“If you wanted to be considered equal to the English cricket team, you had to be twice as good – not only on the field but twice as good off the field."
Deryck Murray yesterday recalled the words of cricket legend and West Indies' first black captain Sir Frank Worrell when they first met. Murray was speaking at History Fest 2019 held at the Alma Jordan Library, University of West Indies, St Augustine.
The former West Indies wicket-keeper from 1963-1980 said, “I was driven by the fact that every person playing cricket wanted to play for the West Indies. The British had taught us the game, and the only way to measure ourselves against them was to beat them; and for most of us it would have been a friendly rivalry, but it was a meaningful significant rivalry.”
He creatively gave an example of what it felt like in his era to play against the mighty former colonisers.
He said, “When you were growing up as a kid and playing against your father or uncle, you respect them because you know your place but you want to beat them.”
The topic of discussion yesterday was experiences of cricket, colonialism and nationalism.
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