General General Cricket Thread

[Ghazi52]

Remembering Bob Woolmer: a story of immortal friendship​

The West Indies and the USA are jointly hosting the T20I World Cup which starts on 2nd June; will bring back some sad memories for cricket fans in Pakistan.

S.M. Hussain
May 30, 2024

It wasn’t just another Saint Patrick’s Day. On a gloomy afternoon in Kingston, Jamaica, the Ireland cricket team did the unthinkable — they not only beat Pakistan but also knocked out them of the ODI World Cup in the Caribbean.

Except for the sombre Pakistan team and fans, the rest of the cricketing fraternity was jubilant as most people are after an underdog’s triumph.

Bob Woolmer and Inzamamul Haq chat after Pakistan’s shock defeat against Ireland, Jamaica, March 17, 2007.—AFP/File


On that day and night of mixed feelings, the Pakistan team’s head coach at the time was found dead in his hotel room in Jamaica, just a few hours after facing a shocking defeat against Ireland by 3 wickets.

It’s been seventeen years since Bob Woolmer left this world, but Kobus Olivier still feels the lingering pain of losing his mentor and friend.

“I will never forget that. It knocked me off my feet. I was in a state of shock for quite a few days,” Olivier said.

Olivier is a cricket nomad from South Africa — after hanging his boots as a player he worked as a teacher and coach in different parts of the world including Kenya, the Netherlands, Dubai, and Ukraine.

When war broke out between Russia and Ukraine, Olivier had to flee Kyiv with his four dogs and currently, he’s based in Zagreb, Croatia.

Some bonds are immortal — ‘Bob’ and ‘Kobus’ had one such fellowship.

Pakistan team members at a memorial service for Bob Woolmer in Kingston Jamaica, March 21, 2007.—AFP/File


Olivier was incredibly close to Woolmer.

“I was in Cape Town at that time. I was in my office at the University of Cape Town when calls started coming through. It was all over the headlines that Bob had passed away in the West Indies. It was terrible. It was just an unreal feeling,” Olivier said.

“A couple of days after his death I spoke to Garry Kirsten, Daryll Cullinan and Jonty Rhodes; they were all in absolute shock,” he said.

“I thought afterwards, probably that’s how Bob would’ve liked to go. I can’t see him an old pensioner sitting in the garden, he passed away doing what he loved most in his life,” he added.

Woolmer and Olivier had a very special friendship that went back many years.

Olivier was ten years old when Woolmer first came to South Africa as a young Kent 2nd XI player to gain experience.

As a young pro, he visited South Africa to coach during the off-season in England and also went to Olivier’s school in Johannesburg.

Bob Woolmer shakes hands with Mohammad Asif.—AFP


“I will never forget that, we were at a cricket practice at our Auckland Park Primary School when Bob came to coach our teacher. He was wearing cricket whites and a Kent 2nd XI sweater with the Kent horse at the front and underneath the horse, there was a tree which later on I came to know that it represented 2nd XI. Bob had a Gray-Nicolls kit,” Olivier said.

“I had never seen Gray-Nicolls before — the guys I used to see wore County pads and Zenith gloves. It was the first time that I saw all matching Gray-Nicolls kit,” he said.

It wasn’t just the kit that had an impression on Olivier; Woolmer also had a Kent cricket coffin with a Kent horse printed on it as well.

“It had wheels and he was pulling it that made such an impression on me, it was incredibly impressive for a 10-year-old boy,” he said.

Woolmer coached for a season and he used to visit the school nets in the afternoon.

“I was hanging on his lips and that’s when I decided to become a professional cricketer one day, it became my dream. The other kids wanted to be firemen and policemen, but I used to tell all my friends that I wanted to become a cricketer.”

Years later Olivier was at the Stellenbosch University, playing in their 2nd XI and rubbing shoulders with the likes of Pieter Kirsten, Garth Le Roux, Eddy Barlow and Kepler Wessels who played for the same university

 

[Ghazi52]

“Out of the blue, one day I got a call from Bob,” he recalled.

“He got my number from the university. He was retired but still played club cricket for Avendale at one of the townships,” he added.

At the time Woolmer was doing development work with coloured kids and he used to get overseas players every season, mostly Kent players including Mark Benson, and Alan Igglesden to play for the multi-racial club Avendale.

“He phoned me and asked me if I could play for Avendale Cricket Club. He gave me the opening position in the premier league and said it is better than 2nd XI so I joined the club and opened the batting with Bob,” Olivier said.

“It was a wonderful experience, we talked about the days he coached me at the Auckland Park Primary School and now we were opening the batting together at club level,” he said.

“It was quite funny, I have the utmost respect for him and always called him Sir when we were running between the wickets and I would say ‘yes sir’, he said: [Stop calling me ‘sir’, just say ‘yes Bob, no Bob’] but it was so instilled in me,” he added.

