Sir Vivian Richards

Dehring was in Broward County, Florida on Friday, one of the venues for the ICC T20 Cricket World Cup to be staged later this year, delivering the keynote address at the 50th anniversary banquet in celebration of Rowe’s epic triple century against England in 1974.

Amongst the West Indies legends present were Sir Vivian Richards, Sir Andy Roberts, Dr., the Hon. Courtney Walsh O.J., Collis King and Joel “Big Bird” Garner, all former teammates of Rowe, along with Chris Gayle and Ramnaresh Sarwan.

Rowe was one of several West Indian cricketers who were members of a rebel tour that played matches in then-apartheid South Africa in the early 1980s. Poorly paid and unable to break into a powerful West Indies side, Rowe and others like Collis King, Sylvester Clarke, Colin Croft and Ezra Moseley among others opted to earn between USD$100,000 and US$125,000 to play across two tours from 1982-83 and again from 1983-84. The participants received life bans from Caribbean cricket in 1983 and in many instances, were ostracised socially and professionally.

 Dehring, in saying that it was time for Rowe to be forgiven, also lamented at where the banquet was being held.

“This banquet celebrating 50 years since the herculean triple century by one of Jamaica’s greatest sporting icons, should have been staged in Jamaica with the full and unequivocal support of the Jamaican government, cricket association and people of Jamaica. That it is being held in Florida and not in Jamaica, ironically mirrors the embarrassing fact that the T20 cricket World Cup is also being staged this year in Florida, and not in Jamaica. “Look at what we have come to!” he remarked.

He added further, his disappointment at the mural at Sabina Park celebrating some of Jamaica’s most famous cricketers with Rowe noticeably absent.

“Black South Africans forgave their oppressors years ago through their Truth and Reconciliation process. To see a mural unveiled at Sabina Park honouring 19 of Jamaica’s greatest cricketers, and no Yagga Rowe is as abhorrent to the ground he helped make famous, as it is to the glorious game itself. It is time to end this farce.”

“To put it in perspective,” he continued, “‘Jamaicans still sing, dance and celebrate to Vybz Kartel and Ninjaman music. There is no protest or public outcry when those songs play on the radio or at parties, the works of art of these convicted murderers that our children sing word for word! Yet forty years later, we are trying to erase from history the body of work of a man whose only real crime, if any, was to continue to earn an honest living in his profession, after his employers had let him go, in the only place willing to pay the value his services were worth.

“Other West Indian “rebels” went on to play again for the West Indies, even at Sabina Park, cheered on by my fellow Jamaicans; if Yagga had chosen to rob a bank, he would long have been out of jail. It’s time to let him go. Free Yagga,” the former Jamaica youth batsman concluded.

The trophy pays tribute to two all-time greats – whose rivalry and friendship embodies the close relationship and mutual respect between the two sides. The unveiling ceremony was held on Sunday at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua ahead of the first Apex Test match which starts on Tuesday, March 8.

The sparkling new trophy symbolizes “Courage. Friendship. Respect” – values that represent the Test cricketing rivalry between West Indies and England, and of two legends who best define them – Sir Vivian Richards and Lord Ian Botham.

It has an ultra-modern design and consists of an upside-down cup, based on a Georgian rummer, with the joining sphere a cricket ball. One end is a rummer for drinking rum and the other a wine/ale goblet. The rummer has palm fronds and the ale cup has willow leaves. The ceremonial idea is that the winning team holding the trophy would have the rummer that represents their team face upward while they held it and it would be ceremoniously turned over when the other team wins.

Test matches between these two rivals date back to 1928 when West Indies made their first trip to England. The teams, under the captaincy of Kraigg Brathwaite and Joe Root, will renew the rivalry with the Apex Test Series.

“It’s a truly special feeling to have the fantastic trophy named in honour of my great friend Ian and myself. We played a lot together and built a great friendship on and off the cricket field,” said Sir Vivian. “As I said earlier, I am truly delighted to know that the game that I have shown my love for all my life is naming such a prestigious award in recognition of what I managed to achieve. It’s a beautiful trophy and I want to again thank everyone who came up with this idea and contributed to its creation."

Botham said he was honoured to have a trophy in his name.

“It’s a great idea and a truly lovely trophy. It really stands out and I’m honoured to have my name on the trophy alongside my friend Sir Viv,” he said.

“The captain who picks up the trophy at the end of the upcoming series will be a happy man.”

Meanwhile, West Indies captain Kraigg Brathwaite said he was eager to get going on Tuesday in what he expects to be a closely contested series.

“We’re really excited and ready for the upcoming Apex Test Series against England. This is going to be an amazing three weeks of cricket,” Brathwaite said.

