Test Match Special - England vs West Indies Classics: Headingley 1991

Episode Date: June 12, 2020

Jonathan Agnew is joined by Andy Zaltzman and Fazeer Mohammed to look back on a memorable win for England against West Indies at Headingley in 1991.

This BBC podcast is supported by ads outside the UK. The Dakar Rally is the ultimate off-road challenge. Perfect for the ultimate defender. The high-performance defender, Octa, 626 horsepower twin turbo V8 engine and intelligent 6D dynamics air suspension. Learn more at landrover.ca. Marshall in, he bowls, Foster goes forward, and he's out, caught there by Harper at third step. Here is Walsh on the way now, and Gouche pulls down towards backwards to a leg, that's going to do his hundred.

Hooper has hit on the pad, there's an appeal towards Upharmis. He's giving him out to W. Cork has taken a hatchet. There's a big ABW appeals for him, he's out, ABW. West End he's all out for 54. Hello, Jonathan Agnew here with the second episode in our series of four looking back at classic matches, play between England and the West Indies. In the last episode, we listened back to Gordon Greenidge's Heroics as West Indies chased down 342 in double-quick time at Lords in 1984.

Well, today we're moving on to 1991 and Headingley, and I, personally, had moved from the field of play to the commentary box and was enjoying my first full summer commentating on Test Match Special. In fact, this was my very first game. Come 1991, the Great West Indies side were perhaps losing some of their power, having gone through a glorious 1980s

losing just one series out of 21. Here is Garner. Comes in now to Ellison. Allison edges it. He's out caught. The West Indies have won. Ellison caught in the gully. By holding off the bowling of Garner,

the West Indies have completed their fifth consecutive victory in the series. They're coming off the ground. mobbed by hundreds of their supporters and for the first time in the history of test cricket England have lost all five tests in a series in England. The West Indies have competed their eighth consecutive victory in test matches. The likes of Greenwich, Marshall, Richards and Dujan were on the cusp of retirement. England meanwhile had the formidable leadership of Graham Gooch in the form of his life. It's now the high score made by anyone in first class

cricket at Lord's in any cricket. I've checked worse than it's the highest score ever made on this ground. Well, there we are. Gooch is waiting again. Sharsby, he goes down the pitcher again. He's hit that one, it's gone hard and I. That must be a six. It's over the side's game. It's six runs. It's gone

through to the nursery end. I'm forced with excitement. I'm sorry about that. But that was a tremendous belt. His third six of the innings. And it takes him up to 323. And the hosts had reason to be optimistic. They'd only narrowly lost the return series in the Caribbean the previous year by two

matches to one. So to Headingley and the first test of the 91 series. And with me to discuss a dramatic five days in Leeds, or the West Indies broadcaster, Fazia Mohammed and the TMS statistician Andy Zaltzman. So let's gentlemen, first of all, assess the two sides at the time. It's always worth going through the teams. Actually, you get some idea. It'll go back in time. Graham Gooch, Mike Atherton, Graham Hick, making his debut, of course. Alan Lamb, Mark Ramprakash, also debut for him, Robin Smith, Jack Russell, keeping wicket, and then the seam attack, Pringle, De Fratis, Watkin, and Devon, the West Indies side, Simmons, Haynes, Richardson, Hooper, Viv Richards as Captain, Gus Logie,

dujon, and then the pace attack, Marshall, Ambrose, Walsh, and Patterson. And let's start with you, Fasier, because you talk about West Indies on the cusp of going over, perhaps over the hill, off the boil at this stage. that's still one mean pace attack got lined up there, isn't it? Indeed it was and they were all raring to go in ideal conditions at Headingley

but you're right in that assessment about where the Western News were in 1991 compared to that phenomenal black wash year of 1984 and then again in the Caribbean in 1986 because there was no Gordon Greenwich from the very outset

because he was selected as part with the squad but then damaged a knee and played no further part on that tour. In fact that was the the end of him as a test cricketer. And you rather politely talked about them coming towards their retirement. Well, Greenwich didn't retire.

