(Part 51.) Lloyd’s crowning glory. West Indies cricket has enjoyed many moments of celebration, but few match lifting the trophy at the first Men’s Cricket World Cup—50 years ago today, 21 June 1975. For the final time and for the final edition of this 51-day series, here’s Tony Cozier’s match …
Read More »1975 CWC: The statistical standouts of the first Men’s tournament
(Part 50.) Judge by numbers. After exactly seven weeks of counting down, here we are: one day to go to the 50th anniversary of the West Indies victory over Australia in the inaugural Men’s Cricket World Cup final at Lord’s. Ahead of the grand occasion—and it gets grander and more …
Read More »1975 CWC: The day that Windies stopped being ‘Calypso Cricketers’
(Part 42.) “West Indies surely now cannot win!” Television commentator and former Australian captain and leg-spinner Richie Benaud’s crisp, precise tone had pronounced on the West Indies’ fate against Pakistan at the 1975 World Cup. Keith Boyce had just dragged a delivery from seamer Naseer Malik onto his stumps to …
Read More »1975 CWC: One for the ages—Murray and Roberts pull off sensational recovery against Pakistan
(Part 41.) Deryck Murray, Andy Roberts save the day. With 10 days to go to the 50th anniversary of the West Indies victory over Australia in the 1975 World Cup final at Lord’s, Tony Cozier reports on the Caribbean side’s second Group B match against Pakistan in Birmingham, which was carried …
Read More »1975 CWC: Mr Unflappable—Deryck Murray was exactly what young, exciting Windies needed
(Part 16.) Man for a crisis. Clive Lloyd lifted the trophy and provided the stellar individual performance of the 1975 World Cup final, but it was the quietly efficient man behind the stumps who sealed the triumph for the West Indies—his underarm return finding a diving last man Jeff Thomson …
Read More »1975 CWC: A journey begins for WI ‘in a galaxy far, far away…’
(Part one.) 50 years. It is almost a lifetime. Or, with the realities of life here these days, two lifetimes, maybe three. Given the turbulence of West Indies cricket for nearly 30 years now, it may feel like more than half-a-century ago. But no, in 50 days’ time, God willing, …
Read More »‘Reds’ and McWatt: WI must overhaul white-ball teams, starting with captain, coaches and selectors
“[…] The win-loss results of the Phil Simmons-led coaching staff also suggest they should be immediately replaced. Of the 36 T20 International matches played since Simmons’ October 2019 reinstatement as head coach, West Indies won 14 and lost 17 while five ended as no results! “[…] Our replacement suggestions would …
Read More »T2021 W/C: ‘Reds’ & McWatt request overhaul of WI selection policies, starting with fitness requirements
“[…] Foremost among the policies now obviously in need of desperate reform would be that of the fitness standards. “As numerous former players have suggested, the duplicity of allowing some players to be granted fitness exemptions while others are deemed to have failed to meet the required standards has to …
Read More »Mayers? De Silva? Captain Holder or Brathwaite? Best muses over WI Test changes for S/Lanka Tigers
Nothing happened in ODI play in Bangladesh to warrant imminent adjustments to the pre-tour line-up. But that’s hardly the case with the Test unit where the successful second-string challenges to the incumbents are now being awaited with more than a little anticipation. And they will be welcomed. Why? Easy. Given …
Read More »Lyndersay: Where’s Brian? A review of 501 Not Out
“[501 Not Out is] a romantic reminiscence of the closing of a golden era in West Indies cricket, a sparkling reminder of the power of the region’s cricketers and the stunning individual achievement of [Brian] Lara at the wicket. “It’s also an odd little film, one that focuses almost determinedly …
Read More »Clive Lloyd’s 1975-76 WI (Pt 1): Viv, voracious and vocal
In 1976, Tobago-born Owen Thompson was but a boy of 14 when Greg Chappell’s Australia put a 5-1 merciless whipping on Clive Lloyd’s West Indian cavaliers. That turned out to be the last time for a long, long time. In those days, Thompson, who now works in film and television …
Read More »Strongman Cameron leaves Herculean challenge: how soon can Skerritt and Shallow clean CWI’s stink stables?
“We have already delivered the impossible. For miracles, feel free to check back later.” Were I in the shoes of new CWI President Ricky Skerritt, that is what I would have tweeted on Monday afternoon for the benefit of the West Indies fans, new, old and returning. I confidently affirm, …
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