“It’s extra special too that we’re playing for the new Richards-Botham trophy, a fitting tribute to these two great men. We want to be the first team to get our hands on it and celebrate with our fans.”

England’s captain Joe Root believes the trophy named in honour of the two greats is a fitting tribute to the rivalry between the two teams.

“Test series between England and West Indies are iconic, and to have a trophy named after arguably the two most outstanding England and West Indies cricketers of all-time in Lord Ian Botham and Sir Vivian Richards is a fitting tribute for this great rivalry. We are enthused about the next month of competition, and we hope to make the England fans proud by lifting the Richards-Botham trophy,” he said.

The Apex Test Series will feature three Test matches. The first at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium, the second Apex Test will be played at Kensington Oval, Barbados from March 16-20, with the climax in the third Apex Test at the Grenada National Stadium, Grenada on March 24-28

Da Silva, 22, one of the shining lights for what was otherwise a disastrous tour of New Zealand earlier this month. He made a composed 57 in the second innings on his Test debut after being called up to replace injured wicketkeeper-batsman Shane Dowrich.

His performance already has tongues wagging across the Caribbean about the Trinidadian taking over from his Barbadian colleague behind the stumps for the West Indies.

However, while Sir Vivian, who has scored 8540 runs from 121 Test matches, did not opine on whether Da Silva was ready to be the West Indies number-one wicketkeeper-batsman, he definitely likes what he sees. He expressed his opinions to the Antigua Observer in a recent interview.

“I think some of these guys should have a look at him and see how simple he keeps his game because even for the period I saw him at the crease he was compact, not flashy and had the bat coming down with all kinds of flashiness,” Sir Vivian said.

“He looks very respectable to me like he knows his game.

“You see him when he is batting and when he is looking to defend, how straight his bat is. He looks organized to me and you’re not seeing that in all the other guys.”

After reading about the Master Blaster’s remarks, Da Silva told Sportsmax.TV he appreciated the observations from the all-time great.

“I am honoured to see what Sir Viv has said and complimenting about my batting,” he said.

“I am just playing a simple basic game. I am not trying to be too flashy, score when I can score and defend when I can defend so it’s a great honour to get some compliments from a great like Sir Viv and I will take that and keep working at my game and getting better.”

Four teams remain in the World Cup – India, Pakistan, England and New Zealand – with the semi-finals looming. However, the West Indies did not get into the Super 12, the first time that has ever happened in the team’s history.

This latest embarrassment from the two-time world champions, has not gone down well with the Master Blaster who won two ICC World Cup titles with the West Indies in 1975 and 1979.

During an interview on the Good Morning Jo Jo radio show in Antigua, Richards did not hold back his feelings.

“I’m really, really, really disappointed. I honestly felt that they would have fought their way out of the qualifying stages to get themselves into the Super 12,” said Richards, who was recently named an ambassador for the Lankan Premier League.

“It didn’t look good at all. One of the things that really caught my eye, when we won against Zimbabwe, the way in which we behaved, liked we had won the World Cup, I felt we should’ve just calmed it down a little bit.

“This is supposed to be our best opportunity for us to win something at the international level because this is a team that showed that sort of prospect. This is where I think we have geared ourselves that if we were gonna win anything and win it quickly, it would’ve been the T20 World Cup. Because of that, I’m very, very, very disappointed. I’m not sure why, but I am.”

Some of the blame, Richards feels, should fall squarely at the feet of the players, whose loyalty to the region should be questioned; that they give the T20 leagues across the world preference over playing for the West Indies.

“It’s alleged that you hear players sometimes saying ‘CWI knows my schedule’ and stuff like that. That’s not the way it should be. You should be telling CWI what your schedule is and see the best way to work around it if your heart and soul is in representing the West Indies at that particular level,” Richards argued.

“But what I find is that there are some that want to go do what they like in terms of contracts they have with the various franchises. To come back and automatically get in when you have individuals who have been performing and being around and not basically getting a look in because of these individuals being favorites of such. I think we should at least have found a way earlier to nullify that and have the guys who are fit to play, and not the guys who pick and choose when they feel like playing.”

The third Test of the #RaiseTheBat Series, which starts at Emirates Old Trafford on Friday will be the last time the two sides compete for the Wisden Trophy, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) and Cricket West Indies (CWI) have announced.

In its place, the new Richards-Botham Trophy will now be designed ready for when the teams next meet in a Test series.

The title honours Sir Vivian Richards, one of cricket’s greatest batsmen, who scored more than 8,500 runs in a 121-Test career, and Sir Ian Botham, the legendary all-rounder who scored more than 5,000 runs and took 383 wickets in 102 Tests.

