The decision to drop the 27-year-old Hope, after his recent monumental struggles, has divided public opinion. While some believe the player could benefit from time away from the team to address potential confidence and technical issues, others believe the batsman would best be served staying within the system, even if he remains outside of the first team.
Rose, for his part, believes with the team currently in rebuilding mode, nothing will be gained from the talented player being pushed out of the squad at this point.
“They’re rebuilding, how are you going to get rid of the guy (Hope) when you are rebuilding. He’s one of the brightest talents,” Rose told the Mason and Guest radio program.
“West Indies cricket is rebuilding. You cannot chop and change while rebuilding. Shai Hope, one of the best talents in the Caribbean, you just drop him like that. I would have brought him on tour, got him to play a few of the practice games. Even if he doesn’t get to play Test matches. What cricket is he going to play now to get back his confidence?”
The 51-year-old Rose, who played 19 tests and 27 one-day internationals, made this plea in a recent interview with www.usacricketers.com.
He implored players to aspire to be role models, always disciplined and change their attitudes when it comes to international duties.
“Our players need to change their attitudes in the region and I think that is what is affecting our performances over the years, if not our cricket will continue to decline,” Rose commented.
Rose, who took 53 Test wickets, also commented on the standard of First-class cricket in the region.
“We don’t see the bouncy pitches anymore, our fast-bowlers need good pitches to bowl on, we need them to be prepared for international assignments and, again, these come down to the attitude of our players, people blame the administrators but if the players don’t have the right attitude, then things can’t go right” Rose said.
Filling the gap between the youth to senior level is of paramount importance, according to Rose.
“We have got to put things in place to help the youngsters after finishing off at the youth level; we want proper structure, we want good cricket after that youth tournament so we can keep our talented young players in good shape, we don’t want them to have the same attitude from the youth stage and then transfer it to the big stage, so we have got to be smart and change our whole attitude when it comes to our cricket in the Caribbean,” Rose declared.
Since his retirement, Rose has been a steady presence in the United States of America featuring for various clubs in Los Angeles while he has been involved in humanitarian services back in Jamaica.
He performed several coaching roles as well to add to his cricketing criteria.
Like many ex-West Indies players, Rose has reached out to the schools to help with the promotion of cricket. According to Rose, he is doing voluntary coaching with over 30 schools in Jamaica.
“Well, the youths need to be given the chance; I go into schools and try to spot talented players; I always wanted to contribute back to the game; I strongly believe in coaching so I am willing to assist,” Rose said.
Walsh and Ambrose are widely considered the last in a long line of dominant and fearsome West Indies bowlers that had stretched on for several generations.
Before the heyday of Walsh and Ambrose, West Indies quicks like Wes Hall, Charlie Griffith, Andy Roberts, Colin Croft, Joel Garner, Michael Holding, and Malcolm Marshall hunted in packs as they menacingly stalked the crease of fearful opposition batsmen.
It came to an end with Walsh and Ambrose, however, and so it seems did the West Indies fortunes as a winning team.
“Before Courtney and I left the team, we had around six fast bowlers around us. We thought maybe three or four of them could become great,” Ambrose told the Mason and Guest radio program.
“We had Franklin Rose, Rayon King, Dillon, Nixon McClean, Pedro Collins, and Corey Collymore. Six who I thought would have carried on the tradition of fast bowlers,” he added.
“Courtney and I talked about it and we always felt that Franklin Rose and Corey Collymore would be the two guys to lead the rest of the attack. These were two guys who had tremendous potential to lead the rest of the attack," Ambrose said.
“Franklin Rose turned out to be a bit of an enigma, you never know which side of the bed he’ll wake up on up. So, you can never be too sure with him. Collymore, when he first played against Australia in 1999, I said to Courtney ‘hey we have a young man here who looks the part’ and then, unfortunately, his back went out soon after that and he has never been the same.”
In recent times, Kemar Roach, who recently claimed his 200th Test wicket, has come to the fore along with Shannon Gabriel, Jason Holder, and Alzarri Joseph to give the bowling line-up more credibility.
The 27-year-old off-spinner was recently selected as part of a 15-man Test squad that will face New Zealand in a two-match series later this month.
After putting in several strong performances at the regional and A-Team level, the player made his debut for the West Indies senior team against India last year.
Cornwall has since gone on to appear in three matches, where he has claimed 13 wickets with a best innings of 7 for 75 against Afghanistan. Discussions surrounding the player have, however, inexorably centred around his weight. At an estimated 1.96 m and 308 lbs, he is believed to be the heaviest man to ever play Test cricket. The debate surrounding the issue has settled mainly into two camps, with some believing the player should continue to be given a chance because of his achievements to date and others believing he should be judged on the same fitness merit as other players selected for the squad. Rose has trended toward the latter.
“He has a lot of talent, but no disrespect, I have a problem with his fitness,” Rose told the Mason and Guest radio program.
“Say for example they play him in the first Test and he makes 100 runs. ‘Very well done, congratulations’ but when he goes out into the field to field, how many runs is he going to give away?” he added.
“No disrespect, it doesn’t fit the profile of a Test cricketer. Maybe try him with the T20. Can he bat for three days? Do you think he can bat for three days in a Test match? Can he chase the ball to the boundary, pick it up and throw it back in?”
Cornwall is often deployed in the slip positions when the team is on fielding duty.
In addressing recent criticism aimed in his direction by legendary fast bowler Sir Andy Roberts, Holder insisted he respected the former players a great deal. He, however, believes a great deal more could be achieved with a direct dialogue between the past and present players.
Rose, who is also well-known for pulling no punches in his analysis, agreed with the captain’s assessment.
“We’re all passionate about the game and we are all disappointed in the performance of West Indies cricket, but it seems as if some of the past players live to see the guys fail,” Rose told the Mason and Guest radio program.
“We should be supporting the guys. Give them a call, send them a text message. Give them a few words of encouragement,” he added.
“When I used to play Malcolm Marshall was my coach and I was honoured to be a part of that team. So, I would always try to impress as a fast bowler, impress the great Malcolm Marshall. I think if some of these past players would pick up their phones and send a message or words of encouragement to these guys, I think it would play a big part (in their development).”
The 48-year-old Rose, who played for the West Indies between 1997 and 2000, has openly admitted to being upset by the current plight of the regional team, particularly on the back of a brutal run of recent results.
After a hiatus enforced by the coronavirus pandemic, the West Indies resumed international cricket with a three-Test tour of England in July. The Windies won the first match but were badly outplayed for the rest of the series in a 2-1 defeat. The team then headed to New Zealand, last month, where they were handily beaten in both a three-match T20 series and a two-Test series where they suffered an innings defeat in both matches.
In recent times, particularly with the advent of lucrative T20 leagues, some players have been accused of putting personal gain over the pride of representing the West Indies. Rose seems to among those that hold some form of that particular view.
“We need to focus more on the success of the game than just thinking about the big bank accounts,” Rose told Television Jamaica.
“Of course the guys are going to say that they have bills to pay and family to take care of and stuff but when you are at that level of the game, representing the West Indies, one of the greatest teams of all time, you need to have a different mindset.”
