When Basher made way for Sobers

The spirit of Garry Sobers lingers on at Trent Bridge but he has someone to thank for his stint at Nottinghamshire.

It was in 1968 that Basher Hassan, a talented batsman from Kenya, had qualified to play for Notts, only to hear that he would have to make way for Sobers. Born in Nairobi, Basher impressed members of an England touring team in 1963. After monitoring his progress for two years, members of Notts CC decided to sign him as an overseas player but told him to first qualify, after playing in the leagues.

"Garry was grateful to me when I had to pull out of county cricket," he Basher recalled. "He never forgot that and we became good friends. Later I started managing his business affairs and turned into his agent."

How was it playing in the same team as Garry? "There were times when he played brilliantly without sleeping the previous night. He used to have six bats in the dressing room. When he went out to resume his innings after a break he would just pick any of them and go out to bat. They all weighed the same."

His 22-year stint with Notts, when he amassed in excess of 14,000 runs, ended in 1985. He vividly recalls his final day of first-class cricket. "They asked me to go on to the field as substitute during the Ashes Test match here in 1985. Bernard Thomas, the England team physio urged me to announce my retirement saying, 'Basher, this is the moment. I'll tell the press.' So when we came back to the pavilion I got a standing ovation. That was it."