He wanted to play on. He was dropped. Jeff Dujon didn't retire. He wanted to play on. He was dropped. Malcolm Marshall saw the sign writing on the wall. So he decided to go as well.

So it was a really challenging period because they had just come out of a really acrimonious series against Australia. A lot of bad blood between those two teams. bat pointed at each other and all sorts of things. As you said, they were lucky, I'll say, in the series against England in the Caribbean.

England should have been 2-0 up after Trinidad, but for the rain and the stalling tactics. So, yeah, you could see the signs of the West Indies slipping from that summit. And especially without Greenwich being there, England would have felt with Gooch back in their lineup. He wasn't there in 84 because he was still serving his suspension from international cricket for playing in South Africa. So this was really an ideal time to take on the West Indies. Just a thought about Viv Richards as well, Andy. Was he statistically coming towards the end? By now I remember playing against him in county cricket

when he was playing for Glamorgan and he did appear to be coming towards the end then. Richard was 39 years old at this point. He had already played 116 tests, but he had dipped significantly in his previous 15 tests, only one century and an average of 30, with his overall career average of 50. It had been a bit of gradual decline

through the 1980s, but over the previous couple years he had been significantly diminished force. But the bowlers, they still had three of the world's top six in the rankings. Marshall, though this was his final series, was still top. Kurtly Ambrose, the coming man of World Fast Bowling, really, second and Courtney Walsh in sixth place. All three of those bowlers ended up with

over 375 test wicket, so that was a tidy attack plus the fearsome Patrick Patterson. really one of the best fast bowling attacks that's ever come to these shores. Allerton is 32, and he's wrapped on the pad. There is an appeal, and this time he's out. Well, that's the blow of the West Indies wanted early in the afternoon. Here's watch on the way now, and off the edge,

and he's out caught in the gully by Simmons ball, which came off the top edge. Well, the name that jumps out at me, inevitably, especially in my first match as cricket correspondent of the BBC, was that of G.A. Hick, and all the talk that there had been about this very quiet Zimbabwean who had been murdering county attacks for years for Worcestershire finally had his moment.

His registration was through and he was able to play for England. I watched him score a brilliant hundred against the West Indies on their previous tour for Worcestershire when he'd rather took them apart. Now that's pushed out into the onside. A real punch of the air from Graham Hick as he raises battle off now towards his. dressing room as helmet comes off, he mops his brow and his long sleeve of his shirt, he's 100 not out, out of Worcestershire is 208 for two.

There had been some talk, though, during those late 80s about his ability to deal with a short ball, how he was a bit rooted to the spot, how he didn't play it very well, and, well, he got a terrific working over from those fast bowlers, not just in this match, but in this part of the series that he played, and they really sorted. out Fosier, didn't they? Yeah, and the Westonies knew that a lot was being made about Graham Hicks' arrival as an England test player, and they were waiting for him.

Essentially, that is a bit of a motivating element to cut the new big boy down to size. And clearly, they would have done their homework. A lot of them would have been involved in countercicket for a long time, so they would have sensed the strengths and weaknesses. And it was obvious in a very different way to which the West Indies team targeted Tony Gregg, in that infamous grovel series of 1976,

they targeted Graham Hick for a different reason because they felt that too much was being made about Graham Hick being this superstar player and this, more or less said, okay, you're scoring a lot of runs on the county circuit and wherever. Let's see how you fare when the big boys are in action against you in the real thing, test cricket. Yeah, it was just expected that he would walk in.

I mean, he already written, I think, one of his autobiographies, before he'd even played a test match. he was just expected somehow to just be able to just come striding into test cricket and take it like a duck to water. His county records, Andy, leading up to this were phenomenal. How many hundreds had he scored for a start? Well, he had 57 hundreds in first class cricket when he made his test debut.

