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By Joel Bailey |
The Antiguan Richards, also known as the "Master Blaster" or "Smoking Joe", turned 50 on March 7, a day after participating in the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) coaching seminar at Cascadia Hotel, St Ann's.
Commenting on his regional cricketing career, the "Master Blaster" remarked: "I'm extremely very happy as a cricketer, representing the West Indies. I've always been very passionate whenever I'm playing for my country and extremely fortunate to
have been a player for the West Indies and to be in the capacity as a captain."
Richards holds the distinction of the only West Indies captain never to lose a Test series, inheriting the world-beating team from his predecessor Clive Lloyd and leading the team to 28 victories in 48 Tests from 1985-1991.
"I believe that it was good having the support of the players and I backed them as much as possible and stood behind them as much as I could. It is all a tribute of the way they conducted themselves," he said.
He is also the leading West Indian Test run-getter, amassing 8,540 runs in 121 Tests from 1974-1991. But he encouraged star batsman Brian Lara to overtake his record this year, a boast Lara made during the WITCO Sportsman and Sportswoman of the Year awards a week earlier.
"I don't look at it as a challenge, I think it's his duty to do that, because when you have an individual possessing so much talent as he does, it's extremely difficult not wanting that individual to do well," Richards stressed.
But controversy followed the charismatic Sir Viv - most noticeably the Kerry Packer World Series from 1977-79, his acrimonous exit from the English country Somerset in 1986, along with Joel Garner and Ian Botham, his press-box row with English journalist James Lawton at Antigua in 1990 and his controversial retirement from West Indies cricket in 1992.
"The Kerry Packer affair was a time when we (the team) had to stick together as individuals, for the better. We were looking to achieve something and, in the end, we did. The Antigua thing - I would've still gone up into the press box but maybe I wanted to have time to lead my team out (onto the field)," he commented.
"It was a sort of a disappointment, but I don't know if it's some sort of compensation but the club will be looking to honour me with the naming of their main gate 'the Viv Richards gate'," Richards continued.
"I'm not a guy who holds grudges for too long, maybe I was a bit disappointed (in 1992) but life has to go on and I dust myself off and go on again."
Sir Viv, who scored 14,698 runs in 191 first class matches for Somerset during his 13-year career, will have a set of gates named after him at the club's Taunton ground.
A patriotic individual with a staunch stance against the apartheid policies in South Africa during the 1970s and 1980s, he also spoke of South Africa's insistence of ethnic balance in their current squad.
"Is no use playing a player to be a token individual but I think that there will be a larger influx of persons wanting to play for South Africa."
One of the first members of the Combined Islands (Leeward and Windward Islands) to play Test cricket he noted, "we had mentors before, people like Andy Roberts and Elquemedo Willett from Nevis; I didn't look at it as being spiteful about what they did achieve, I just wanted to know that I emulated the way they did things and just wanted to take things forward."
Richards, who never batted with a helmet, left a legacy of marvellous performances during his career.
His most cherished memories? "I think maybe when we played our first World Cup final at Lord's (June 21 1975)," he said, "not because of what we did achieve then but because we were a region with so many different islands and I was extremely happy that we did win something collectively which sent a message that we in the Caribbean could compete against the best in the world."
In that match Richards, who was renowned for his brilliant fielding at slip and at cover-point, spectacularly ran out three Australians - Alan Turner and brothers Ian and Greg Chappell.
But his most lasting moment was his 110 off 56 balls against England in front of his home crowd in St John's, during the 1986 Test series whitewash.
"Not just only a hundred," he stated, "but a hundred which was classified as the fastest hundred in the history of (Test cricket). That I think was pretty good, doing it in front of one's home crowd was very special."
After his retirement, Richards did promotional work for his native Antigua, in addition to coaching Brunei, Antigua and the West Indies senior cricket team, and working as a cricket commentator for BBC and Trans World International.
He also does promotional tours "The King And I" with long-time friend Botham throughout the world.
On his future he said, "I'm extremely happy, and I've got to give thanks to the Almighty Father."
Richards received an honorary knighthood for his services to cricket two years ago, and was named in Wisden 2000 (along with Sir Donald Bradman, Sir Jack Hobbs, Sir Garfield Sobers and Shane Warne) as one of the almanac's five cricketers of the century.
And he is the proud father of 21-year-old Mali, 19-year-old Matara, 13-year-old Masaba and 11-year-old Nikka