Two Saturday nights ago cricket fans, headed by members of the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) and a representative of the International Cricket Council (ICC), gathered at Kensington Oval in Bridgetown to announce the opening of sales to the ICC World Twenty20 West Indies 2010 Tournament next April, and despite the fact that cocktail parties are boring to some people, it was a wonderful occasion - some three hours well spent.

The gathering was something special and especially so for those not accustomed to being in the company of stars - of great performers.

Not only was someone like Philo Wallace, a former Barbadian captain and West Indies representative, now a Barbados board member, present and resplendently dressed, so too were others like Linden Wright - a former Jamaica rep now turned Jamaica and West Indies Board member, and Roland Butcher - a West Indian who represented England and is now a member of the Barbados board.

Numbered among those present were also a few legends, not only of West Indies cricket but of the entire world - champions of the past like Sir Everton Weekes, Sir Gary Sobers, Clive Lloyd, Gordon Greenidge and Joel Garner.

Looking as fit as the proverbial fiddle, the five magnificent performers looked at ease and very comfortable as the cameras clicked and clicked and as, in my mind's eye, I went down memory lane and remembered their many and glorious deeds.

great performances

From left, Gayle, Hilare and Hunte

There were, among many great performances, the two centuries in one Test match, the five consecutive centuries and a batting average of 58.61 by Weekes; the world record score of 365 not out which stood for 36 years, the two centuries in one Test match, the 26 centuries which stood second only to Sir Donald Bradman's long-lasting 29 for many, many years, and a batting average of 57.78 by Sobers; the power-hitting, including the awesome 242 not out which decided the series against India in Bombay in 1974-75, the fielding and the captaincy of Lloyd; the two centuries in one Test match and the amazing, undefeated, match-winning 214 by Greenidge to win a Test match at Lord's in less than one day; and if not so much, the deadly bounce and swing, the 259 wickets with a best of six for 56 at a fantastic average of 20.97 by 'Big Bird' Garner.

In announcing the sale of tickets for the World Twenty20 which is set to open in Guyana on April 30 and to climax, hopefully brilliantly, in Barbados on May 16, tournament director Robert Bryan of Jamaica promised that, unlike World Cup 2007, fans will be allowed a "healthy dash" of West Indian flavour and will be able to take "horns, whistles, drums, conch shells and all manner of food and drink" inside the stadiums.

He also said, loud and clear for all to hear, that the World Twenty 2010 is designed to meet the standards of the ICC and its partners, as well as to "ensure the most tremendous spectator experience possible within the context of the unique West Indian environment and traditions".

In his greetings from the ICC, Chief Executive Officer Haroon Lorgat said, among other things, that: "We want to see the fans filling the party stands and enjoying the sight, sounds and fellowship of international cricket with a real West Indian feel."

And in his short address, Dr Julian Hunte, president of the WICB, said that the region is "preparing diligently for our second international cricket tournament in less than three years with the confidence and professionalism of seasoned experts".

Not many agreed with President Hunte, certainly not where it concerned the preparation of the West Indies team, and surely not the seasoned and experienced commentator Tony Cozier, who asked what was being done to prepare the players and to select the best team for the tournament.

Cozier was told, by none other than the board's CEO, Dr Ernest Hilaire, that nothing was being done, or would be done, to prepare the players.

lack of good sense

According to Dr Hilaire, with a tour to Australia (in two parts) followed by a visit from Zimbabwe, there was no time for that.

Cozier pointed out the folly in having a regional one-day tournament preceding a Test series in Australia, followed later on by the folly of having a regional four-day tournament preceding a one-day series in Australia, and in a region where this form of cricket is not yet popular, also the folly of not having a Twenty20 regional tournament in an effort to select the best team for an international Twenty20 competition.

Standing in the pavilion named after the famous Three Ws - in memory of the great Sir Frank Worrell, Sir Everton Weekes and Sir Clyde Walcott - the question on everyone's lips, and more so of the legends, was not the price of tickets at the World Twenty20 2010. And it had nothing to do with the atmosphere, with party noise, at the matches.

The question to me, from everyone, including Weekes and Sobers, Lloyd, Garner, and Greenidge, and including the great fast bowler Charlie Griffith when we spoke at length on the telephone recently, was simply this: What is happening to our cricket?

None of them cared about drums and conch shells, music and dancing girls, food and rum. All of them wanted to know if the West Indies can recover from the problems of the past few years, and more so from that of the past few months.

They wanted to know if the board is strong enough and good enough to run West Indies cricket; they wanted to know if WIPA's interest is in the best interest of West Indies cricket; they wanted to know if the board and WIPA - if the present members of both organisations - can truly work together in the best interest of West Indies cricket. And they wanted to know if Chris Gayle is really interested in captaining the West Indies team.

They also wanted to know, not so much who will be selected to tour Australia, but more so, and more importantly so, if our cricketers, enough of them, as talented as they may be, are developed enough in their skill with bat and ball, if they are mature enough not only to play Test cricket, but also if they are good enough to tackle a team as good as Australia - even if the Aussies are not as powerful as they were up to two or three years ago.

winning chance

Like Cozier, what the majority of the people at Kensington Oval two Saturday nights ago, including those representing the truly greats of West Indies cricket, really wanted to know was not only if the West Indies can put on a good tournament, but also, and more so, what is the board doing to get the players in shape, in fighting condition, for the tournament to give them a realistic chance of winning it.

Dr Hilaire has said he will pass on Cozier's suggestion to the members of the board but, based on his explanation, it seems that there will be no Twenty20 tournament in which to prepare the players and from which the team for the World Twenty20 in 2010 will be selected.

Between now and April 30, players will have a few Twenty20 matches in Australia and against Zimbabwe. It will be the same old faces, however, and so certainly from the one-day teams, that will be involved in those matches.

In a region in which Twenty20 cricket is new, in a region in which hitting the ball comes naturally, there will be no opportunity for a 'new' face or two to come forward to parade his 'skill' and, by virtue of his 'skill' and his spirit of adventure and fearlessness, to crash the party and, who to tell, to probably blast the West Indies to victory.

That - a West Indies victory - more than anything else, including a rousing party, is what the players who flew the flag with such distinction and pride in years gone by, the fans and the sponsors, would love to see in the West Indies next May.