Fierce competitors on the pitch, the pair developed a great friendship off it, which still endures, and the new trophy is a fitting way to celebrate the warm relationship between the nations and to honour the gladiatorial spirit of contests past and present.

The Wisden Trophy, first introduced in 1963 to commemorate the hundredth edition of the Wisden Cricketers’ Almanack, will now be retired and will be displayed at the MCC Museum at Lord’s where it has traditionally been kept.

“This is a huge honour for my good friend Ian and myself. I am delighted to know that the game that I have shown my love for since a little boy is naming such a prestigious award in my recognition of what I managed to achieve as a cricketer. When I had the opportunity to go to England and represent Somerset, one of the first persons I met was Ian Botham, who would later become of one my best friends. We are friends for life,” Sir Vivian said.

“To have this trophy – West Indies vs England – named in honour of our work on the cricket field is great. What I think is also remarkable is that it says a lot about our relationship off the field as well. We were competitors on the field, but we showed we were brothers off the field. I’m proud to have my name on one side of the trophy with him on the other side.”

Sir Ian Botham was in agreement with the Master Blaster’s sentiments.

“Viv was the finest batsman I ever played against. He’s a great friend but we’ve always been competitive, not least when we were on the cricket field, and there was no one else’s wicket I would treasure more,” Botham said.

“Playing the West Indies was always one of the toughest tests in cricket, and it’s an honour for this trophy to bear our names. I hope future series will be just as exciting as the one we’ve all been enjoying this summer.”

Sir Vivian averaged 62.36 against England across his career with eight hundreds. He dominated the 1976 series between the two sides, scoring 829 runs at an average of 118.42 in the series, which West Indies won 3-0. This included 232 in the first Test and 291 in the fifth. He also made what at the time was the fastest Test hundred in the game against England in 1986, taking just 56 balls to reach his century. It is still the equal second fastest of all time.

Facing the best team in the world at the time, Sir Ian took 61 wickets at an average of 35 against the West Indies, with three five-wicket hauls and a best of 8-103 at Lord’s. He also scored four 50s, with a best of 81 in the same game at Lord’s in 1984.

“England and the West Indies have produced many magic cricketing moments over the years, and this series has been no different even though it’s been played in very different circumstances. We remain very grateful for West Indies travelling here to play this series, and it’s fitting that we’ve got such an exciting final test in store as the teams compete for the Wisden Trophy for the final time,” said ECB Chairman Colin Graves.

“The Wisden Trophy was introduced nearly 60 years ago to mark the 100th edition of the Almanack, and we’ve been extremely proud to contest it since then. Both we and Cricket West Indies felt that the time was right to honour two of our greatest modern players. Sir Vivian and Sir Ian were fierce competitors on the pitch but great friends off it, exemplifying the spirit of the contests between our two cricketing nations and providing perfect inspiration for those who compete for the Richards-Botham Trophy in years to come.”

CWI President Ricky Skerritt said both men were deserving of the honour.

“Sir Viv’s phenomenal West Indies track record against England, both as a player and captain, and his longstanding friendship with his former Somerset teammate and England rival, Sir Ian Botham, presented an excellent opportunity to honour two uniquely suited living legends,” Skerritt said.

“Both honorees put their heart into the game, and always gave their all for their teams and countries. There are other West Indian cricket legends whose names could also have been chosen for this honour, but none more deserving than Sir Viv.”

According to Sir Viv, a National Hero in his native Antigua, the missed opportunities mean there is now an uphill task for the women in the region to get to the level where they can, again, win world tournaments.

“After we would have had the women’s World Cup and after they would have won we haven’t seen the so-called promises we would had here with the tournament being held her in the Caribbean, and we here in Antigua would have seen the hype about the ladies and where we are going, but I think that has been a letdown,” said Richards.

“We would have dropped a few points in that particular category and that’s one of the negatives that I think in order to try and get that momentum again where we once were because it is not looking good at present, and especially with some of the tournaments we would have seen the girls partake in this year also,” he said.

Recently, Cricket West Indies CEO, Johnny Grave, indicated that his organization would be doing all it could to ensure that the regional tournament for women continued despite the fear of COVID-19 spread in the Caribbean.

The CEO was speaking about the Women’s Super50 Cup as well as the inaugural Regional Under-19 Women’s Championship.

“They are very important tournaments, not just in terms of the preparation but in terms of the preparation for the selection of those respective squads as we look to compete in the World Cups of those events due to take place in the early part of 2021,” said Grave.

Called to the West Indies squad to replace the injured Shane Dowrich, the 22-year-old Da Silva got off to an inauspicious start in his Test debut which came recently against New Zealand.

After looking at ease in the middle, a moment of indecision cost him his wicket.

