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“Times have changed and I have to use a pair of glasses now,” said Vivian Richards, who famously never let the lack of a helmet deter him from playing those hooks off his face, in the city as a part of Nokia's ‘Meet and Bowl to Viv Richards' contest.
“I hit them out of the park before they crashed into my head,” he added, by way of explanation.
King Viv, rated by many as the most devastating batsman that ever played, has under his belt some incredible numbers. Two World Cups, over 15,000 international runs, Wisden's gongs for the best ‘ODI batsman' and the third best ‘Test batsman' (after Don Bradman and Sachin Tendulkar) of all time and so forth. Equally astonishing are his figures as a captain, never once losing a series, while leading his side in 50 Tests over a ten-year period between 1980 and 1991.
Crucial task
One of the crucial tasks he was faced with as a skipper was bringing a bunch of players of varying loyalties under the same banner.
“Youngsters should be made to understand the position of being in the West Indies team. They weren't part of a club or an island, but part of the West Indies. There is nothing that unites us more as people than cricket. It was important they understood the importance of what they did in the eyes of the people.”
The swagger, the incessant mastication of gum, the maroon cap were as distinctive of his style as a batsman as his attitude as a cricketer.
No game without gum
“I always felt batting should be about comfort. I didn't put on my mouth guard because I wanted to have my chewing gum. It was an important part of my batting. Without gum, I was lost. There was something cool about it. To me, my (not wearing a) helmet is nothing about ego. My maroon cap was the most important thing and being given the cap was a great honour. The current crop, they've put on helmets for the wrong reasons. They haven't hooked a ball in their lives.”
When asked about the most disappointing moments of his career, Richards was immediate in his reference to West Indies' loss to India in the final of the 1983 World Cup.
“After winning the World Cups in 1975 and 1979, we were treated like royalty, like Kings, red carpet and all. We could commit a crime and get away with it. After we lost to India in 1983, everyone forgot about ‘75 and ‘79. In the photos at the Lord's balcony, we were in the background. That was when I realised everyone loves a winner,” he said.
Retribution, however, wasn't far behind and India was soon to face the brunt of it.
“We had the opportunity to come back to India (1983/84) and give your boys a little spanking. We wanted to prove that we were consistently the better team. Though we beat you five-zip, India got it right on the most important day. We would like to take the World Cup over the five-nil,” said Richards.
The form of the current West Indian unit was always going to be a touchy issue for someone who reposed so much faith in winning, but Richards cleared the air right away when he joked, “Don't ask me about yesterday (West Indies lost to India in a Group ‘B' match at Chepauk).”
Richards said the West Indies Cricket Board was at least partially responsible for the fall from the glory days of the 70s and the 80s, in its inability to continue producing great cricketers and consistent results.
“We had a lazy establishment and a board that did not make an effort to continue the progress. We sat back.”
That is precisely the kind of sound-bite that would land a cricketer in a soup, but with Richards, calling a spade for what it is, is the party-line.
“If I see it, I am going to smack it as hard as I can. Maybe that is why I am not a favourite with the cricket board. If you see things that need speaking about, why not?”
The talk of the old ended with the talk of the new. “The way I played, I helped introduce the T20 format,” said Richards.
“The 50-over format is still alive and Test cricket is the best format of the game. Individuals should understand that when we lose our history, we lose our soul,” he said, before sharing photographs and giving away autographed memorabilia to the winners of the contest.
“I hit them out of the park before they crashed into my head,” he added, by way of explanation.
King Viv, rated by many as the most devastating batsman that ever played, has under his belt some incredible numbers. Two World Cups, over 15,000 international runs, Wisden's gongs for the best ‘ODI batsman' and the third best ‘Test batsman' (after Don Bradman and Sachin Tendulkar) of all time and so forth. Equally astonishing are his figures as a captain, never once losing a series, while leading his side in 50 Tests over a ten-year period between 1980 and 1991.
Crucial task
One of the crucial tasks he was faced with as a skipper was bringing a bunch of players of varying loyalties under the same banner.
“Youngsters should be made to understand the position of being in the West Indies team. They weren't part of a club or an island, but part of the West Indies. There is nothing that unites us more as people than cricket. It was important they understood the importance of what they did in the eyes of the people.”
The swagger, the incessant mastication of gum, the maroon cap were as distinctive of his style as a batsman as his attitude as a cricketer.
No game without gum
“I always felt batting should be about comfort. I didn't put on my mouth guard because I wanted to have my chewing gum. It was an important part of my batting. Without gum, I was lost. There was something cool about it. To me, my (not wearing a) helmet is nothing about ego. My maroon cap was the most important thing and being given the cap was a great honour. The current crop, they've put on helmets for the wrong reasons. They haven't hooked a ball in their lives.”
When asked about the most disappointing moments of his career, Richards was immediate in his reference to West Indies' loss to India in the final of the 1983 World Cup.
“After winning the World Cups in 1975 and 1979, we were treated like royalty, like Kings, red carpet and all. We could commit a crime and get away with it. After we lost to India in 1983, everyone forgot about ‘75 and ‘79. In the photos at the Lord's balcony, we were in the background. That was when I realised everyone loves a winner,” he said.
Retribution, however, wasn't far behind and India was soon to face the brunt of it.
“We had the opportunity to come back to India (1983/84) and give your boys a little spanking. We wanted to prove that we were consistently the better team. Though we beat you five-zip, India got it right on the most important day. We would like to take the World Cup over the five-nil,” said Richards.
The form of the current West Indian unit was always going to be a touchy issue for someone who reposed so much faith in winning, but Richards cleared the air right away when he joked, “Don't ask me about yesterday (West Indies lost to India in a Group ‘B' match at Chepauk).”
Richards said the West Indies Cricket Board was at least partially responsible for the fall from the glory days of the 70s and the 80s, in its inability to continue producing great cricketers and consistent results.
“We had a lazy establishment and a board that did not make an effort to continue the progress. We sat back.”
That is precisely the kind of sound-bite that would land a cricketer in a soup, but with Richards, calling a spade for what it is, is the party-line.
“If I see it, I am going to smack it as hard as I can. Maybe that is why I am not a favourite with the cricket board. If you see things that need speaking about, why not?”
The talk of the old ended with the talk of the new. “The way I played, I helped introduce the T20 format,” said Richards.
“The 50-over format is still alive and Test cricket is the best format of the game. Individuals should understand that when we lose our history, we lose our soul,” he said, before sharing photographs and giving away autographed memorabilia to the winners of the contest.