Darren Sammy starts his commentary career with IPL 2016
Darren Sammy, for being brutally honest and wearing his heart on his sleeves, the West Indian captain Darren Sammy is well loved by cricket fans around the world. Sammy, who has remained unpicked in this edition of the IPL, sprang a surprise on everyone by making his debut in the commentators' box. Sammy made his first appearance as a commentator alongside Mpemelelo Mbangwa and Ramiz Raja in the 32nd match of the IPL 2016 tournament, being played between Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and the Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) at the Eden Gardens, Kolkata.
Since then, he has been a steady presence on air giving out his opinions with a characteristic light-hearted banter. Though Sammy has enjoyed a successful stint as a commentator so far, one really wonders if it would not have been more interesting to see the dashing West Indian in action. Sammy has played for the franchises the Royal Challengers Bangalore and the Sunrisers Hyderabad in the past but has failed to create a sustained impact.
Passionate speech after winning the World T20
Sammy has been in the eye of the storm after he brought the on-going feud between the players and the West Indies Cricket Board out in the open in his fiery speech at the post-match presentation ceremony after the World T20 final.
Lambasting the WICB, Sammy said, "We had a lot of issues, we felt disrespected by our board, Mark Nicholas described our team as a team with no brains. All these things before the tournament just brought this team together.
He spoke about the trouble the new manager for the tournament (Rawl Lewis) had to go through just to get them into uniform. Always the team man, he gave credit to the whole team and their supporters back at the Caribbean, adding with a tinge of regret "...and I'm yet to hear from our own cricket board. That is very disappointing. I don't know when I am going to be playing with these guys again because we don't get selected for one-day cricket. We don't know when we are going to be playing T20s."
An unsure future lies ahead
Sammy's comment came against the backdrop of a continuous on-going feud between the West Indies players and their cricket board on issues of payment and contract. Last October, Sammy was chopped from the list of the West Indies players holding a permanent contract.
The former Test captain had seemed utterly disappointed when he said, "It's the first time in the last seven or eight years that I've not been given a retainer by the WICB. It's quite disappointing, but cricket has not been about Darren Sammy, it's for the West Indian people," Sammy said on Monday.
"I am disappointed that I never received a contract from the WICB, but it's not my decision. I've played the two limited-overs formats for West Indies on a regular basis and performed the role I was asked. It's very disappointing, particularly as I am the Twenty20 captain, but life goes on."
Sammy seemed to be echoing the simmering discontent of some of the other West Indies players when he spoke out against the board. The speech has made his future unsure and it would be difficult to say if he would ever be picked to represent his country again. For the moment, however, spectators are enjoying his short stint as a commentator in the IPL.