Sir Ian Botham

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

There are few other sportspeople that have given Father Time such a run for their money than the evergreen swing king, who aged 41 years and 223 days and in his 23rd year as an international fast bowler has just bagged his 700th Test wicket in England’s fifth Test against India in Dharamsala.

Only Muttiah Muralitharan (800) and the late Shane Warne (708) have more but Anderson is out of sight among non-spinners and may never be toppled, with closest challenger Stuart Broad retiring last year.

It is doubtful Anderson would be where he is without Broad, who owes just as much of his success to the Lancastrian. The pair are indelibly linked and their partnership fits comfortably alongside McGrath-Warne, Wasim-Waqar and Walsh-Ambrose as one of the best of all-time.

There are those who seek to downplay their achievements, that their records are gilded in home conditions with more modest successes overseas. But statistics can obscure the bigger picture and Anderson was instrumental in England’s two greatest away victories in a generation.

Sir Alastair Cook took the plaudits with his insatiable appetite for runs in the 2010/11 Ashes but the leading wicket-taker was Anderson, whose immaculate control and key breakthroughs led to him being described as “the major difference” by Mahendra Singh Dhoni when England beat India in 2012 in a series where all other quicks floundered.

Sir Ian Botham’s 383 wickets are long since in the rear view mirror and much like the great all-rounder’s fine wines, Anderson kept getting better with age. Since his 30th birthday he has taken 432 wickets at 24.13 while that average sinks to a scarcely believable 22.86 after turning 35.

Rewind to December 2002, the start of his life with England, and Anderson was a terrorising paceman who swung the ball round corners and possessed immaculate seam control. He made an impression in the 2003 World Cup before taking a five-for on Test debut against Zimbabwe later that year.

His career stalled over the next few years, partly because well-meaning coaches attempting to iron out kinks in his action to prevent stress fractures in his back had the unintended consequence of inducing stress fractures in his back.

He filtered out the bad advice and after being in and out of the side, his and Broad’s inclusion in New Zealand in March 2008 marked a changing of the guard as Matthew Hoggard and Steve Harmison were ushered out.

The connection was not instantaneous and England had to bide their time, but they struck up a union that brought four Ashes series victories between 2009 and 2015 during a golden period in which they also climbed to the top of the Test rankings between 2011 and 2012.

As Anderson’s career has progressed, so too has his meticulous planning to his craft. As his speeds dropped, he focused on a metronomic line and length to constrain batters although he was still capable of producing the odd ‘magic ball’. That was evidenced with his 500th Test scalp as he pegged back the middle stump of West Indies opener Kraigg Brathwaite in 2017 en route to career best figures of seven for 42 at Lord’s.

Afterwards, Anderson admitted to feeling “not quite teary but emotional” – a break from his more natural sullen and occasionally grumpy demeanour.

Apart from one heated confrontation with India all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja in 2014, that hostility was self-contained. Anderson is a more self-effacing and thoughtful character off the field and channels his temper in more productive fashion.

He was part of the England side that reached the 2013 Champions Trophy final but his white-ball career ended two years later after the World Cup omnishambles. Although Anderson never actually retired, he was deemed surplus to requirements even if no other Englishman can better his 269 ODI wickets.

The decision elongated Anderson’s red-ball career. He went on to top the Test bowling rankings on a couple of occasions, breaching the 900-point barrier a few days after he passed 100 wickets at Lord’s in August 2018 – the first paceman to take a century at a single venue. A month later he surpassed Glenn McGrath’s 563 wickets to become Test cricket’s most successful fast bowler.

A chronic shoulder injury, which was a factor in great rival Dale Steyn’s retirement, has impacted his daily routine to such an extent that even just brushing his teeth can prove a burden.

Recurring calf complaints meant he missed almost all of the 2019 Ashes while a broken rib sidelined him after a stellar showing at Cape Town that winter but Anderson remained unbowed through it all.

Being left out of England’s post-Ashes tour of the West Indies in 2022 brought fresh speculation Anderson might finally call it quits but he predictably came back with a vengeance and seems rejuvenated under the leadership of Ben Stokes and Brendon McCullum.

Despite the combination of a poor 2023 Ashes and Broad heading for the hills, Anderson keeps going and has finally joined the 700 club. Warne may now be in his sights – after that, who knows?

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.”