Speaking with former West Indies cricket captain and outgoing Director of Cricket West Indies, Connected to India asked him about his take on the upcoming India-West Indies series as well as his perspective on the upcoming cricket World Cup.
Team India is all set to play a series of two test matches, three ODIs and five T20I matches against West Indies. The month-long India vs West Indies Series 2023 will kickstart from July 12 with a test match and end on August 13 with a T20I match.
Despite the current adverse circumstances the West Indies team is facing, Adams said that he is looking forward to seeing young West Indian prospects like Jayden Seales (fast bowler) and Alick Athanaze (middle order batter) in action during the upcoming series.
Unfortunately for West Indian cricket, the team failed to qualify for the main world cup for the first time in the tournament’s history. India is hosting the World Cup again this year, and while cricket fans are looking forward to an exciting event, the West Indies’ team’s absence will be sorely felt. When asked about which teams he felt were favourites to win, however, Adams was not shy in stating his opinion.
“It should be a very good tournament as there is not much between the hosts (India), Australia, England and Pakistan,” he said.
It has been 29 years since Jimmy Adams made his international cricket debut in 1994.
“Batters have developed more scoring options because of T20 cricket. Fielding is more dynamic as well,”Adams told Connected to India, summarising his perspective and experiences of the changes to limited overs cricket in the nearly three decades since his debut.
Born in Jamaica to a pair of doctors, James Clive Adams has been involved with cricket for most of his life. During his career, he had nailed down the number five spot in the West Indies’ batting order during the 1990s and early 2000s.
The left-handed batter’s unblinking concentration shone out through a string of big hundreds and not-outs and his pragmatic, open stance and emphasis on onside play highlighted his dedication to get the job done whenever he came out to bat. His usefulness to the team and versatility were also evident through his left arm orthodox bowling and occasional wicketkeeping skills.
Adams went on to captain the side during the 2000/01 season during a tumultuous period in West Indies cricket. He retired from playing all forms of cricket in 2004 after a twenty-year career and moved on to coaching as well as the business of cricket administration. He was head coach at Kent County Cricket Club for five seasons between 2012 and 2016. In January 2017, he took up the post of Director of Cricket West Indies, a position he just recently left last month.
During his tenure, he made major contributions to CWI’s High-Performance system, notably in areas like coach education and development, sport science and medicine, and the recent opening of the Academy at the Antiguan Coolidge Cricket Ground (CCG).
Adams is no stranger to adversity, though. An unfortunate incident during a 1995 tour of England almost cut his career short. Batting in fading light, Adams ducked into a bouncer from Somerset's Andre van Troost, shattering his cheekbone. It is a testament to his grit and determination that we often saw him batting while wearing an open-face helmet even after such a nasty injury.
Cut to 2023, and the current crop of young West Indies players need to find some of that same determination if they are to lead a renaissance of Caribbean cricket.