Olivier believes that Bob Woolmer and Eddie Barlow had an immense influence on his humble cricket career, especially ‘Bob’ who had a huge impact on his development as a cricketer.

“I was only good in one thing in my life: I could play cricket and Bob’s coaching made all the difference.”

Woolmer lived in Pinelands in the suburbs of Cape Town with his son and wife. Olivier often used to visit his house.

“His study was full of cricket books and memorabilia,” Olivier recalled.

“We had a little plan to start a business together. He said the future of cricket is in T20. At the time, the format had just started and a few of the counties were playing T20 warm-up games,” he said.

“Bob had the vision and said that’s where the money’s going to be, women and children will come and watch. Bob predicted all that long ago before other people,” he said.

Woolmer was interested in organising pre-season warm-up games for English counties in Cape Town, the weather was perfect, the facilities were good — two ovals with floodlights, and not to mention he had connections in Warwickshire and Kent counties.

He planned to bring a few county teams there for ten days and play two games in a day.

“One day he called me and said: ‘Come to my house we need to talk.’ He said: ‘We have to shelve the idea because I’ve just been appointed the national coach of Pakistan.’ I was one of the first people who he told that. He had about two weeks to get himself over to Pakistan.

Bob Woolmer shares a light moment with his new charges, July 2004.—AFP/File


“We kept in regular contact whenever Bob had a break and he was in Cape Town we would meet for a coffee or tea, sit and chat, he told me about the unbelievable talent in Pakistan cricket, and he said you’d go to a net session and they get some net bowlers into to ball to Pakistan Test batters,” he said.

“There would be one or two fast bowlers, some little leggie, and with a little bit of coaching, they could all go and play Test cricket,” he said.

“He said he has never seen a country with such raw talent as these young Pakistani cricketers. He couldn’t talk enough of the talent in Pakistan,” he said

“He had a huge impact on the South Africa cricket team,” he said.

Bob Woolmer, Shaun Pollock and Alan Dawson celebrate South Africa’s victory in the Commonwealth games, 1998.—AFP/File


“I’ve never met Pakistan players, but I believe he had the same impact on the Pakistan team as well. They always had great bowlers but in Bob’s time Pakistan batters flourished under his coaching.”

Woolmer did have an impact on Pakistan players including the likes of Younis Khan, Shoaib Akhtar, Mohammad Yousuf, Mushtaq Ahmed, and Inzamamul Haq.

Ask them about the best coach they’ve worked with and they will all say Bob Woolmer. And they have nothing but praise for him.

“He was not just a well-liked but a well-loved coach and a peoples’ person. Not one player he coached and didn’t touch his life. The players got really close to him and he wasn’t just a cricket coach for them,” he said.

Mohammad Sami and Bob Woolmer share a light moment in the swimming pool, Trinidad, March 7, 2007.—AFP


“He always inquired about if you had a problem at home, Bob would ask you what was wrong and he was like a father figure or an elder teacher. He had this personal relationship with all the players,” he said.

Woolmer was always busy with new theories and ways to do new things.

“He was always developing as a coach, even later in his life he was still developing as a coach. He was inventive, years ahead of his time. Bob stood out in a way because of his vision. He was years ahead of anyone else in cricket.”

In the 1999 World Cup in England, South Africa captain Hansie Cronje and fast bowler Allan Donald wore earpieces on the field in their opening game against India, but during the drinks break the match referee asked both players to remove them.

“That was just typical Bob,” he said.

“Cricket was his passion. I called him ‘Mr Cricket’. I know later on Michael Hussey and other guys were called by that name, but to me, Bob is Mr Cricket. He lived for cricket, whenever you talked to him, in seconds the conversation would go to cricket.

“When people took T20 for fun he told me that this is going to be the future of cricket. I listen to many modern-day coaches and I have a lot of respect for them, but Bob had so much more knowledge.

“He was at another level. He was like a walking cricket encyclopedia. You could ask him anything about cricket and he didn’t have to think, it just rolled off the tip of his tongue.

“You meet players and coaches; they come and go, but Bob is one you never forget. I see him as the best coach cricket ever had. Bob would’ve been the best T20 coach in the world.

“It suited his style of coaching, looking for new ways and new shots to score. If he was alive now, especially with T20 cricket and new innovations, this would’ve been so unbelievable for him to be involved right now.”

“I do miss him,” Olivier said. And he’s not the only one.

The West Indies and USA are jointly hosting the T20I World Cup which starts on 2nd June and it will bring back some sad memories for cricket fans in Pakistan.

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The author is a cricket journalist published in The Cricketer, Dawn, and BBC Sport among others.

 

[Ghazi52]

 

[Ghazi52]

The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) is the sole governing body for the game of cricket in Pakistan, which was established under the Sports (Development and Control) Ordinance 1962 as a body corporate having perpetual succession with exclusive authority for the regulation, administration, management and promotion of the game of cricket in Pakistan.

