The recent decline of West Indies cricket has changed the character of the Caribbean fans renowned for their liveliness, former Indian skipper Sunil Gavaskar said. "It could well be that as the West Indians are not winning anymore, the character of the crowd has changed," Gavaskar wrote in his column in the 'Hindustan Times' newspaper.
The former test opener has travelled to the West Indies many times since making a memorable Test debut in 1971 when his batting helped India win the series.
He is currently in West Indies doing television commentary on the series against India.
"There simply is not the same buzz as there was before. "One doesn`t hear the good-humoured barracking that made playing and watching a game in the West Indies such a special pleasure."
Gavaskar said that West Indian fans always regarded themselves as experts in the game, never short of advice to the players.
"The advice is much less now to visiting teams, now that the West Indies are no longer world champions and thus not invincible," he said.
Bureau Report