Test Match Special - The World Cup Years: 1979

Episode Date: May 15, 2019

Kevin Howells and Andy Zaltzman continue their look back on the four Cricket World Cups to have been held in the UK. As we reflect on the 1979 World Cup, we’re joined by Graham Gooch, David Gower and Mike Hendrick, plus some vintage commentary from the great Tony Cozier.

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from BBC Radio 5 Live. Well, let me tell you, putting together these programmes and bringing back to life, the cricket World Cup's held in this country, has been absolutely brilliant. 1979, we've reached now. The West Indies, they won it again. England beaten in the final, boo hiss.

Graham Gooch, David Gower and Mike Hendrick, what a line-up here to talk about it. Andy Zoltzman, to add to it all, our stats man. Andy, hit me with a stat straight away, can you, about the 1979 World Cup? Well, for the second World Cup in a row, England's bowling attack, as I'm sure Mike will be delighted to have the best economy rate and the best communal bowling average.

It wasn't quite enough to win the tournament. It was the slowest scoring of all the World Cups at just over three and a half and over compared with over five and a half and over in the most recent 2015 World Cup which shows quite how much one-day cricket has changed. I say Mike Hendricks here to talk about the whole tournament. You know, I've got a funny feeling. to allow him to do so, we could spend the entire half hour talking about that ball in the final

to Viv Richards. How on earth was that not out? Mike? I wish Barry Mayo was here to explain to all of us why it wasn't out. I can see it now. It's daft, isn't it? You get to the age of 70, and this is 40 years ago, and there's still things that you close your eyes. If you think about certain things, that pops up with me. How on earth did he not give that out? Tell us about it. Go on. Not for half an hour. you 30 seconds? Well, the way that Viv's always set up and the way that he moved,

he wanted to cross his stump slight, he was always looking to get the ball through mid-wicket, most of the, well, from wherever you pitch it, basically. But this particular delivery, I can see it now, he pitched just about outside of stump. He moved across, he missed it, knit back, missed it, and everybody went up,

and yeah, that was going to be, I think there would be five down at that particular time. Barry Mayer said, not out, so, right, it's not out. As I was walking back to my mark, the boys were up on the balcony, the home dressing room, and a lot of them came out and they were looking at me with their arms outstretched and wondering why it wasn't out. But hey-ho. 1979 World Cup, somebody comes up to you and says, oh, I remember it.

What's your response to that? What's your summing up of your involvement in that tournament? Well, firstly, I'm disappointed that Barry May I didn't give Viv out because I wouldn't have had the pain of being swept ball by ball into the tavern stand by Viv. the late on in the innings and it was going about 20 rows back so yeah that still happens these days

and it certainly happened then but it was Collis King actually that won that game he came in and he smashed her so I don't know what it was I think it's about 80 odd off 60 odd balls and he changed the game and I think although Viv

batted all the way through and it's a magnificent knock you know he was the game changer David let's introduce you and thank you very much for joining us on this programme So, 1975, England got through to the semi-finals. You were coming into this tournament, expecting what? The truth of any tournament, surely, is that you come into it a little bit like politics, hoping to win.

And the format back then involved fewer teams. The format was basically gets through the group, get into a semi, and then see if you can get into a final, which we did. Yeah, and as Andy so rightly said, the scoring rate in those days, with 60 overs to play with was funereal compared to modern cricket whatever that stat was about five and a half or so the last World Cup that's going to go up this World Cup

this coming World Cup that is for sure but in those days you know three three and a half as except when I look back at the scores thinking I better to try and find out something about this tournament and they are so ridiculously low apart from Canada being bowled out for 45 they are so ridiculously low compared to modern standards that you know if you got over 200

you thought we're in with the shout So the game was so very different, and our expectations were as high as ever. First day, West Indies, of course, they won the first one in 75. They're the holders off to a great start, nine wickets victory over India. We should point out, I guess, a little bit,

of course, between 75 and 79, the introduction to the world of cricket of Kerry Packer, and that caused one or two rumblings along the way. And I think I'm right in saying that Australia in the tournament, but they weren't allowed to involve any players would be involved with Kerry Packer.

Nevertheless, still on that same day, the opening day of the tournament, England beat Australia by six wickets. 14 runs in 10 overs from Australia at the start of it all, the opening pair of Hilditch and Darling. And guess who got the breakthrough? Let's just put ourselves out of the misery about that, shall we? A little bit of archive.

