Dennis Duncan | Give Jamaican honour to Sobers

For our generation, which came of age in the 1960s, Garfield St Aubrun Sobers was the King of Cricket. For as long as he played, and wherever he played, Sobers presided. No wonder, then, that the Mighty Sparrow, the outstanding Calypsonian, described him as the greatest cricketer “on Earth or Mars!”

In the days of the reign of King Sobers, West Indians, almost to the last person, were radio listeners, and we listened especially to cricket. On the bus, along the streetside, in schools and at the bar (rum bar, that is), men and, to a slightly lesser extent, women, could be seen with transistors glued to the ear as they listened to the crackle of cricket from far-flung imperial and post-imperial locations with then-familiar names such as Edgbaston, Headingly, Calcutta and Perth.

The crackle came through as well from Sabina Park, Bourda (when it was not raining), Kensington, and Port-of-Spain, Caribbean temples to Test cricket, at a time when the Windward/Leewards felt, with at least some justification, that the selectors could have been more attentive to their players.

In those times, and on such grounds, commentators almost universally proclaimed Sobers to be cricket’s greatest all-rounder, or simply the greatest cricketer. The case was easily made. Sobers had, in 1958 in his first Test century, set the record of 365 not out, for the highest individual score in a Test Match, surpassing Len Hutton, and doing so at our beloved ‘Bina. As a batsman in 93 Test matches, his average was a high 57.78, with 26 Test centuries and 86 first-class hundreds under his belt.

Sobers, the stylist, was probably most famous for his full drives on both sides of the wicket. He was equally adept in facing pace and spin, and the flash of the willow driving through the covers was a joy to behold. He was simultaneously the epitome of power and the model of consistency. Cricket aficionados will recall, for instance, that, when the Man from the Bajan Bayland hit bowler Malcolm Nash for a record six sixes in one over at Glamorgan in 1968, all shots but one (the fifth) cleared the fence by a good margin. The last six was reportedly sent some mythical distance out of the grounds ”way down to Swansea”, to quote the excited commentator.

In the 1971-72 series between Australia and the Rest of the World, Sobers, representing the latter team, laid down yet another marker of his batting genius. Paceman Dennis Lillee had been on the rampage for the Aussies and Sobers had been dismissed twice without scoring in his preceding innings. But, the third time around, his response was glorious: he slammed, cut and glided his way to 254 runs against Lillee and company, in an innings at the point where exhilaration touched perfection. Australia’s batting legend Don Bradman rated this as the best batting performance he had ever seen Down Under.

VERSATILITY

Sir Garfield’s batting was reinforced by his superior bowling quality, which placed him in the highest category among bowlers. The bowling claim to greatness was built, first of all, on versatility. As the occasion demanded, Sobers was among the princes of medium pace in one session and, shortly thereafter, delivered classic finger-spin, followed by perplexing deliveries from the “back of the hand”.

Through this variety of pace and spin, he captured 235 Test wickets at an average of 34.03 runs per wicket. Several bowlers, including latter day all-rounders, may have stronger averages, but we recall that bowling averages must be examined against the backdrop of the circumstances available to each player. For the record, C.L.R. James, a writer of the highest authority, forcefully maintained that, for years leading up to 1966, “the truth was that Sobers had no superior in the world as an opening fast bowler”.

In the field, Sobers was never far from the action. Often, he snatched up, with the sharpest reflexes, stunning catches from a tight leg-slip, or short-leg, or perhaps more accurately, from what our grandmother denoted as a very silly mid-on.

The world’s greatest had his times of controversy and tragedy, but he was an inspiration to thousands who enjoy cricket. He is, most justifiably, a National Hero in Bim, a Knight Bachelor of the UK, and has been accorded the Orders of the Caribbean Community and of Australia. Jamaica should formally honour his status in our cricket pantheon with a posthumous national award.

Dennis Duncan represented Kingston College in Sunlight Cup Cricket in the 1970s. Stephen Vasciannie claims spectator status.