West Indies player Dwayne Bravo says he is more interested in seeing the back of the novel coronavirus than he is about playing franchise cricket at the moment.

For a number of weeks, sport has been at a global standstill due to the health risk posed by the spread of the virus.

With organisers’ hands shackled by the pandemic, a number of domestic cricket leagues have confirmed either changes to schedules or suspended all play, and declared winners of their respective trophies.

The highly lucrative Indian Premier League (IPL), the biggest of all franchise-based Twenty20 (T20) competitions, was slated to begin March 29, but for now it is indefinitely postponed.

“There are so many [people] away from their own families, can’t see them; and people losing their lives and jobs. This is more than just playing the IPL tournament. I would like to see the world get back at ease,” Trinidadian Bravo said during an expansive telephone interview with the Jamaica Observer recently.

The 36-year-old Bravo, a game changer as a batsman, bowler and fielder throughout his career, has represented the regional team in 71 T20 Internationals – claiming 59 wickets and tallying 1151 runs. Overall, he has played 455 T20 matches, second only to West Indies white-ball cricket Captain Kieron Pollard, who has featured in 501.

For years Bravo has been among the main attractions in a sea of international stars to flock to the IPL.

“At the end of the day, it is something no one has control over. Whether IPL plays or not, I don’t have control over it. The world will have to wait and see whenever [international] borders open back,” the 36-year-old all-rounder stressed.

The former West Indies skipper added: “The IPL is one thing, but you can’t fly. So, for example, I love Jamaica but I can’t even come to Jamaica now, so I’m more concerned about people’s lives coming back to normal. So it’s not about playing IPL, it’s about people being able to fly again.”

The Caribbean Premier League T20, slated to run from August to September, could be affected.

The International Cricket Council T20 World Cup, scheduled to take place from October to November in seven venues across Australia, is also under the microscope.

If all goes according to plan, Bravo, who only recently exited retirement, said the West Indies, the two-time world T20 champions and current holders of the title, will be a major force to be reckoned with.

“We are looking forward to it just like every other World Cup. I guess the difference with this one is that other World Cups people in different parts of the world seemed to kind of write off West Indies and don’t see them as favourites.

“We have proven ourselves on two different occasions, so I think the one in Australia…some people will give us tag of favourites because of what we’ve done in the past. We don’t take it lightly; we’ll play to our strong points. It’s our strongest format and we’ll go out there to try to defend our title,” he said.

In recent years West Indies have endured inconsistent T20 results despite most of their players becoming household names in the format. Last November they lost 1-2 to Afghanistan in the T20 International series staged in India.

Another 1-2 defeat followed immediately against hosts India. In January this year in the Caribbean, they bounced back in the final game to level the three-match T20 series against unfancied Ireland 1-1. The second match was rained off.

However, highlighted by typically audacious hitting from another returning veteran, Andre Russell, West Indies thumped home team Sri Lanka 2-0 in early March.

Bravo, who had previously championed Russell’s value to the West Indies team, reiterated the Jamaican’s match-winning capacity.

“When you have someone who can bowl 140 plus [kilometre per hour] consistently, he’s one of the cleanest hitters of a cricket ball – brilliant in the field – so he is a complete player. T20 cricket is designed for someone like Russell, like myself, [and] Pollard– and that’s why we have so much success.

“If you look at the last two, three years, Russell has definitely separated himself from everyone else, including the likes of [England player Ben] Stokes and these guys,” he explained.

Russell, named the leading T20 cricketer in 2019 by the Wisden Cricketers’ Almanack, and for years among the most sought after players in T20 franchise cricket, has played 321 matches in the format.

Before the series against Ireland, Bravo had not donned the maroon kit of the West Indies since playing against Pakistan in 2016.

Though still featuring in franchise leagues around the globe, he announced his retirement from international cricket in October 2018. But last December he confirmed his intent to return to the international fold.

“[It is] always a joy to play for West Indies. At the end of the day it’s our childhood dream as professional cricketers to represent the West Indies and the Caribbean people.

“My second stint, obviously, I come back as a more senior player, a more mature player all-round. I see myself as a father figure to this group of players,” he told the Observer.

While West Indies underperformed against Ireland, Bravo said the win against Sri Lanka was a statement to all their rivals.

“We had to send a strong message to the world, not only to the Sri Lanka team. We had to send the message that a West Indies team [at] full strength is not a joke team. The rest of the world now has to sit up and start respecting West Indies again,” he said.