On this day in 1960, Barbados witnessed one of the great batting epics in Test history, as Sir Garfield Sobers and Sir Frank Worrell turned an England attack inside out with a partnership that seemed to stretch time itself.
Coming together at a moment of promise, the two greats embarked on a monumental stand of 399 runs — still the highest fourth-wicket partnership for West Indies, and their biggest for any wicket against England. Sobers was the more fluent of the pair, flowing effortlessly to 226, while Worrell produced an innings of immense resolve and concentration, remaining unbeaten on 197.
Worrell’s innings lasted an astonishing 682 minutes, at the time the longest innings ever played by a West Indian in Test cricket. Together, he and Sobers achieved something no pair had managed before: batting across two consecutive days of a Test match. There was even a rest day in between, and rain stole an hour on the opening day of their stand — yet none of it could break their rhythm or resolve.
By the time the partnership ended, records lay scattered, England were exhausted, and Barbados had borne witness to a partnership that would be spoken of in reverent tones for generations.
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