve been through, so many things that needed to be sorted out, and the players not getting the respect and basically the attention because there are things that needed to be done for players to actually perform to the best of their ability,” she said.
“If you’re uncomfortable and if you don’t have the things in place for your players to be the best that they can be and actually improve then there’s always going to be problems. It has a lot to do with the board, how they handle stuff and how they handle players and how they actually speak to players,” she further added.
“Certain people take things differently, so it is a lot of work that West Indies Cricket will need to do and I think they need to do it as fast as possible because it’s not going to end well for West Indies Cricket or cricket in the Caribbean,” Deandra Dottin said this to ESPNCricinfo’s Ladies Who Switch podcast.
In 2018, the West Indies thrilled their home crowd by securing their place in the Women’s T20 World Cup semifinals. Similarly, in 2022, they proved their skills at the Women’s ODI World Cup in New Zealand, reaching the semifinals once more. However, the tale took a different course in the 2023 Women’s T20 World Cup held in South Africa. Their adventure was cut short when they managed to win only two group games, falling short of the knockout round.
Deandra, who has now become an established name in franchise T20 cricket around the globe, has spoken up about the need for additional aid for West Indies cricketers. She points out the considerable differences between the backing that teams like Australia and England receive and the issues encountered by West Indies players.
“They need to take a leaf out of Australia and English books, where they have players that when they see potential in them they develop them from whatever stage they are, so that when they actually get into that senior level it’s like they have played there before.”
“You will see a player come into West Indies Cricket and then you actually see they disappear. It’s probably because of their fitness or whatever the case may be, but in that case, if I see you struggling with something, then I want to help, I would want to help you in order for you to get better to play West Indies Cricket. But my thing is that it’s basically like you’re getting what you want out of me and then you just throw me aside,” she concluded.