When on three, he decided to play at a fullish outswinger in the corridor from Tim Southee. In an instant, Da Silva tried to pull his bat away but not far enough as the ball brushed the bat face on its way through to wicketkeeper BJ Watling.

However, in his second turn at bat with the West Indies following on, Da Silva was the most composed batsman, going on to make a polished 57. With the West Indies facing certain defeat and with only one batsman left to come, he was eventually trapped lbw by Neil Wagner. During the knock where he stroked six balls to the boundaries, the young Trinidadian impressed none other than the Master Blaster himself, Sir Isaac Vivian Richards.

“I think some of these guys should have a look at him and see how simple he keeps his game because even for the period I saw him at the crease he was compact, not flashy and had the bat coming down with all kinds of flashiness,” Sir Vivian told the Antigua Observer in a recent interview.

“He looks very respectable to me, like he knows his game.

“You see him when he is batting and when he is looking to defend, how straight his bat is. He looks organized to me and you’re not seeing that in all the other guys.”

Da Silva came away with a Test average of 30, the third best among the West Indies batsmen. Only Jermaine Blackwood with an average of 54 and Captain Jason Holder who averaged 34.33 were better.

Gayle, this week, lashed out at the fast-bowling great, who said Gayle is not an automatic choice for selection in the West Indies team that will begin the defence of their ICC World T20 title on October 23 against England in Dubai.

Ambrose, speaking on Mason and Guest in Barbados, said Gayle has not had the best of form in a long time and would not walk into a team he would select.

“No, he (Gayle) is not an automatic choice for me. The few home series just played, he had no scores of significance, and I have said before that if he did not do well in those home series, he should not go to the World Cup,” Ambrose said.

“However, he will be at the World Cup, but for me, he is definitely not an automatic choice for starting… If he gets it going on the day, he can be destructive, but he has not done much in the last 18 months or so to really make me think he will set the World Cup alight.”

Gayle reacted angrily saying: “I highly respected him (Ambrose) when I came into the West Indies team. When I just joined the team, I looked up to this man. But I am now speaking from my heart. I don’t know what, since he retired, what he had against Chris Gayle. Those negative things he has been saying within the press, I don’t know if he is looking for attention but he is getting the attention. So I am just giving back the attention which he requires and which he needs.”

However, Richards, one of the greatest ever batsmen, said Ambrose has earned the right to speak.

“It's Curtly’s honest opinion and he’s entitled to that and he is just as much as an achiever as Chris Gayle at the highest level and you should have respect for that,” Richards said.

“So when you hear it’s coming from an individual who would have also been an achiever and being a legend in the department of the sport we would have represented, you must have respect for that too. He is entitled to a voice as well.
He called on Gayle to prove his doubters wrong when the World Cup begins.

“If I was Chris, the best positive way I could look at it would be to set my mind on what I would like to accomplish because it is just not Curtly because there are so many folks who would have had their criticisms about Chris being in the team,” said Richards.

“Prove people wrong and when you do that, that is what proper professionalism is all about.”

For two decades, Sir Vivian, one of the greatest batsmen of all time, destroyed bowling attacks across the globe, plundering 8540 runs in 121 Tests. The nature of his dominance was such that he once held the world record for the fastest-ever Test century, getting to the hallowed milestone from just 56 balls. It is against this background that that his criticism of the current crop of West Indies batsmen is seen as being telling. 

During the recent tour of New Zealand, the West Indies batsmen were harried and bullied by the pace and bounce of Trent Boult, Neil Wagner, Kyle Jamieson and Tim Southee, who between them took 38 wickets.

In the first Test at Hamilton, New Zealand, batting first on a green wicket, made 519 for 7 declared with Captain Kane Williamson getting 251 runs. In reply, the West Indies could only manage 138 and following on, 247, losing by an innings and 134 runs.

It was a similar situation in the second Test at Wellington where after New Zealand made 460 all out reduced the West Indies to 131, and following on, 317, losing by an innings and 12 runs.

Of note, is that no West Indies batsman in four innings cumulatively managed to score more runs than Williamson’s score in the first Test. Jermaine Blackwood, who scored a century and a half century over the two Tests came closest with 216 runs.

Richards, in a recent interview with the Antigua Observer, said the West Indies batsmen were not able to withstand the hostility of the home team’s bowlers.

“We are struggling to play the short ball, and we look like the individuals we used to deal with. We are looking very timid and West Indians over the years have always been part of that destructive force when it comes to playing fast bowling,” said Sir Vivian.

“There are certain improvements in the team but we are seeing it in bits and pieces and we are not seeing those pieces being out together, we are not seeing that.”

Richards said it was becoming hard to watch the West Indies play under the current state of affairs.