Karl Nunes: West Indies’ first Test captain and wicketkeeper

Born June 7, 1894, Robert Karl Nunes was West Indies’s first Test captain and wicketkeeper. A gritty, technically correct left-handed batsman and an occasional gloveman, Nunes led West Indies in their first three Tests on their maiden tour of England. Abhishek Mukherjee looks back at the one of the early Calypso champions.

Even if he had done nothing else, Robert Karl Nunes would have been remembered by West Indies cricket as their first Test captain and wicketkeeper. But there was more to Nunes than that. A left-handed batsman with a polished technique, Nunes could bat anywhere in the line-up. With the big gloves he was at best competent, but was forced to take up roles that were possibly beyond him.

As captain Nunes was strict and hard-nosed. His wiry frame and toothbrush moustache did not command respect at first, but his wards soon found out that Nunes was more Hitler than Chaplin when it came to being a disciplinarian.

From 61 First-Class matches, for Jamaica and various representative West Indian teams, Nunes scored 2,695 runs at 31 with 6 hundreds to go with 39 dismissals. These included 4 Tests, which fetched him 245 runs at 31 with 2 fifties, along with 2 catches.

The numbers do not seem spectacular, but it must be remembered that Nunes played in an era when wicketkeepers were not expected to do well with bat (though he did not always keep wickets). He was also not among the great travellers: while his 1,253 overseas runs came at 22, his 1,442 runs at home came at 50.