Roger Harper honoured in Barbados

Jun 25, 2008 Sports

Former West Indies off-spinner Roger Andrew Harper turned coach, was honoured for his contribution to the sport when former England Test player Roland Butcher, the UWI Director of Sports read a citation in the honour of the Guyanese at the 13th Vice Chancellor’s match on Saturday at the 3Ws Oval.

Harper’s test average of 28.06 is superior to that of his countryman Lance Gibbs, giving him the leading average among all West Indian spinners with at least 25 Test wickets.

Gibbs however has the distinction of becoming the first spinner to 300 Test wickets and finish with 309 from 79 Tests and an average of 29.09.

One of Harper’s most notable performances was against South Africa in the Quarter-finals of the 1996 Cricket World Cup when he took 4-47 to help the West Indies to seize control of the match.

Harper was an all-rounder who batted right-handed. He recorded 535 runs and 46 wickets in his 25 Tests and played 200 first class matches.

After his playing career, he became coach, taking over the West Indies team between 2000 and 2003, and then as team manager of the West Indies youth team in 2005.

However, he was approached by the Cricket Kenya in late December 2005 with an offer of taking over the Kenyan national team after interim coach Mudassar Nazar, and the appointment was made official in January 2006.