The Caribbean Love of Cricket and Dominoes

When the Caribbean people are not working or playing cricket, they are busy with dominoes.

Caribbean is not only synonymous with spectacular beaches, pristine resort towns, rum, calypso and reggae. It is also known for its love of cricket and dominoes. Baseball is catching up but cricket continues to be a religion. The islanders are fierce competitors and most of West Indies come to a standstill when tests, one day or twenty-twenty matches are played at Kensington Oval in Barbados. The stadium is more like a shrine for the people in the Caribbean. The other major love is for dominoes.

Cricket has been a celebrated sport in the West Indies for a long time now. No islander can ever forget that they won the first two cricket world cups. The Caribbean has produced legends in the game of cricket, including but not limited to Clyde Walcott, Frank Worrell, Everton Weekes, Gordon Greenidge, Desmond Haynes and Garfield Sobers. West Indian cricketers are not just popular in their homelands but around the world. The likes of Joel Garner, Malcolm Marshall, Vivian Richards, Clive Lloyd, Michael Holding, Ian Bishop and Brian Lara are still celebrated today, years after their retirement. A third world cup win has eluded them for over thirty six years now, but they did emerge victorious in the twenty-twenty version in 2016.

Dominoes are an integral part of gaming and socializing on the islands. A walk through most residential neighborhoods will inevitably bring one to men gathered around a wooden table and playing dominoes with great aplomb. The games are faster than usual. For instance, the versions available on GGDomino can turn out to be a tad slower if the players don’t move fast. In the Caribbean, players have to move fast. A game is usually over in minutes. The game is played everywhere, on the streets, at homes and in clubs. There are major tournaments and competitions where the ultimate prizes can be a fortune.

Domino is not a quiet game in the Caribbean. The men are highly competitive and many get aggressive with their thumping of the table. Women too are fond of the game but they do not partake in it outside on the streets or roadside hotspots. It is not a surprise that the WCDF or World Council of Domino Federations has its headquarters in Barbados, albeit the only two other members apart from the Caribbean nations are the United States and Canada. There are as many as eight versions of dominoes. GGDomino has more though.