“Remembering WI fast bowler Sylvester Clarke on the spinner-friendly pitches of Pakistan in 1981”

Feb 04, 2021 Sports

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By Colin E. H. Croft

Kaieteur News – As West Indies starts its Two-Test series against Bangladesh at the supposedly spinner-friendly pitches at Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium, Chittagong, and Sher-e-Bangla Stadium, Mirpur, there is much talk about spin v pace on sub-continent pitches.
The present spin-heavy WI squad will still depend much on faster bowlers, which reminds of the most underrated WI fast bowler ever – Sylvester Theophilus Clarke – who bowled well on any pitch; anywhere!
“Silly” or “ST” or “Clarkie” or “Silvers”,died on December 04, 1999, seven days before his 45th birthday; a tremendous loss to WI’s fast bowling fraternity and cricket everywhere. 6 feet 2 inches (188 cm) tall, Clarke was built like a war tank; a big, powerful 230 pounds (104 kg) man; like a tall, broad Mike Tyson.
Clarke played only eleven Tests, producing 42 wickets, and ten ODI’s, for WI, along with 238 First Class games, mostly for Surrey CCC in the UK, Transvaal and Orange Free State in South Africa, and Barbados, producing 942 1st Class wickets. Four of those Tests were against Pakistan in 1981.
No WI fast bowler, probably with the exceptions of Roy Gilchrist or (Sir) Charles Griffith, elicited more raw fear from batsmen, ever, than “Clarkie” did. A jovial, funny giant off the field, Clarke was a seriously effective, extremely dangerous bowler on it!
40 years ago, WI toured Pakistan, with Michael Holding, Malcolm Marshall, Colin Croft, Joel Garner and Sylvester Clarke as the fast bowling contingent. The specialist spinners were offspinners Derick Parry and Rangy Nanan.WI’s batting featured Desmond Haynes, Gordon Greenidge, Faoud Bacchus, (Sir) Viv Richards, Alvin Kallicharran, (Sir) Clive Lloyd ©, Hillary “Larry” Gomes, David Murray (w) and Milton Pydanna (w).
The Four-Test series ended WI 1 – Pakistan 0; but it was even closer than that. The separator between the two teams, as equal as whenever they have met, was “ST”Clarke. With Garner and Holding at less than normal effectivity due to injuries, Clarke was the difference.
Pakistan’s 1981 squad for that Four-Test series included some of the “Who’s Who” of Pakistan’s cricket history, and would feature in any All-Pakistan cricket team:
Taslim Arif (w), Sadiq Mohammad, Shafiq Ahmad, Mansoor Akhtar, Javed Miandad ©, Majid Khan, Wasim Raja, Zaheer Abbas, Imran Khan (Pakistan’s present Prime Minister), Abdul Qadir, Safraz Nawaz, Iqbal Qasim, Ijaz Faqih, Wasim Bari (w), Mohammad Nazir and Sikander Bakht.
I would wager, with both teams at their peak, that Pakistan’s 1981 cricket team would annihilate the present 2021 Pakistan team, the one which just beat South Africa in their 1st2021 Test, in any format – Tests, ODI or T-20s. Alas, only computerized enhancements could produce such imaginary games.
Imran Khan made the only century for Pakistan in those four Tests in 1981; a very accomplished, absolutely classy 123, out of 297, in the drawn Test No. 1 at the Gaddafi Stadium, Lahore, the best cricket pitch in the series; against Clarke, Croft, Garner and Marshall.
To counter that, (Sir) Viv made the only century for WI in that series; a superlative 120 not out from a total of 249, in the drawn 4th Test at Ibn-e-Qasim Bagh Stadium, Multan, a very tricky pitch overall; against Imran Khan, Safraz Nawaz, Iqbal Qasim, Mohammad Nazir and Wasim Raja.
But it was in Tests No. 2 and No. 3 where Clarke really shone. Both pitches at Iqbal Stadium, Faisalabad, for Test No. 2, and the National Stadium, Karachi, for Test No. 3, were set up for spinners; very dry and extremely dusty. On these pitches, Clarke bowled more effectively than ever, and better than anyone else. Indeed, the first deliveries that both Clarke and Croft bowled at Faisalabad erupted in puffs of dust!
In Test No. 2, Clarke’s figures were 13 – 2 – 28 – 3 and 12 – 2 – 36 – 1; averagely sounding match analysis of 4 wicket for 64; yet Pakistan could not muster 200 in either innings; making 176 and 145. Having made 235 and 242, WI won by 156 runs.
Also contributing 43 with the bat in Test No. 2, “Clarkie” was voted “Man of the Match”, so totally menacing was his bowling on that supposedly placid spinner-friendly pitch. While many of the Pakistani batsmen were hit several times about the body, one still wonders how some did not get seriously hurt, as Clarke summoned Herculean strength to bowl some very awkward bouncers on that pitch!
In Test No. 3 at Karachi, Clarke was even more deadly; 15 – 7 – 27 – 4 and 11 – 3 – 14 – 2; match analysis 6 for 41, as Pakistan made 128 and 204-9. WI wobbled badly in its only innings; 1st innings 169. It rained during that 3rd Test, so it was anyone’s guess as to if WI could have made the nearly 200 Pakistan would have set. No-one knows!
At the end of the Four-Test Series, (Sir) Viv Richards was named “Man of the Series”. Yes, Colin Croft got the most wickets for WI – 17 wickets – but the big shouldered, short run-up, ultra-strong Sylvester Clarke – 14 wickets– and his tremendous hostility at the batsmen, was easily the best WI bowler of that series.
Had he not been involved in that ‘reciprocal’ brick-throwing incident in Test No. 4, Clarke would have been a fixture as a WI fast bowler, having led our fast attack on the spin-ready pitches of Pakistan. “Clarkie” will always be remembered as being an extremely strong, very willing fast bowler on any pitch; anywhere!!

 

 

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