He'd been playing first class for eight years. It scored over 16,000 runs at an average just over 62. At that point, he had the best first class average. of any batsman who played 50 or more innings since George Headley who played his last first-class game in 1954, the Great West Indian. So Hick was statistically

absolutely extraordinary in first-class cricket. But as you said, maybe that not being challenged at a younger age had led to some technical flaws within his game. Yeah. Well, six and six for him in this test match and he was dropped before the last test match of this series. Mark Rambrakash also, again, one of those prolific batsmen in county cricket.

He didn't have a bad debut, actually, 27 and 27. No Angus Fraser, who was injured. Steve Watkin replaced him, and as Fazio mentioned, Gordon Greenwich was injured and replaced by Phil Simmons. Lara not playing, Gus Logie, having been preferred in the West Indies lineup. So, England were put into bat under cloudy skies He's had lost three early wickets. In comes, Patterson.

There's a full-length ball and Bowles. Atherton, I would think, probably middle and off. Yorked as much as anything. And Gooch is beaten. He's out caught behind. That's a beauty from Marshall. One which lifted, left him, took the edge of the bat. Dujon did the rest.

Walsh runs up. He seems all right. Bill's up on outside of this time. And that one is caught behind. And he's caught by Dujon going low down in front of first slip. And he's got his wicket. And there is Hickon. Caught by Dujon, so 45 for three England having been put into bat

And things not looking very good at all So some rebuilding going on, Robin Smith 54, he was run out I mentioned Ramprakash 27 in his first test innings Funny old innings this, because England ran out for 198 early on on the second day, so a very slow rate of scoring This is how that innings ended. Pringle waits. Paterson comes in, bells to him That one he's tipped away on his toes, he's going down to Logi,

who this time, Pouches it down, a deep square leg, runs in, taking it very carefully just in his midriff, and that is the end of the England innings. Pringle is caught Logie, Boll Paterson for 16, England are 198 for 10, and you've been saying, I know, 22, 240 wouldn't be a bad score at all, so they haven't quite achieved that. Well, I do remember the ball, the ball nipping around, that's why England were put into bad, 198 all-out, two wickets for Ambrose, three for Patterson,

one for Walsh and of course Malcolm Marshall 3 for 46, 198 though it didn't really feel enough and Phil Simmons got the West Inders away to a bit of a flyer Simmons flicks it away down backward of square in the air for four ball on the legs

big powerful man Philip Simmons Malcolm on the way now to bowl to Simmons flicks it away again for four more this time along the ground down through square leg lovely shot by Simmons over pitch on his legs and he hit it hard

and well. So good start for Simmons, but DeFratus had him caught by Mark Rambrakash, a brilliant piece of fielding. Fratis turns at the top of his run, comes down to the slope from the Kirkland end and burles to the right-handed Simmons, who square cuts in the air and is caught very brilliantly by Ramprakash diving to his right. Simmons looks disgusted with himself. Ramprakash looks delighted with himself and well he might. And England have taken the second West Indian wicket at 54. Of course, this was the Headingley of old And the headingly that, I must admit, I used to love watching cricket on

Because the ball always did that little bit And if you had the right sort of attack And England's attack at that day, well, Devin Malcolm was expensive, 40 overs of 69 But I'm surprised that England picked him actually Because this wouldn't be his sort of pitch But defratus and Wokkin and Pringle As moving the ball about and nibbling it around

I don't know what you think, fuzzier, but Headingley in those days When you looked up and the ball did nip around And it was intriguing cricket. Which really added to the drama of what was to come in the second innings and in the conditions because you knew whenever you fronted up at a headingly, it's the sort of situation when it's overcast and, as you said correctly, the ball is dancing about.