Boycott who balls, medium pace in swing, comes up again. Bowles and a pole. Boycott's delighted. I think he played an inside edge on, bowling from the pavilion end of bowl, got an inside edge on to the stump, so that's out bowl. Every time I see him in Australia, he walks past me with his head in his hands. And Kim Hughes, he thought, well, I couldn't ball, so he tried to whack me over the pavilion. Boycott bowl this ball to Hughes.

He comes in, bowls to him. And Hughes plays that bowl there on the leg side in his part. for Henrik on the run, on the run from midwicket. And he took the catch as his legs went and his feet slid from under him. He measured his length. He ran 14 yards in. Mike, you get quite a few mentions actually in the commentary here, whether it's taking wickets or taking catches out on the boundary.

Do you remember that catch? Yes, I do. I've got a photograph of it. There was a cricket photographer was in, prime position to see that and after the game he got the photograph and he'd blown it up and mounted it and I've got it at home now yeah you know you see the ball you that's mine you go for you commit to it and um hopefully it sticks and that one did yeah I'm very impressed Mike I'm very impressed according to the commentary there from John Arlett that you were able to measure your link halfway through taking the catch yeah I've measured my I can't walk the length of myself

now David I'm sure I'm sure Jeffrey every time he's to see he's Kim Hughes, or he'll just hear me mentioning those wickets. Don't worry about that even now. I'm with Kim Hughes. None of us thought he could bowl. In fact, Jeff Boycott took five wickets in that tournament, two that we just heard against Australia, top order batsmen, the two final wickets in a nail-biting, low-scoring game with Pakistan

and the New Zealand number three, Jeff Howarth in the semi-final. And he never took another wicket in one day international cricket. In fact, I'd only bowled one more over in ODI cricket in the rest of his career. I saw Geoff a few weeks back, and it did come up about the World Cup and in bowling and in his own sort of way he's mentioning that he did a bit of sledging as a bowler as well saying you're not going to get out to me are you? You can't afford to get out to me.

We were a great team, boy Cotton Hendrick. He bowled it. I caught it. Fantastic. Always had the right man in the right place. On the boundary. Bounders were bigger. Yeah, they were. The weather wasn't perfect, surprise, surprise. Rain meant that when England played Canada they had to play it on a reserve day.

They're in Manchester. But they beat Canada. Eight-wicked victory, bowling Canada out. for 45, so England already qualified from the group stage, but there was still a very interesting game to come. England, Pakistan in Leeds. This game's worth a mention, at least according to the Pakistan Captain Asif Iqbal.

That match was one of the best World Cup matches that I have participated in. Both the team, in fact, had qualified for the semifinals. It was only a sort of matter of playing, not to play against the Western Lees, because the other semi-finalist was New Zealand. We got England out quite cheaply and we won the toss

I think we fielded it first and we got everybody chipped and everybody got wickets and we had only 160 something to get and we had a tremendous start, 27 for no loss and no time and then suddenly we were 33 for 6. How did that happen Mike Hendrick?

Well for once in my career they instead of going past the outside age they nicked them and they were all caught that's how it happened but phenomenal from you four for 15. Well you get in a rhythm You're feeling good. You know, I was going past the outside edge.

The Nicked one, that got caught. You've got tails up. You keep running in. That was, yeah, it was just one of, it was my day, basically. Every dog has his day. David, can you put into some context, if you would, for me? This team have basically met a really boycott Randall Gooch, yourself, Ian Botham, Edmonds, Bob Taylor, Old, Hendrick, Bob Willis.

In terms of those that perhaps weren't around at the time, time put it in the context of how good you thought and still think looking back that team was? Well, it was good, obviously, in the sense that it got to a well-cut final and got itself into position by being there to give itself half a chance of winning the world-cut final. That cannot be a bad thing. It reflects the thinking of the time, and the final in the way was a microcosm of that, because you had basically proper bowlers, if I can put it that way. Hendo, obviously, with that hole that heading against Pakistan, showing the way, leading the way and pointing us how to do it.

