Hunte and the Indian connection

Conrad Hunte, the great West Indian opening batsman who passed away in Sydney on Friday, had a special connection with India. He toured this country in 1958-59 and again eight years later, and played against them at home in 1962. His first tour with the West Indian team was to this country and he also played the last of his 44 Tests at Madras in 1967. Well after retirement, he visited India more than once in connection with the Moral Re-armament Movement (MRA) with which he was closely associated and always had an affinity for people of this country.

Hunte who made his Test debut against Pakistan at home in 1958 visited India later that year as a member of Gerry Alexander's side. The visitors thrashed the Indians in the five match series by 3-0. While Holt, Sobers, Kanhai, Butcher, Solomon and Smith made a packet of runs and Hall and Gilchrist moved through the opposition, Hunte could not recapture the form he had displayed in his debut series, when he had got a century on debut in the first Test and then scored 260 in the third Test when with Sobers (365 not out) he put on 446 runs for the second wicket. In the five Tests, he got only 216 runs from eight innings with 92 in the final Test at New Delhi as his highest. But with Holt, he formed a reliable opening pair and the two had stands of 55, 61, 70 and 159 during the series.

Hunte had another poor series against India at home in 1962. Again while Sobers, Kanhai, McMorris and Worrell were among the runs, Hunte got only 195 runs at an average of 27.85 with only two sizable knocks of 58 and 59.

By the time he came again to India in 1966-67, Hunte was nearing the end of his career. At 34, he was vice captain to Sobers and had been the sheet anchor of the West Indian batting for almost a decade. But while he had made seven centuries in all against Australia, England and Pakistan, he still had to cross the three figure mark after ten Tests against India. However in the first Test at Bombay, he finally got his maiden hundred against India when he played the sheet anchor role to perfection in getting 101 before being fifth out at 242. With `new boy' Clive Lloyd, he added 110 runs for the fourth wicket, encouraging the gangling 22-year-old Test debutant who went on to make 82, the first of his many contributions for West Indies during the next two decades. In the second innings, he contributed a valuable 40 as West Indies after initial hiccups, finally coasted home to victory by six wickets, thanks to an unbeaten century stand between Lloyd and Sobers.

Hunte was run out for 43 in the only West Indian innings in the second Test at Calcutta. But he is remembered even today for a noble and courageous gesture. The authorities had oversold the seating accomodation and disappointed spectators invaded the ground, clashed with police and set fire to several stands leading to the second day's play being abandoned. As the rioters went on a spree of looting and arson, Hunte worked his way up to the top of the pavilion roof where the flags of the two nations were fluttering. The fire had endangered the flags but Hunte, showing great presence of mind, took the flags and carried them away to safety.

In the third Test at Madras, Hunte made 49 and 26, sharing partnerships of 99 and 63 with Robin Bynoe for the first wicket. In the three Tests he scored 259 runs at an average of 51.80, thus improving his overall tally in all Tests against India to 670. He did not realize it then but the Madras Test was his last game for the West Indies. Shortly before the start of the following series, against England in 1967-68, he announced his retirement, pre-occupied as he already was with his MRA work.