This time it's different.
WINDIES RESURGENCE
Why Windies' latest resurgence is different
The series was lost, but Windies ended with quite a few gains at the end of three Tests © Getty
Windies have won games and performed well before and many thought, each time, that those instances hinted at a new beginning. On a few occasions, we believed a new dawn was breaking; that they had finally turned the corner; that better days lay ahead. Good results were rare and welcomed, and many clung tightly to them as evidence that the climb from the darkness had begun and that the future has its fair share of goodness and light.
Almost a decade ago in December 2007, when the Windies caught an under-cooked South Africa unawares and beat them in Port Elizabeth, many in the Caribbean thought the team was approaching a new era under the inspired leadership of Chris Gayle. But the home team quickly got into gear, easily winning the following two games to take the series 2-1.
More recently, there were wins over England in Barbados in 2015, over Pakistan in Sharjah in October 2016 and in Barbados five months ago, and there was also a remarkable fightback to draw a game against India in Jamaica just over a year ago. But the elation of the fans after those better-than-usual performances were short lived and the team soon returned to its old ways. Instead of turning the corner each time, they actually made U-turns, heading back to the mire from which they needed to escape.
But this won't be one of those times. This