it. We did compromise with the fifth bowler, hence going into the final boycott, Graham and Wayne Larkins, you're trying to make up 12 overbers between them, which could have worked under slightly different, well, without Collis King, basically. It's almost as simple as that. But then you have the two openers, you know, Brearley and Boycott. Now, given their history, you know, find players in their own right in certain circumstances, but shall we say that the concept of the platform was everything. In other words, I mean, and again,

sort of leaping straight back to the final, you know, the platform was there at 129 when the first wicket went down. Slight problem was that two-thirds of the overs had gone. Now, you look, compare that to the current day way of thinking

and setting off like an express train from ball one. Well, it's a very, very different game. And in certain circumstances, yes, it worked. In certain circumstances, you had, you know people if you look at that you know as you went down the team sheet there you obviously had stroke makers coming in

you know three four five so on a good day both of course the all rounder you know on a good day then you do get the right sort of totals on the board and you have enough to win and you have the bowling with which to work to get the wickets to keep yourself in check let's move on to the semi-final talking of good games this is this is a cracker New Zealand and before we actually talk about it

let's hear a couple of clips of this game in Manchester Now the tall moustachioed figure of Graham Gooch, he faces McKechnie, lofts him high overminton, and that's six runs. What a five hit. That was halfway up the terraces. McKechnie, straight hit for six by Gooch. He's 25. England and 92. That was a telling blow, the best shot of the morning, with the ball from McKekney of full pitch. And Gooch just dancing down the wicket to it, hit it straight. over the sight screen and really i think it would have gone directly above the umpire's head too that's how straight it was in goes willis and burles and that's played away by right off the leg stumped down towards square leg he's got one run randle is harring in picks it up one-handed and they have to be content he's got a run out oh a bit of fielding and oh a very unwise bit of running by right and that is the wicked that england so badly needed and it seemed as though he just didn't sense

the danger there. A sad end to a magnificent innings for New Zealand by John Wright. Fielding. I can't imagine as much practice and emphasis maybe went into fielding as maybe it has done in more latter years. But Derek Randall when it comes to fielding, I mean to have him

in your team, that was a bit special, wasn't it, Graham? Well, he was a brilliant fielder, you know, he had a low centre of gravity and he could pick the ball up and throw on the run, as could David as well. And as I've already mentioned, you had both of them one on one side wicket one on the other and that makes a huge difference in one day cricket.

I think we had Ken Barrington then who was a selector and assistant manager went on tour. I can't really remember, but I'm sure he would have got involved in taking some field in practice during the World Cup then. We would have practiced in the normal way. I don't think quite the same drills that they have nowadays at throwing at stumps. But, you know, you had natural movers on either side of the wicket and you had some good catchers. Hendo was a very good slip fielder. One of two donkeys, maybe myself, and one of two others.

Beefy, obviously, was a great slip catcher. He used to stand a lot closer than most other slips, but he was a brilliant all-round fielder. So it did make a difference. And with the fielders in place, as already been mentioned, with the format of the game, 60 overs, you know, you took your catches and we weren't the worst field inside. Can I make a comment that might not surprise you all? You don't need to practice endlessly to be good at it.

Yes, it helps. After all these days, I can't deny that. But looking at Derek especially, he was a brilliant natural fielder, and of course he practiced. And you didn't just come to a well cup and think, oh, I've got to learn some new skills and practice my fielding. These were things that he was doing day in day out. He loved it, and that's the art.

He loved fielding. He loved being mad. He was very quick over the ground. I mean, he used to start from about 50 yards, words away. His walk-in was about 20 yards in the first place. By the time the ball was played, he was already doing about 30 miles an hour. I mean, he was an extraordinary one-off example of brilliant fielding in that era. And all the practice he did would have been done at Nottingham, would have been done before the World Cup, and he'd just used that tournament, he used any

international game as a showcase for his skills. Mike, your memories of that semi-final? Oh, I found that a really tough game. probably mentally more than physically because it was a I was desperate to get to the final that was I wanted to play in a World Cup final maybe I put a little bit too much pressure on myself

I don't know how the rest of the boys felt but certainly when we won that game it was a huge relief to myself I think I can remember being the last one out of the dressing room I was probably the last one out of the bar certainly and we went home after that and had a couple of days, I think they had a couple of days rest.

But that was the toughest game for me, personally speaking, for me in that whole World Cup. Back to Andy, any more to throw out as to stats-wise in what you've actually been hearing over the last sort of 15, 20 minutes or so? Well, in terms of how different the game is now, Graham's innings, he hit 3-6s, in fact, and that was the first time an England player had hit 3-6s in a one-day international innings. By comparison, in 2018, there were 15 occasions. in which an England batsman hit three or more sixes. So, again, further illustration, Graham's inning 71 off 84 balls in that semi-final was unusually fast for the time.

And as I said, it was very low-scoring World Cup, just two centuries, both by West Indians, Gordon Greenwich, who we think of as a very fast player, scored an unbeaten century off 170 balls in a group match, and then Viv Richards hit that famous 138 out in the final. Thank you. So the West Indies, there were holders of the World Cup. Did you think that you've got a very good chance, David Gower, as you went to Lords for the final?