And with the West Indies pace as well, and the fact is that with the bowling attack that the West Indies had, to get England out for 198, they would have felt, well, look, business as usual, and we were really setting all stall out to get it. early lead in this test series to maybe not dominate England as easily as we did so many years ago but certainly it all looked

good with that the strength of that fast bowling attack in conditions as you would normally expect it headingly so 139 for 4 which seems a bowl out for 173 only three players making double figures and of course one of those was Viv Richards it's been a long time since Richards has

got big scores in test cricket here's what can into him now He goes back and chops it down to third man. That'll go for four, and that's his 50. Malcolm Bowes to Richards again. That's short and he hooks it in the air. And for six. His second six since T, a stroke of infinite ease, really.

Just a gentle pivot of the body and that heavy bat. And the ball coming right out of the middle. So Richard's scoring 73, as West Indies lost their last five wickets for just 17 runs. and a little handy lead there for England but that ball moving around you knew the value of every run was absolutely critical.

Graham Gooch then, I must admit, this I think would have to rank as one of the finest innings that I've ever seen in those conditions and against one of the finest bowling attacks there is to score 154 not out one of only three players in that innings to reach double figures

the other two being rampic acid 27 and Pringle, a really valuable 27. No one else made double-fingers. In fact, they didn't get close to reaching double figures. 154, 27, 27, the next higher score was six. This is an extraordinary innings. Walsh bowls again, and he's another four. This is going to mid-wicket.

Loughy in vain pursuit. That was slightly short, whipped away through mid-wicket by Gooch, and he's had four fours in fairly quick succession. Statistically, and it has score that number of runs of runs in a second innings to set up a win like that? Where does that rank? Well, it's, I think, universally regarded as one of the finest innings in the history of test cricket. He scored 61% of England's runs in that innings. That's the highest proportion by one England player of a completed test inning, so where the team's been bowled out. And there

were 21 extras. He scored exactly two-thirds of the runs off the bat. As you said, there were a lot of very low scores in this game. There were 25 single-figure dismissals in this match. that's the joint most in a test in England since the First World War equaled only by last year's headingly tests that featured that incredible Ben Stokes century. So it was a truly extraordinary innings who was only the third player to carry his bat

against West Indies to open and still be not out of the end of the innings. And Gooch had had a strangely fitful test career over a decade and a half until 1990 and became captain and went on that tour of the West Indies. in which he got injured. But from then on, he had one of the most extraordinary purple patches of any batsman that we've

seen. In 1989, he appeared to be finished. He'd been doubled out by the masterful trundlements of Australia's Terry Alderman, aged 36. And then he went on a 25 match sequence after that, scoring 2,800 runs, average 65. This game was pretty much right in the middle of that sequence. And that's a record number of runs scored by an opener in a 25 match sequence. in test history. So this was possibly the finest innings

played by an England batsman, but certainly Gooch, in the middle of his peak. And let's not forget, under cloudy skies and the ball nipping about. Ambrose now to build a Hick, well pitched up and he yoked him. Oh my gosh, yorked him. He's yorked him.

He must have gone off the bottom of the bat. And he's yorked and he's out. And England have lost another wicket. So Ambrose has got Hick and Hick again has not succeeded. and England are 38 for two. They didn't have to get through to lunch without exposing another batsman to this still-newish ball. A lead of 63 as Ambrose Bowls to Lamb.

Outside the off-stamp and he's out first ball. Caught by Hooper and Joy reigns unconfined amongst the West Indian ranks. Well, crucially at the other end, Derek Pringle, who was stubborn, he could hang around and he found the boundary too. Another full length ball and Pringle drives it straight for four, splendid stroke, just between the stumps and mid-on. And a ball which is distinctly pale in colour came over the rope down below our commentary box.

England all out there for 252, Gooch having carried his bat to score 154, not out. Here is Waltch on the way now, and Gooch pulls down towards backwards square leg, that's going to do it is 100, four runs down to a deep backward square. Gouche gets his hundred. He's 102 not out, and the crowd here at Heddingley are rising to Graham Gouche. And a prolonged applause from the crowd for a most vital century by the England captain. Yeah, and in every way, an absolutely astonishing innings.

