Dwayne Bravo says West Indies downfall is painful
Wednesday 16 December 2015 11:19, UK
Dwayne Bravo says he is no longer interested in a Test return and admits it is painful to see the sorry state of West Indies cricket.
West Indies have faced increased criticism in the wake of their heavy defeat at the hands of Australia in the first Test in Hobart last week.
Bravo has long been a critic of the West Indies Cricket Board, having been stripped of the one-day captaincy and then left out of the World Cup squad after a team he was captaining walked out of their tour of India in a row over contracts.
The 32-year-old is in Australia playing for the Melbourne Renegades in the Big Bash League, and he admitted change is required if the West Indies are to get back to their position of dominance from the 1980s.
"Times change and I think that is one of our problems, we tend to hold on too much to the past and not focus on the future. That has been our downfall," he said.
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"It's painful to see the state of our cricket. We've got the players to be up there with the best in the world but there's a lot of things going on.
"Those in charge have to look into themselves. We don't have proper grounds, proper nets or a proper academy. All these things are a part of our downfall.
"The relationship between players, board members and management staff - it needs to get stronger and tighter. They (the board) need to have a lot more honesty."
Bravo previously admitted his retirement from Test cricket might have been a little premature, but said continuing strife within the domestic governing body have ended any thoughts of a possible comeback.
"Until earlier this year I was still interested to play Test cricket but I have yet to hear anything from any selector, what their plans are for me, what my position is," he added. "I just decided it's time to move on with my life and try to channel my energy in different places.
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"I would have loved the opportunity to play Test cricket again but since being dropped back in 2010 I never got the chance and I just decided to call it a day.
"I'm not shutting down my opportunities to represent the West Indies, I still 100 percent want to play for the West Indies in one-day internationals and T20s."
Watch the West Indies try to level their Test series with Australia live on Sky Sports 2 HD from 11.30pm on Christmas Day, or watch without a contract on NOW TV.
