On August 1st we commemorated the birth centenary of Sir Frank Worrell, who defined a new era in West Indies cricket. He laid the base for West Indies blossoming into a cricketing superpower. None better symbolised cricket as a gentleman’s game. Even when pulverising bowlers, Worrell respected a cricket ball with the grace of a concert pianist. His 197 not out at Trent Bridge and 261 at Old Trafford were the equivalent of monuments to the game.
In memory of Worrell’s birth centenary I wished to remember those who in the same degree as Worrell made batting flourish like poetry, music or art.
David Gower took batting aesthetics to surreal heights, caressing the ball in the manner of a swish of a painters brush. His cover drives were simply eye catching. Even when hooking and pulling Gower was like a galleon sailing. With remorseless ease dispatched great West Indian and Australian pace bowlers on their very own tracks.
Zaheer Abbas was a manifestation of the grace of the divine who bisected the field in the manner of a painting making curves on a board. He brought his bat down at the very last moment when the ball looked like crashing through his gate. In executing the same stroke he would move forwards and backwards. He was the best ever exponent of the drive on either side of extra cover and most dominant on flat tracks. But sadly he was not at his best facing express pace being deterred by the bouncing ball.
Ranjitsinghji escalated art of batting to a new dimension, pioneering the late cut and leg glance, as well as the art of back-foot defence. Noone was a better exponent of backfoot play.
In 1896 at Old Trafford when compiling 62 and 154 took batting art to surreal regions. In the 1871 season he aggregate 2871 runs, surpassing WG Grace’s previous record. In 1897 at Sydney scored 175 when feeling unwell and in 1899 became the 1st batsmen to score over 3,000 runs in a season.
Denis Compton resembled a theatre artist when batting. Although unorthodox, he challenged great bowlers better than any contemporary batsman, averaging over 50. One can’t forget how he literally danced down the track to punish bowlers and his magical lofted sweep. He aggregating 3,816 runs, scoring 18 centuries.
Gundappa Vishwanath took invention to magical heights, executing strokes like a Beethoven composition. His square and late cut were a personification of batting beauty combined hook, pull and flick stroke was his very own invention. He was a master against express pace or on fast wickets and on bad wickets, who championed a crisis like very few of his era, with India never losing a match when Vishy scored a century. When scoring an unbeaten 97 at Madras against West Indies in 1974-75 and 124 against them in 1978-79 on the same ground, he showed his batting prowess.
Mohammad Azharuddin was a virtual re-incarnation of Ranjitsinghji when executing a leg glance. In spite of possessing awkward technique and loose footwork, he took artistry to sublime proportions. Few batsmen ever made such a sparkling start to their test career as Azhar,who scored centuries in his first 3 tests against England at home. When scoring his 121 at Lords in 1990 and 158 at Old Traffordmhe exuded grace rarely seen in England by an overseas batsman.
Tom Graveney was grace and elegance personified. Freddie Trueman wrote in Arlott and Trueman on Cricket: ‘"Timing was his real secret— timing and the balance which dictated the distribution of his weight into the right place at the right time. He never had to belt the ball. He stroked it. And he stroked it with such elegant timing that no obvious effort was called for..."
There was no element of violence about his batting. Many writers described his batting as "a piece of rippling musical sonata set to a mellifluous rhythm."
Rohan Kanhai took batting prowess and innovation to heights unparalleled, exploring regions in batting which even Bradman did not. Kanhai had a unique falling hook shot or roti shot. He was a master on any type of pitches who could win games and bat for your life. He mesmerised the best of bowling attacks like when scoring 116 at Perth in 1971-72 facing Dennis Lillee, 252 against Victoria in 1960-61 and scoring back to back centuries at Adelaide in 1960-61.
VVS Laxman could play the ball late or execute such a late change in stroke like very few players. The manner he simply dropped his bat down to glide a cricket ball was a sight for the gods. Wristy, willowy and sinuous, his on-side game was comparable to his idol Azharuddin's, yet he was stronger on the off side and has the rare gift of being able to hit the same ball to either side.
When scoring 281at Kolkata against Australia in 2001, took batting virtuosity to heights to regions rarely traversed and in a 376 run partnership with Rahul Dravid, set up a miraculous victory for India.
Carl Hooper was beauty and grace personified. Sadly that beauty and grace was not nurtured or finessed, nor the explosive potential developed. A mid-30s average did no justice to a batsman of his potential. The captaincy briefly brought out the best in him, and for two years he averaged nearer to 50.
