Published: Aug 15, 2015, 01:21 PM (IST)
Edited: Aug 15, 2015, 01:21 PM (IST)
Viv Richards answers some interesting questions about perspectives from his career and present-day cricket from distinguished West Indian veteran journalist Tony Cozier, on the sides of a dinner at Lord’s Taverner’s, a leading cricket charity based in London. He talks about the adventures of his international team in their era of domination, his decision of not wearing a helmet, his time with the county team Somerset, bigger and better bats today, and more. Richards, the former West Indies captain and a legend of West Indies, played in 121 Tests from 1974 to 1991, calling his retirement in his team’s tour of England. READ: Viv Richards relives 1975 World Cup win on 40th anniversary
When asked who he rated as the best West Indies’ captain, Richards said Clive Lloyd, the man who lifted the team towards world domination in the latter half of 1970s and the entire decade of 1980s, was the one he considered the best. He said he knew Frank Worrell was a good leader, and perhaps because there was a stalwart like he to look up to allowed Lloyd to build his strength. West Indies lost the Test series in New Zealand in 1979-80, but then remained undefeated for 15 years, from 1980 to 1995, ending their reign against Australia at home. READ: World Cup 1987: Viv Richards decimates Sri Lanka at Karachi
He was also asked about the West Indian players he would look forward to seeing play the World Cup in 2015. Richards spoke about the all-round capabilities of Dwayne Bravo, but it turned out that Bravo, alongside attacking batsman Kieron Pollard, was omitted from the squad that was selected to tour Australia for the World Cup. West Indies qualified to the quarter-finals of the tournament, losing to eventual runners-up of the trophy, New Zealand.
