In this week’s edition of In Search of West Indies Cricket, Roger Seymour recounts a One Day International (ODI) between the West Indies and Australia at the Queen’s Park Oval in Port-of-Spain, Trinidad, where he met a few characters and experienced Trinbago culture.
Prologue
The 1995 Australian Tour of the West Indies was eagerly awaited by the cricket fans throughout the Caribbean. The West Indies had just returned home after beating New Zealand 1-0 in the two-Test series, and were supremely confident in defending the Sir Frank Worrell Trophy for the eighth time since regaining it in the 1978 home series. The Australians, who had just disposed of England 3-1, Down Under, to retain the Ashes, were also brimming with confidence, whilst bearing in mind that in the last encounter, two seasons before in Australia, a 1-2 defeat, the odd Test had been decided by a single run. All eyes were focused on the highly anticipated showdown between Australian leg spinner Shane Warne, and the newly crowned Best Batsman Brian Lara, the Prince of Port-of-Spain.