Getty May Be Batting On Sticky Wicket (27 Nov 1995)

Electronic Telegraph Monday 27 November 1995

Getty may be batting on sticky wicket

Surrey`s millionaire President-elect may face a year of turmoil reports Mihir Bose

PAUL GETTY, the American millionaire who so loves cricket that he has given money for the Mound Stand at Lord`s and publishes Wisden, is to become president of Surrey County Cricket Club next year.

Getty is deputy president and in any other situation might have become president this year. But when Peter May died last year, three days before he was due to take over as president, Surrey decided that as a mark of respect to May nobody should succeed him during his `presidency year`. Instead, in the last year Surrey have had a rolling president, a new one every few months.

By becoming president of Surrey, Getty will have firmly identified himself with a particular county. So far, his image has been that of a cricket benefactor without any county links.

He could not have chosen a more difficult county. In the past few months, Surrey have been in turmoil on and off the field and some of this is likely to be reflected on Dec 15 when Surrey`s annual meeting is held. The Surrey Action Group are likely to be out making their voices felt.

Getty said: "I am very proud and delighted to be asked to be president of Surrey. I don`t consider it to be a very onerous duty, but a lovely opportunity to watch plenty of good cricket at the Oval in the coming year."

He might not have such a relaxed view if Surrey have to endure another year of trouble off the pitch. Surrey last won the championship in 1971 and have not won anything since lifting the NatWest Trophy in 1982. The feeling among club members is that two trophies in 24 years is not good enough.

At the end of last season, an extraordinary committee meeting was held following a petition of no confidence signed by hundreds of members fed up with the lack of success. The vote was carried on the floor, but The Management survived with a majority through proxy votes.

Getty`s love of cricket is legendary. Since being introduced to the game by Mick Jagger, he has stumped up millions of pounds for various projects.

At his 3,000-acre Buckinghamshire estate, in the heart of the rolling Chilterns, Getty has constructed at huge expense a perfect oval cricket ground complete with a thatched mock-Tudor pavilion, Test-match standard wicket, and a team of groundsmen.

Source :: Electronic Telegraph (https://www.telegraph.co.uk/et/)