Hooper seemed to have abundant time to write a letter home whilst waiting for the ball. Sadly, he often batted as if contemplating what he was going to write in it. He could unbelievably dispatch a forward-defensive shots for six, and then next moment be dismissed by any bowler in the world, as if batting in no mans land.
Former West Indies captain Brian Lara expressed his admiration for Hooper's natural abilities, suggesting that neither he nor Indian cricket great Sachin Tendulkar could match Hooper's innate talent.
Majid Khan had talent in the class of the greatest of batsmen, who on his day flowered like a lotus in full bloom, and the best batsman of his day on bad wickets. He executed hook shot with more elan than anyone, negotiating pace with more assurance than any batsmen in his time bar Sir Viv Richards. It was very rare to see a batsman desecrate an attack to pieces with such poetic grace -- minimal footwork but razor sharp reflexes.
His 156 on a broken wicket in 1969 at Swansea against Glamorgan took cricketing virtuosity to regions almost unexplored,as well as his 88 ball century in the 1974 prudential Trophy game at Trent Bridge.
For maintaining sport as gentleman’s game one remembers Vishwanath calling back Bob Taylor when wrongly adjudged out in 1980
Damien Martyn bloomed into a relaxed, classical, feathery artist and an old-style batsman whose first movement was back. He played with a high elbow, a still head, a golfer's deft touch, and possessed every stroke in the book, including perhaps the most merciless reverse-sweep in the game. His square drives on bouncy wickets were artistry personified, and he creamed deliveries with his wrists doing all the talking.
Kumar Sangakkara amassed a booty of runs like an emperor plundering territory over territory but still exuded subtle grace. His cut and pull was simply a sight to behold and his flowing drives. Changed the complexion of games in his day and age, like very few.
Statistically hhe was the best of all left- handed batsmen averaging over 57 and aggregating over 12,000 runs. He was involved in the world record partnership of 624 with Mahela Jayewardene for the fourth wicket and surpassed run aggregate of even Brian Lara.
Babar Azam was an absolutely class act in full flow and a champion in resurrecting team from adversity with a characteristic silken touch and flow of stream water. Few executed a more an off or cover drive with more finesse. Averages less than 50, but his centuries and fifties have turned the course of games like few in the modern age.
Mark Waugh held his bat like the scalpel of a surgeon. With a charasterictic willowy touch, caressed the best of deliveries to the boundary .with remorseless ease. He was absolutely classical or majestic on the onside, bouncy strips in Australia and West Indies to seaming top sin England and South Africa, to turning pitches in India. Waugh batted, like a master.
Mahela Jayewardene was a master of touch art. Played a major role in shaping Sri Lanka to major cricketing power. A master when the chips were down or in tackling bad wickets. His extra cover drive was classical, simply coaxing the ball between covers and square leg.Came within touching distance of the world record score when registering 374 in Colombo.
Ted Dexter-would outperform Colin Cowdrey and Peter May on testing pitches against quality bowling. There was no more exhilarating sight in English cricket than Ted Dexter when he was savaging fast bowling. He mastered the West Indian quicks as well as the Australians. His 70 at Old Trafford against West Indies will never be forgotten. In county cricket, Dexter was the only batsman who dominated the great Derek Underwood.
Martin Crowe had supreme elegance which he combined with flawless technique. He scored centuries against the great West Indian attack and averaged around 45. He had every shot in the book which he executed like a ballad dancer performing his skill. Wasim Akram found him more difficult to bowl to than Lara or Tendulkar.
Alvin Kalicharan was like a Rohan Kanhai, the other way round. One never saw a left handed batsman blend grammar with innovation and grace. He cut, drove, pulled and hooked with great ferocity but never devoid of grace. His 78 against Australia in the 1975 world cup escalated batting virtuosity to heights almost unparalleled.
For maintaining the sport as a gentleman’s game I would remember Gundappa Vishwanath’s calling back Bob Taylor when wrongly adjudged out in 1980 Jubilee test; Courtney Walsh giving Salim Jaffer a warning when standing out of the crease in 1987 Reliance World Cup; Adam Gilchrist, Gary Sobers and Rohan Kanhai walking when out and Kapil Dev and Bishen Bedi manifesting the spirit of the game. For sheer grace amongst bowlers I would choose Bishen Bedi amongst spin bolwers and Michael Holding amongst fast bowlers.
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*Freelance journalist
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