Dear Editor,
Reference is made to Mr Ivan John’s letter captioned ‘Kanhai did not retire, he was dropped’ (SN, May 28). The statement is correct. Kanhai played an invaluable role in the World Cup and should not have been dropped for the India tour. I take the opportunity to provide some other important statistics on Kanhai and matters related to the World Cup.
The West Indies selectors dropped Kanhai for the 1974-75 tour to India saying it wanted youths. Kanhai was almost 39 at the time. Clive Lloyd was selected as Kanhai’s replacement.
Mr John stated that Kanhai was recalled for the final of the June 1975 inaugural World Cup that was played at the famous Lords and that he scored 55 not out against Australia. He was actually bowled by Gary Gilmour in what was a sedate (but important) innings when West Indies was tottering at 50 for three. He steadied the batting for West Indies allowing Clive Lloyd to score freely giving Lloyd most of the batting.
And Kanhai also played four other matches in that World Cup, including the memorable semi-final against Pakistan, scoring 24, which was won by the last wicket pair of Deryck Murray and Andy Roberts in a partnership of 62; that was a match for the memory books. In five World Cup matches, Kanhai batted four times and had two not-outs. His World Cup run aggregate was 109 for an average of 55.
Kanhai made his debut in one day as Captain in 1973 against England, also scoring 55. He also played one other one day against England but did not bat. His overall average in seven one-days, (batting five times) was 55, perhaps the highest batting average of recognized batsmen.
In the final against Australia, WIndies made 291 and Australia replied with 274. Gary Gilmour took five for 48 including Kanhai’s scalp. There was a record five run-outs in the Aussie innings. Vivian Richards was featured in three run-outs and his reputation at the time was built as a fielder and not so much as a batsman (although he did make 192 against India in his debut series). In fact, he failed with the bat throughout the World Cup tournament.
Kanhai took a brilliant catch at slips to remove the dangerous Gary Gilmour who had a reputation as a game changer, and was scoring freely against WIndies bowling. Another memorable note of that match was Roy Fredericks hitting a four, although he was given out for a hit wicket; Fredericks did not stand out much as a batsman in the tournament. Contrary to what Mr John penned, Kanhai was out (bowled by Gary Gilmour) as was Lloyd who scored 102 in 82 balls; Lloyd’s was perhaps the second best innings of the tournament. Lloyd also bowled 12 overs for 28 runs (one wicket) and deservedly earned the man of the match award. The commentators’ best rated innings in the tournament was Alvin Kalicharran’s onslaught against Dennis Lillee for a match-winning 80. Lillee, himself, said he had never seen a batsman play such a terrific innings. Kalli repeatedly hooked Lillee (the greatest fast bowler of all times) and Jeff Thompson (the most fearsome and fastest of fast bowlers) into the stands. Lillee cheered when Kalli hoisted him into the stands.
The Prudential World Cup (trophy) was brought to the West Indies for viewing some time in 1974. It was taken to selected cricketing centres around the country by Lloyd, accompanied by Fredericks and Lance Gibbs (?) and a few other sports personalities. Lloyd and the small group were ferried around by a government provided helicopter with stops at Blairmont (Rose Hall, Canje), Port Mourant, and Skeldon in the Berbice area. I remember very well going to Port Mourant Centre to catch a glimpse of the beautiful trophy on a Sunday afternoon. There was a massive crowd in spite of bad weather. The ground was soggy and waterlogged (with water at several spots) from heavy rain. The powerful winds and delays at other locations caused the helicopter to land late. Lloyd shook hands with known cricketers Berlin Shaheed, Port Mourant Captain Tambu, Romain Etwaroo, etc, and then went on stage to show off the trophy and address the gathering. He poured tributes on Kalicharran and Kanhai, both of whom are from Port Mourant. Lloyd said without their contributions, WIndies would not have won the trophy. Lloyd said he valued Kanhai’s experience in the tournament. He said it was Kanhai who was really responsible for the win in the final by steadying the innings, noting that his 55 was far more valuable than his own (Lloyd’s) century. Kanhai’s average in the World Cup was higher than Lloyd’s; in fact, it was the highest for the West Indies. Lloyd also noted that Kanhai offered advice on field placement in several matches and who was put to bowl especially in the final against the Aussies.
The century partnership between Kanhai and Lloyd saved the day for West Indies.
Later that year, a shortened video of the final was shown at various sports centres around the country. There was no TV in Guyana at the time; we listened to the match commentary on radio. There was a huge turnout in Port Mourant to watch the final in a mini-film. The audience repeatedly cheered as though they were watching a live match whenever Kanhai or Lloyd or some other player scored a boundary and/or took a wicket. It was a great unforgettable experience watching the film as it was listening to live commentary on June 21 (date of the final).
In his last Test series before he was dropped as Captain, Kanhai was out of form and struggled with the bat, aggregating only 147 runs in seven bats with one not-out for an average of 25.
But Kanhai found form in the English County Championship scoring some 1500 runs that season for Warwickshire, more than Lloyd’s for Lancashire. Lloyd also struggled with the bat, ironically aggregating a lacklustre 147 runs in seven bats with one not-out for an average of 25 in the series against England. Kanhai distinguished himself more than Lloyd for the period Kanhai was Captain in Tests and other first class matches.
Yet Lloyd was chosen to replace Kanhai who had just drawn the series against England 1-1 in West Indies and defeated England 2-1 in England. Lloyd’s selection for the India tour was a surprise, given he had struggled with the bat that year. Lloyd went on to lead WIndies for some ten years as the most successful WIndies captain.
Yours faithfully,
Vishnu Bisram
