Hall of Fame opens up to controversy (9 April 1999)
Cricket's first official Hall of Fame will be inaugurated at Lord's tonight by New Zealand's greatest all-rounder, Sir Richard Hadlee
09-Apr-1999
9 April 1999
Hall of Fame opens up to controversy
Christopher Martin-Jenkins
Cricket's first official Hall of Fame will be inaugurated at Lord's
tonight by New Zealand's greatest all-rounder, Sir Richard Hadlee.
There are some notable omissions from the first 50 of "the greatest
players of all time" but the fact that the selections have followed
wide consultation on behalf of the newly formed Federation of
International Cricketers' Associations should calm sensitivities.
Nineteen Englishmen to 12 West Indians, 10 Australians, and a total
of only six from India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka will look to some an
unbalanced selection.
The fact that international cricketers intend to exploit their own
potential and guard their interests under the banner of FICA is more
important than the idea of a Hall of Fame itself. Nevertheless, they
are playing with fire by postponing the inclusion of, among many,
Victor Trumper, Frank Woolley, Alan Davidson, Herbert Sutcliffe,
Vijay Merchant, Vinoo Mankad, Wilfred Rhodes, Hedley Verity, Clarrie
Grimmett, Ted Dexter, Mike Procter, George Lohmann, C B Fry, Ken
Barrington, Graham Gooch and K S Ranjitsinhji.
I trust in time that of those still playing - FICA wisely avoided
even more heated conjecture by eliminating them from the selection -
Brian Lara, Sachin Tendulkar, Aravinda de Silva, Allan Donald, Curtly
Ambrose, Wasim Akram, Steve Waugh and Shane Warne will be among those
inducted.
FICA's secretary, Tim O'Gorman, admitted that the selection process
had been "fiendishly difficult" but added: "You can't knock the
integrity of a panel including Sir Donald Bradman, Sir Garfield
Sobers, Lord Cowdrey, Dickie Bird and nine current Test captains."
Their integrity certainly not; their judgment just possibly.
Consider, for example, some of the fast bowlers who have been left
out: Fred Spofforth, Ted McDonald, Jack Gregory, Jeff Thomson, Frank
Tyson, Bob Willis, Andy Roberts, John Snow. . . .
Such controversy should work admirably in stimulating the serious
reason for this promotion, namely to establish FICA as a body with a
part to play in world cricket. As Tim May, secretary of the
Australian PCA, said: "Matters of rules and playing conditions,
commercial considerations, codes of conduct, drug codes, racial and
religious vilification codes, revenue streams, and programming all
need to be addressed on a global scale."
Hall of Fame
S F Barnes (England) Imran Khan (Pakistan) B S Bedi (India) R B Kanhai (W Indies) A V Bedser (England) Kapil Dev (India) R Benaud (Australia) A P E Knott (England) A R Border (Australia) J C Laker (England) I T Botham (England) H Larwood (England) G Boycott (England) D K Lillee (Australia) D G Bradman (Australia) R R Lindwall (Australia) G S Chappell (Australia) C H Lloyd (W Indies) D C S Compton (England) R W Marsh (Australia) M C Cowdrey (England) M D Marshall (W Indies) S M Gavaskar (India) P B H May (England) L R Gibbs (W Indies) Javed Miandad (Pakistan) D I Gower (England) K R Miller (Australia) W G Grace (England) W J O'Reilly (Australia) T W Graveney (England) R G Pollock (S Africa) C G Greenidge (W Indies) B A Richards (S Africa) R J Hadlee (New Zealand) I V A Richards (W Indies) W R Hammond (England) G St A Sobers (W Indies) Hanif Mohammad (Pakistan) J B Statham (England) R N Harvey (Australia) F S Trueman (England) G A Headley (W Indies) D L Underwood (England) J B Hobbs (England) C L Walcott (W Indies) M A Holding (W Indies) E deC Weekes (W Indies) L Hutton (England) F M M Worrell (W Indies)
Source :: Electronic Telegraph (https://www.telegraph.co.uk)