I think you're always realistic when you arrived for a game like that. You're optimistic by nature, and everyone tries to build themselves up as best they can to produce something that will be memorable and, if possible, successful. But, I mean, I have a lot of experience about playing against the Westerns over the next 10 years after that as well, where a lot of optimism was trounced by sheer ability on the opposition side.

We knew we had to play well, or probably better as well as, or better than we'd played in the tournament so far to beat a side like that, that already had one World Cup final successfully under their belts. And you look at the names in that team and you think, well, actually, yes, it was a mighty, mighty fine sight. In the end, it was the bowling that sorted the game out, Joel Garner that sorted the game out in the closing overs.

But in the meantime, you know, the brilliance of Viv, the brilliance of Colist King had taken the game away from us in the first part of the game. Especially as I get older, I'm always trying to be mindful of the fact that when you mention names, like Roberts, Holding, Croft and Garner, that there will be people who say, oh yeah, we hear they were good.

I don't think it is actually wrong of us to ask people such as yourself, Graham. That attack, what was it like facing, that bowling attack? You run through those bowlers and there's not only pace and there's aggression, but there's quality as well. That's the difference. And, you know, there was never an easy end to get up.

there was no respite when you played test cricket or one-day cricket. And, of course, as we said, there was no fielding restrictions. So in that particular match, once our opening partnership had put us behind the eight ball, so to speak, I remember when I went in at number four, we needed eight and over, and they had eight players on the boundary. And, you know, you just couldn't pierce, you know, the boundary, really, because it was covered. But, I mean, you need skills of with the willow, you need courage. you need to be prepared that you're going to take some pain. You're going to get hit a few times in whatever match it is,

and that's part of it. Courage is part of it, and you've got to work out very quickly what shots you can play, what you can't, invariably, you know, apart from maybe at the end of this, when Joel Garner got all the wickets with the yorkers and low full tosses that they're not going to pitch the ball up too much, you know, so you're going to be playing the ball off your hip, off your chest quite a bit.

So you're not going to be hitting it down the ground. ground and you have to work it out very quickly and that style of bowling in all forms of cricket dominated for that whole period so maybe for a decade or more, even longer. And it's to be also remembered David that not only did you

face these bowlers internationally but you will have come across them at county cricket level as well so it was a bowling attack that as you say you would have faced quite a few times. Well yeah it's good news and bad news. It wasn't great news when you pitched up at Portsmouth to play Andy Roberts on one of the harder, quicker pitches in the country

in county cricket and I saw a few helmets dented even in Sunday league games by people like Andy. I mean the pitch lords in that final was a good pitch. It was it wasn't particularly quick, it wasn't particularly bouncy, so actually facing them on that pitch as such

was not the test it could be elsewhere during that period during that decade or so. But the point, unfortunately the point was that the what we didn't get right as a team was the pacing of it. And as Graham so rightly said, when the first couple of wickets went down

and the asking rate was up to approaching double figures, 20 overs to go. Nowadays, it might be a different thing, but the field restrictions make a huge difference. And if you've got Joel Garner, who was the man who did the damage at the end there, I mean, I remember try to back away to sort of

force one through the off side, missed it, top of the off stump was clipped. End of story, Bolgarner zero. And so my World Cup final was not a particularly happy one from that particular point of view. But the point was, we went in there thinking well there's no point in hanging around you haven't got five overs to play myself in we have to get on with it

and others tried I mean beefy tried to hit one into the outfield got caught in the outfield one or two others got yorked it was it was unfamiliar territory even against lesser size let alone the West Indies and their attack trying to go for eight nine ten and over in the closing

overs of a game to win the game what was the feeling amongst the bowling unit Mike Hendrick on the knowledge and finding out that the Bob was unable to play. I think it was just the morning of the game, wasn't it? Yes, it was. And obviously, that was a bit of blow for us, really.

I mean, Bob, quick bowlers, bowed well, throughout the previous games. And so, yeah, we were going to be short of firepower. That's it. Bob's not playing, okay, get over the disappointment, get out there and do your best. And that's what we did. I mean, you know, as David just said for the first hour,

we were jubilant, you know, yeah, we can ram the... home. Well, let's just hold on there a second because we'll take some commentary of that little period where perhaps the West Indies then did take a little bit more control. It's a magnificent stroke play since lunch, a flurry of runs. 94 now at the ridges, 194 for 4 and the 47th over. Up comes Larkins again. That's another one outside the leg stump. And that one's hit down

into the crowd there in the grandstand. That's a six and the crowd jumping up and down it is King's 50 202 for 4 This is England's weakness What they were afraid of Could they get through these 12 overs economically And against these batsmen they're struggling

Up he comes again to Bowers to King That's another short button That's whacked away And that's going over the rope again down there Six over mid-wicked Randall Looking for the catch Another short ball In fact

In what it comes down to these chaps are very difficult or the Belgium. Ain't that the truth, Mike, Hendry? Ain't it just, yes, yeah. Great from Brian Johnson. You know, joking aside about, you know, the West Indies perhaps getting on top.

