PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad, CMC – Former West Indies team manager Omar Khan has called on authorities to attach a full-time sports psychologist to the regional side.
Khan said during his stint with the side he had doubled his duties to deal with the mental aspect of the game but stressed it was time to have a dedicated professional performing the role.
“Every professional sports team in the world has one attached to it,” Khan noted.
“The board just have to take a look at the Indian Premier League (IPL) and they will notice that everyone of the nine teams has a psychologist attached to it.
“Cricket these days has so many dimensions that you need to have a sports psychologist attached to the team right through. We have so much natural talent in cricket but the board has to understand that this alone cannot win matches in these times.”
Psychologist Dr. Rudi Webster has been utilized in the past and accredited with the turnaround in team performances.
The Barbadian was drafted in for the West Indies home series against India in the Caribbean last year but has not been used since.
Khan said, however, it was vital the West Indies Cricket Board respond to the demands of the contemporary game.
“The world is moving ahead with specialists for specialist positions and yet we cannot seem to understand that we need to take heed of what is happening around us,” Khan argued.
“The psychologist will go a long way in helping the players get the best out of their talent and when you marry that talent with mental toughness you would get excellent players, leading to excellent results.”