I just wonder, is that any innings that's talked about in West Indian folklore at all, Fazir? I think Westinians, for a long time, I've had tremendous admiration for Graham Gooch. And Andy talked about that 150 score in Jamaica at the end of the series in 1981. That was a really turbulent series for England. Kenny Barrington dying as coach in Barbados and all sorts of things happening, test match being cancelled in Guyana because of Robin Jackman's presence and so on. But Goet stood out as someone who the Westerners respected,

who would stand four square and take on the West Indies fast bowlers and again it bears repeating aggers you look at that West Indies fast bowling lineup at Headingley you're talking about Malcolm Marshall even if he was coming to the end of his career still a handful

Kurtly Ambrose getting into his prime the evergreen Courtney Walsh and not forgetting Patrick Patterson England will have had nightmares of him from 1986 in the Caribbean and with that high kicking delivery stride Jeffrey Dojon always made the point that of all the fast bowlers

he would have kept to, it was Patrick Patterson who hit his gloves harder than anyone else. So when you're talking about in those conditions to play the innings that Graham Gooch did, and yeah, it must stand out as one of the greatest innings of all time and Caribbean fans certainly won't be grudge

to praise that. Gooch, not out 150, England 244 for 9. The lead, therefore, is 269. It's funny, though, isn't it? It's interesting. It is Headingley. And funny enough, I would take England's attack in this match, even against that West Indus attack, because of the length they bowl and the type of bowling that they are, and 278 to win was always going to be a really tall order, I think.

And Philip DeFratus got England away to the best possible start. Right, here's the first ball. 278, they need to win, and in he comes now, the freighters and bowled and this one is out and west indies are not for one and really this is most extraordinary team bell there and everybody surrounding the freighters and clapping her on the back what an extraordinary thing so the final day then starts with 267 more needed by west indies got nine were gets left and after a good start wotkin takes three weeks wickets and three overs to swing the game England's way. We have a 6-3 off-side field, and he's out. A wicket, caught by lamb at first slip.

Watkin, having been driven for four and for three, gets the wicket of Hooper. Watkin bows, and he swings him up in the air. Gooch is underneath it, leading edge, and he's out, court. And that is a major blow for England. Richards, caught Gooch, bowed Watkin, Three, the West Indies are 85 for four, and England are delighted. Logie it is now who has the strike and goes back.

He's edges, he's brilliantly caught. Brilliant catch at third slip by Gouche. An edge to a lifting ball, and Gouche held a stunning catch, left-handed. Viv Richards, what was he doing there, Fuzzy? He had a real swipe, didn't they? Yeah, and Viv, probably at a point in his career, Of course, we knew that this was going to be his last series where he was especially determined to go out on a high in England.

Remember that fantastic series he had in 1976 and, of course, precursor to so many dominant teams. But maybe sometimes even trying too hard, maybe even his own worst enemy at times with that desire to dominate because sometimes even with the greatest of them, it's difficult to recognize that, look, maybe the eye isn't as sharp as it used to be, the reflexes aren't as sharp as it would have been,

been then. So it was a pretty poor shot. And when you get Viv Richards, whether at the age of 21 or 39, as he was then, it really would set you up for an excellent victory. Well, it was an extraordinary test match with so many single figure scores. West Indies, of course, only three making double figures in the first settings. Well, they did get better. They actually had four in the second. But again, Batson really struggling to start with the ball moving around. Devin Malcolm took the final wicket, with Atherton claiming a running catch. And England won up in the series. Here comes Malcolm, he bows to water, who hits it in the air.

He could be caught. It's Ramprakash coming in. Two of them going for it. And it is caught, in fact, very well indeed by Michael Atherton, diving in front of Ramprakash from the gully, and England have beaten the West Indies for the first time in England for 22 years. They have won this match. The West Indies all out for 162 at 10 past 3 on the 5th grey, blustery afternoon.

