The curtain came down on the West Indies versus England one-day series two Fridays ago in St Lucia, and after winning the Test series 1-0, which hardly anyone expected them to do at the beginning, after winning the one Twenty20 encounter, it would have been nice, as a West Indian, if the West Indies had won the match to make it 3-2 in the contest for an overall 3-0 clean sweep.

To many a fan, however, while the West Indies, who struck one glorious blow at the start of the series, and who showed some fight in hanging on to draw two matches, deserve to win the Test series, they did not deserve to win the one-day contest.

To the fans, the West Indies did not deserve to win that contest, not because they were not good enough to do so, but, with the home team heading for victory in the first match, because of the error, by the coach and by the manager, which handed England a 1-0 lead.

It could have been worse, however. Based on the reports before the match, the contest could have ended in a 2-2 tie.

Days before the match, there was talk of a players' strike, and although, with the score locked at 2-2 following the result of the fourth match which England won, no one expected the threat to materialise, it was always possible, and it was possible because of a West Indies Board that is weak and a Players Association that was flexing its muscles.

The strike did not happen. It could have happened, it could happen any time in the future, and the question is this: whose fault would it have been?

As far as I am concerned, both sides would have been at fault - the board for its negligence, the association for its arrogance.

Strange

West Indies players celebrate the fall of an England wicket during the recent one-day series. From left are Lionel Baker, wicketkeeper Denesh Ramdin (partly hidden), Darren Sammy and Chris Gayle. - File

It was very strange, for example, that after so many confrontations in recent years, the board still allowed itself to be accused of things such as owing the players money for a previous tour, and although I believe it is their right to do so as the governing body of the game in the region, that it could still have been accused of arranging tours without the input of the association as previously agreed.

While the association must be congratulated for at last representing the first-class players and not only for using them as ammunition in their quarrels with the board for benefits involving only the Test players, while the association is now asking for more money for the first-class players, while the association is now addressing a system that contracts some of the Test players while ignoring others, and while it seems sensible to make demands when things are going well, it is strange that once again the association has decided to flex its muscles, not during a losing campaign when the fans are up in arms, but during a winning one when the fans were on their side.

The match was played, and thank God it was played. If it was not played it would have robbed the series of a glorious climax. On top of that, regardless of what we may say about cricket, what we may feel about the importance of cricket to the region, cricket is a game, and it is a game for the enjoyment of all.

Regardless of how its members behave sometimes, probably most times, cricket does not belong to the board, and regardless of what they may say and believe, regardless of how great they may be or believe they are, cricket does not belong to the players - to the Test players, or to the first-class players.

Cricket belongs to the people - to all those who play the game at whatever level, to all those who have ever held a bat or a ball, to all the club members around the region, and to all those who support the game by watching it or contributing to its existence.

Reason to smile

Right now, there is reason to smile, more so after so many years of underperforming, and even though this performance, but for that of Brendan Nash in the Test matches, is due to the same four or five players, three of whom have been around for at least nine years.

The smile will only continue, however, if the board looks at itself and deal with the business of West Indies cricket and its representatives properly, fairly, and with respect while knowing, and accepting that, like the players, they can be removed.

The smile will only continue if the players, who the association represents, realise that the board, not them or their representative, was elected by the people in cricket around the region to administer the game, and that it is not their (the players) responsibility to do so.

Like the board members, the players must also remember that they, any one of them, can be replaced. The players must also remember that in their call for more money, to an extent, to a great extent at that, the board's ability to pay them depends on their ability to perform and their success on the field.

The board must remember that, apart from its other obligations, it has a responsibility to look after the West Indies players - to be fair and to be honest to them while ensuring that apart from doing their best for their country, that they make enough money to provide a decent living for themselves and their families out of their talent and their skill.

The players, however, must also remember that the board has a responsibility, an obligation, not only to them, but also to West Indies cricket - from the grass roots and upwards through the schools, the clubs, and the territories.