T20 suits the nature of Caribbean people: Sunrisers Hyderabad’s Carlos Brathwaite

The Caribbean players are a regular feature of almost every franchise T20 league and they make their presence count everywhere -- from Indian Premier League (IPL)  to Pakistan Super League. Sometimes at the expense of West Indies cricket team.

Many of them, including Dwayne Bravo, Chris Gayle, Kieron Pollard have been accused of giving preference to franchise leagues over international cricket. Carlos Brathwaite, a crucial member of the West Indies 2016 World T20 winning team, says that Windies players shouldn’t be targeted alone for the trend.

“It is something ICC needs to adjust. The West Indies players are not the only ones who have picked other leagues. We have seen some England players going for white-ball contracts and South Africans going for Kolpak. People need to accept it (the trend),” said Brathwaite, who is part of Sunrisers Hyderabad in IPL 2018.

In recent past, England’s Adil Rashid and Alex Hales have opted for white-ball contracts which give them the liberty to play franchise cricket even while the national team is playing Tests.

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The Kolpak deal, on the other hand, allows a foreign player to play English county cricket after giving up his right to play for his country. Morne Morkel is a recent example of a South African opting for Kolpak.

“International cricket is still the pinnacle and more often you will be judged on your exploits there. But at the end of the day, we are professionals who need to earn a living. Some cricketers will continue to play Tests, ODIs while others will play in franchise T20 Leagues. It’s very difficult to judge as you never know the family circumstances of a player,” added Brathwaite, who was recently signed by Kent for the T20 Blast competition.

The 29-year-old all-rounder, who became an overnight hero for West Indies after hitting Ben Stokes for four successive sixes in the 2016 World T20 final, said that the T20 format suited the nature of the Caribbean people.

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“We are a naturally expressive people. T20 is a very expressive format. It’s for people seeking celebration. A relaxed lot basically, who wants to go out there and enjoy. It suits our lifestyle,” he said.

Things for Brathwaite, however, have not been hale and hearty on the international front.

“The expectations have been difficult to live up to after that innings (34* off 10 balls in 2016 World T20 final). After the final, I had a good series against Australia and South Africa at home. I also had a half-century against India in a home Test. But after that, things started to go adrift and there was a drop in form. However, over the past one year, I have become more aware of my abilities. I am focusing on the basics to get back to form,” he said.

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The burly Barbados player is yet to feature in the playing XI of Sunrisers Hyderabad. “The quality of the squad is such that there is no guarantee for a place in the playing XI. We have some highly skilled foreign players like Rashid Khan, Shakib Al Hasan, Mohammed Nabi, Chris Jordan, Alex Hales. It’s quite a competition. Tom (Moody) has expressed the need to rotate foreign players. So, I am continuing to train hard until my turn comes,” he said.