And the crowd, jubilant is the word. They seem to have doubled since lunch. It's as if the word that the famine is over has got through, and suddenly they're all descending on the oasis which is heading there. Numbers, figures, stats, data, your territory, Andy, but inevitably, people talk about Graham Gooch, to talk about 333 against India the previous summer but this 1-5-4 not out for me at any rate

I suspect for Graham too actually would surely eclipse that wouldn't it? Oh definitely it was a way tougher bowling attacks we've talked about one of the finest attacks England had faced and the situation of the game without that innings there's no way England would have won and again to give it further context England's a bowling performance Philip DeFratus took four wickets

in both innings. He came into that summer having taken only 48 test wickets in 20 tests, average 42, then he took 30 that summer at an average of 19. So it was a real breakthrough summer for DeFratus. And it was the first time England had bowled West Indies out for under 200 in both innings since 1963. And in that time, only twice had West Indies been bowled out for under 200 in both innings of a test by any team. And they were both by India in matches away in Chennai. So again, in terms of the context of the West Indies might have been a slightly

fading force, they were still very strong, it would still be another four years before they lost a test series, that extraordinary unbeaten run of a decade and a half. So this was a landmark victory for England and for Gooch the high point of a

long and illustrious career. I do remember Fuzia, Tony Cozier, at the end of that match, shaking his head and talking about the start of the decline and so on. which, of course, Tony, I'm sure lots of you did, but Tony really did start talking about that from a very early stage. I think he would probably point at this match

and say this is reasonable confirmed at what he'd been warning about over the previous years. Yeah, and I think we'd seen the signs a bit earlier. During that era of the 1980s, the Westerners fought some Titanic battles with Pakistan, and all of those series finished 1-1, three test series and at least three occasions. And the one in the Caribbean in 1988,

Imran Khan is convinced, but for some poor umpiring, they would have won the series 3-0. The Westerners just scraped a draw in the final test. So even then you were seeing the signs. But yeah, 1991, first test match of the series, losing to England, that again was another indicator. And yeah, I think the Westerners by sheer force of will

and still the quality of their players and because they had so many players accustomed to winning, were still able to hang on and get the odd, victory and win the series for another four years, but the writing was on the wall. So it was a remarkable victory and statement, how did the rest of the series play out? Well, that game in which the infamous, famous, glorious legover moment happened at the Oval Test, the fifth match of that series, England won that game, another brilliant victory in a thrilling match that made it to all, so it was a drawn series.

And again, England hadn't won a home test against West Indies since 1969 before that headingly tests. No team had won two tests in a series against West Indies since their five-one defeat in Australia in the mid-1970s that preceded their era of dominance. So it was a wonderful, so much one of the finest series that's ever been played in England. And we talked about the debuts of Hick and Ramprakash, Hick dropped for the final test. Rampercash batted nine times in the series, made double figures on every occasion, but never reached 30. We'd had seven scores over 20, which is a world record. So that was, and then

England went to New Zealand and dropped him. So it was a highly promising debut series against one of the great attacks of all time and England, I think, probably didn't do themselves a great deal of credit with how the selectors treated Ramprakash after that. But the series as a whole was a fantastic series

between a still great West Indian team and an England side emerging from a dark few years at the end of the 80s. Well, many thanks again to Andy Oltsman and to Fuzer Muhammad. Great to have you with thanks for joining us looking back at these games and thank you for joining me for the second of this four-part series

examining some of the great games involving England and the West Indies. It can catch your accompanying TV series with Ishigua on the BBC Eye Player. Next time we're going to 1995 and the very special game at Old Trafford and make sure you don't miss it by subscribing to the Test Mat special podcast via BBC Sounds. Alan Shearer and Ian Wright are in my kitchen. What's going on here? The all-new Match of the Day Top Ten podcast, answering a huge football question every week.

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