The PCB operates through its own Constitution, generates its revenues, which are reinvested in the development of cricket. It receives no grants, funds or monies from either the Federal or Provincial Governments, the Consolidated Funds or the Public Exchequer.

The PCB’s mission is to inspire and unify the nation by channelising the passion of the youth, through its winning teams and by providing equal playing opportunities to all.

Over the next five years, the PCB will be focusing on six key priority areas that include establishing sustainable corporate governance, delivering world-class international teams, developing a grassroots and pathways framework, inspiring generations through our women’s game, growing and diversifying commercial revenue streams, and enhancing the global image of Pakistan.

The PCB also remains committed to developing ground and facility cricket infrastructure, monitoring the implementation of playing codes and regulations, and supporting the game at every level through its high quality training provision for officials and coaches.

 

[Krishna with Flute]

It seems that India is not asking Bangladesh to follow on. India may bat again.

 

[Ghazi52]

Pakistan national cricket team

The Pakistan national cricket team has represented Pakistan in international cricket since 1952. It is controlled by the Pakistan Cricket Board, the governing body for cricket in Pakistan, which is a Full Member of the International Cricket Council.
Captains: Babar Azam, Shan Masood, Shaheen Afridi
Coaches: Gary Kirsten (Head coach), Jason Gillespie (Head coach), Aftab Khan (Fielding coach)
Association: Pakistan Cricket Board
First ODI: v New Zealand at Lancaster Park, Christchurch; 11 February 1973
First T20I: v England at the Bristol County Ground, Bristol; 28 August 2006
First Test: v India at the Feroz Shah Kotla Ground, Delhi; 16–18 October 1952

 

[Ghazi52]

PCB | Official Merchandise Store

shop.pcb.com.pk

 

[Ghazi52]

The PCB Hall of Fame was launched in April 2021 following the Board of Governors approval during its 62nd meeting with the sole objective being to honour and celebrate the achievements of some of the greatest cricketers produced by this proud country as well as to preserve Pakistan cricket history.

The initial inductees are six members of the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame – Hanif Mohammad, Imran Khan, Javed Miandad, Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis and Zaheer Abbas – who will be joined by two new members each year selected by an independent Voting Panel (process below).

The inductees, either unanimously or through most votes, will be announced each year on 16 October – the day Pakistan took the field for their debut Test – with formal inductions taking place along with the PCB Award winners, either in a PCB Gala Dinner or at an Event.

CRITERIA

Initially, six ICC Cricket Hall of Famers, along with two new members, will be inducted into the PCB Hall of Fame.

Thereafter, two members will be added each year.

Players with an impeccable career who had a positive impact on Pakistan and international cricket, in addition to their outstanding statistical records, will be considered for induction.

Inductees must be retired from international cricket for, at least, five years.

ICC Cricket Hall of Fame inductees will be automatically inducted into the PCB Hall of Fame.

SELECTION PROCESS

Each member of the independent panel will provide his/her nominations directly to the designated person at the PCB. All nominations will be kept confidential.

To keep the process transparent, an internal auditor will oversee the voting process and confirm inductees.

To ensure transparency and avoid conflict of interest, no member of the PCB management will be part of the independent panel.

 

[Krishna with Flute]

India won 1st T20 against BD in less than 12 over. Some brutal batting show by Hardik Pandya.

 

[Ghazi52]

Bowlers’ graveyards: Pakistan’s placid pitches under fresh fire​

AFP
October 13, 2024

Australia pace legend Dennis Lillee denounced a pitch in Pakistan as a “graveyard for bowlers” in 1980, but more than 40 years later little has changed.

Lillee vented his anger after toiling for 21 wicketless overs in Faisalabad in a turgid draw.

All 11 Australian players, even wicketkeeper Rod Marsh, had a turn bowling in Pakistan’s second innings of 382-2 in reply to Australia’s 617 all out as the game petered out into near farce.

Last week, on a wicket described as “a road” by former captain Michael Vaughan, England rewrote the record books as they piled up 823-7 declared in reply to Pakistan’s 556 in the first Test in Multan.

The total was the fourth-highest single innings in Test history.

Harry Brook plundered 317 at almost a run a ball and Joe Root became England’s highest Test run scorer during his career-best 262.

Their stand of 454 for the fourth wicket was an England record, the fourth-highest in history and the most by any pair playing overseas.

Despite the lifeless pitch, England’s bowlers pulled off an inning and 47-run victory after the home side crumbled to 220 all out in their second innings.

It gave Pakistan an unwanted record — the first team to score 500 or more and lose a Test by an innings.

England batting great Kevin Pietersen said on X that the lack of help for bowlers in Multan, where the second Test begins on Tuesday, was “helping destroy Test cricket.”

 

[Krishna with Flute]

India defeated Australia in Border Gavaskar trophy 1st test.