Lord's landmark without peer
London-The West Indies start their 123rd Test match against England this morning against the happy coincidence of a backdrop of history and tradition
Tony Cozier
29-Jun-2000
London-The West Indies start their 123rd Test match against England
this morning against the happy coincidence of a backdrop of history
and tradition.
Lord's is the venue, and the most famous ground in all cricket hosts
its 100th Test, the first to reach such a milestone.
Almost to the day, it will also be the 50th anniversary of the West
Indies victory there in 1950, their first on English soil after three
series, the 100th year since the West Indies undertook their first
tour of England in 1900 and 25 years since Clive Lloyd's team beat
Australia, at Lord's, to win the first World Cup.
The inaugural Lord's Test was against Australia in 1884, the first for
the West Indies in 1928, since when the teams have met there 15 times.
The West Indies have a 5-4 win advantage, their most renowned the
breakthrough of 1950.
Yet the most exciting was the draw of 1963, when, with England nine
wickets down and six to win in the final over, Colin Cowdrey had to
resume his innings with his hand, broken earlier by a ball from Wes
Hall, in plaster.
Cowdrey took up his position at the non-striker's end and, amidst
tension that had gripped the crowd all day, watched David Allen kept
Hall's last delivery out with a straight-batted defensive shot.
Lord's will stage its own celebrations to mark its centenary of Tests.
Those surrounding the West Indian anniversaries began yesterday.
A service at St. Martin's-in-the-Field in London's Trafalgar Square in
the afternoon marked the first tour, a pioneering venture on which the
West Indies matches were not even granted first-class status but on
which they proved their worth to their doubting hosts.
The retired Bishop of Liverpool, the Right Reverend David Sheppard, a
former England batsman, who played in the 1950 series, and Hall, the
bowler who sent down the final over in 1963, now also an ordained
reverend, gave addresses.
The leader of the Greater London Authority, Trevor Phillips, West
Indian by birth, delivered the tribute to the 1900 team and especially
to Charles Olivierre, the batsman from St.Vincent who became the first
West Indian professional in county cricket, with Derbyshire, as a
result of his performances on the tour.
Several prominent members of the Afro-Caribbean community in England
and West Indian diplomats attended the service.
It was followed last night by the annual eve-of-Test dinner of the
Lord's Taverners in the grand ballroom of the Hilton Hotel at which
the 1950 Test was the main theme.
Five of the six surviving West Indians from the 1950 team - in batting
order Alan Rae, Sir Everton Weekes, Sir Clyde Walcott, Sonny Ramadhin
and Alf Valentine - were special guests of honour, flown to England by
Virgin Atlantic for the occasion.
The only other living member, Robert Christiani, resides in Toronto
and was unable to travel.
Seven of the 25 Englishmen who played in the four Tests of the series
were also there.
Batsman Hubert Doggart and spinner Bob Berry actually played in the
Lord's Test. The others, Rt. Rev. Sheppard, John Dewes, Doug Insole,
Trevor Bailey and Reg Simpson, played in the other matches as did Sir
Alec Bedser, who was unable to attend but was represented by his
identical twin brother, Eric.
As he did at the church service earlier, but in somewhat different
vein, Rev. Hall was one of the main speakers at the dinner.
The Lord's Taverners, a charity organisation whose membership is
mainly sportsmen, entertainers and politicians, is itself marking its
50th birthday this year.
It was all a prelude to the Test itself that has always been a magnet
to the international cricketing fraternity. For West Indians, the lore
of history makes it extra special this year.