Do you enjoy this sort of reminiscing? Yeah, it's always nice. I think it's a great honour to represent your country in a World Cup, to play at Lord, to have the opportunity to try and give it your best in the final. And certainly we came a poor third in that match. But we, as David said,

we were up against this. side quite a lot over that period of time, you know, for the next decade or so, so we got used to it and they ruled the world in cricket in all forms of cricket. And, you know, I always think it's great to challenge yourself against the best in the world and I always look forward to it. We're well short in this game. Our plan didn't go to plan or we didn't have a plan that was good enough to cope with their bowling. But, you know, I was just looking at the scorecard here they were 99 for 4 I think so you know

it could have gone another way but it wasn't to be on our day and for me disappointing because I played in the three World Cup finals that we've played in we lost all three so I must be the bad omen I think oh no we won't have that we won't have that however what we will have is we'll have more

runs from Viv Richards well thanks continuing from this pavilion then running into a ball a full length in fact a full toss to Richards this could be his hundred plays it away off his legs at typical Richard shot brings him to his hundred he raises his bat and his other hand and now he takes off his cap and waves it to the crowd Derek Murray quietly congratulates him shakes him by the hand and Viv Richards this quiet master looking as casual as if he's just

going for a walk down the street in Antigua reaches 101 not out of 243 for 5 in the 50 second over. Richards to face the last ball of the West Indies innings. What will Hendrick do? What will Richards do? Barely in long conversation with Hendrik. Okay, Mike. Don't spoil the story, by the way, by telling us what did happen. But what was that conversation with Mike Brearley all about? I can't remember it if I'm honest. 284-9. Here is the last ball of the innings. Richards 132. Hendrick on the way. Richards gets a full toss and hits a sixth. Over square leg, fittingly ending the innings with a six.

Full toss, Richards, 138, not out. Ending the innings with a massive six over square leg. The West Indies are 286 for nine off their 60 overs. Mike, Mike, Mike, don't go, don't go. Come back, come back. Where did that ball end up? I don't know. St. John's Wood somewhere.

I don't think they found it yet. Is St. John's Wood or St. John's? Well, there's a few other balls before went the same way, don't worry? Yeah, they did, yeah. Well, to highlight quite what an extraordinary player, Viv Richards, was at the time, between 1975 and 1986, he averaged 57 in one day international cricket with a strike rate of 90. So his average was more than 10 runs per innings better than the next best player,

who was Zahir, averaging 47. And his strike rate, only Zahir, was closer, 84. Most of the other leading batsmen of the time were in the 60s, and 70s in terms of strikery. He was a truly extraordinary one-day international player as well as one of the great test players. In terms of that tournament, England's collapsed in the final, lost the last eight wickets for 11.

It's still the second worst collapse for the last eight wickets in the history of one-day international cricket. In the tournament, only 34% of runs in boundaries. In recent World Cups, it's been over 50. And 90% of the wickets were taken by pace bowlers. And just to put in context how well England had bowled through that tournament, the two bowling attacks talked about the Great West Indian Bowling attack of Roberts Holdencroft and Ghana. England's attack of Mike, Bob Willis, Ian Botham and Chris Old,

they had almost exactly the same figures, around about 30-odd wickets between them, but an average of 18. So it was a bowler-dominated tournament. The West Indies scored two of the only three scores, over 250 in the semi-final and final. final. To Mike and to David and to Graham, genuinely thank you very much for coming in and sharing those memories with us.

It's been an absolute privilege to hear you talk about it, I think, and you can turn off right now, if you like, all three guys there, because we're just going to leave you with the winning moments for the West Indies in the 1979 World Cup final. 194 for 9. Croft now enter Hendrick.

He's bowling, that's it. The West Indies have retained the title. Hendrick grabs a souvenir stamp. Murray does so. as well up comes holding the swarms coming over the ground and the players rushing for the safety of the pavilion hundreds and hundreds of spectators joel garner is being mobbed this big man is being dropped to the ground already five wickets and he's been surrounded the west indies have retained the world cup the tms podcast from bbc radio five live