The greatest cricketers of all time - No. 3

Continuing with our series on the greatest cricketers of all time, here’s No. 3 on our list.

No. 3 – Sir Garfield Sobers

As clichéd as it sounds, it is true that sporting legends aren’t made, but born. And whilst speaking of sporting legends, one cannot bypass a certain Barbadian, whose achievements and accomplishments laid the foundations of an upstanding cricketing future, not just in the West Indies but also across the whole cricketing globe. Sir Garfield St. Aubrun Sobers, or as he is more famously known, Sir Gary Sobers, still remains a distinguished and commanding name in the cricketing world even after over three decades of retreating from the sport.

Adjectives to describe the man’s greatness somehow seem inadequate, even considering that most of us can look at his performances only as recorded memoirs, presented in a condensed form. But live or not, Sir Sobers’ skill on the pitch remains intriguing, riveting and fascinating. Even for someone who’s merely a fan and not an active player, there’s so much to learn and understand from the legendary West Indian’s game.

A left-handed all-rounder – in the most literal of terms – Sir Sobers made his first-class debut in the year 1953 against India, and though he failed to impress with the bat that first time, he did strike a chord in the minds of the selectors with his telling bowling performance. His familial background, where sport – and not just cricket – was nurtured and encouraged, played a huge role in shaping Sir Sobers’ early formative years. And alongside such encouragement was Sir Sobers’ keenness to take up the sport and learn it by whichever means possible, and especially by observation. The West Indian gained most of his early expertise by regularly bowling to then-West Indian cricketers and by observing their game-play. Over the years, when he was well into his professional national-level cricketing life, it was this observatory power of his that helped him re-modify his game, time after time, thus enabling him to stay at the top at the sport for over 30 years.

In every sport, consistency matters a lot. In this quest for consistency, players have been known to sacrifice everything and pour their heart and soul into the game. Sir Sobers was no different in his quest for cricketing consistency. During his maiden overseas tour to New Zealand in the year 1956, when the completely different weather and pitch conditions made it difficult for the Barbadian to play his more natural game, instead of being demoralized, he focused on improving his game and ensured that his lack of aptitude on newer and untried surfaces didn’t cost him a valued place in the national squad.

Initially regarded to be just a versatile bowler, who could bowl anything and everything from spin to medium-pace to fast bowling, Sir Sobers’ development as a feared batsman came only in the later years of his career. But the recognition came late; there was no denying about his ability to pitch in with the runs whenever the team needed him to score. Batting down quite lower down the order, Sir Sobers’ ability to construct partnerships – often a vital necessity – made the difference between winning, losing and drawing. In an era when, except a loss, all other results were considered to be positive statistics, and where trying to manage even a draw was considered extremely difficult, Sir Gary Sobers’ contribution thus paved the way for the invincibility factor the West Indians went on to be tagged with.

Talking of invincibility and the setting of records, Sobers’ name is not just synonymous to both, and more so with the latter. In the present-day cricketing scenario, each tournament brings a new record-setter, a trend-setter far more revolutionary than the last. But Sir Sobers’ towering score of an unbeaten 365 runs against Pakistan remains a feat worth admiring, even today. The fact that the Barbadian broke a 20-year old cricketing record, set by an Englishman, amidst huge criticism about his so-called inability to convert good scores into bigger numbers once again underscored Sir Sobers’ ability to rise up to the occasion whenever it mattered the most.

Sir Sobers’ penchant for record-setting didn’t just stop at the international level but extended even to first-class cricket, to various national and international county tournaments. His eventful scoring of six sixes in an over in the year 1968, while playing for the Nottinghamshire County against Glamorgan, has been a feat discussed, compared and boasted about for years now. And though a few other players – including two Indian cricketers – have managed to replicate the feat, Sir Sobers’ accomplishment still remains special in the hearts of cricketing fans across the globe.

While he was a recipient of mentoring from several West Indian players in his formative years, Sir Sobers himself has been a huge source of inspiration for many up-and-coming cricketing professionals. Both as a player and later on as a captain, Sir Sobers has over the years remained a pillar of support and encouragement for the next-gen cricketing talent in his native country.

As a token of appreciation for this overwhelming and unselfish support and nurturing of the sport, the Barbadian was knighted by the British Queen in the year 1975. A few years later, as a commemoration of his immense contribution to Barbadian cricket, Sir Sobers was presented with the ‘National Hero of Barbados’ merit, making him one of the very few people to have been bequeathed with this elite honour. In the year 2003, Sir Sobers was made an Officer in the Order of Australia, as a mark of recognition for his contribution to the cricketing fraternity.

Cricket today has evolved, with much advancement in its various technical concepts. But irrespective of the changes in formats, and even the perceptions of cricket followers worldwide, Sir Garfield St. Aubrun Sobers still finds his place as one the most relevant chapters in the ever-widening pages of cricket-dom.

And now for the video. Here’s a highlights clip of the knock of 254 that he made for a ‘rest of the world XI’ against Australia, which is considered to be the greatest innings ever played in Australia.

These are the other players who have made it so far:

No. 20 – Bill O’Reilly; No. 19 – Fred Trueman; No. 18 – Dennis Lillee; No. 17 – Sunil Gavaskar; No. 16 – Steve Waugh; No. 15 – Kapil Dev; No. 14 – Malcolm Marshall; No. 13 – Glenn McGrath; No. 12 – Imran Khan; No. 11 – Brian Lara; No. 10 – Jack Hobbs; No. 9 – Adam Gilchrist; No. 8 – Wasim Akram; No. 7 – Ricky Ponting; No. 6 – Muttiah Muralitharan; No. 5 – Shane Warne; No. 4 – Vivian Richards

Read the detailed write-ups on all the players in this list here:

The greatest cricketers of all time