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Photographic Memory

The upstart and the king

Geoff Lawson gets the better of the greatest of them all

20-Apr-2008


Geoff Lawson: This photo is my favourite of all time for a number of reasons, especially the game situation and the actual quality of the picture. It was the second final of the 1984-85 B&H World Series Cup, a very close match at the MCG in front of 65,000 fans. Viv [Richards] was in terrific form and I was bowling pretty fast and accurately, trying to contain him. We had them four down, and getting Viv would have almost sealed the victory. I had kept him scoreless for the first five balls of the over and I could sense he was looking to take a risk off the last one, so I sent down a slower ball. He played back, expecting a short one, and it hit him plumb in front. Viv was not easily deceived and to have deceived him in a pressure situation gave me great satisfaction, hence the celebratory leap. Photograph by Getty Images