(Continuing my celebration of Sir Gary’s latest milestone, his 80th birthday, with Part 2 of my citation for his Honorary Degree from the University of the West Indies in 1992.)
John Arlott, doyen of English cricket writers, in his Book of Cricketers, wrote: “Everything he did was marked by a natural grace, apparent at first sight. When he walked out to bat, six feet tall, lithe but with adequately wide shoulders, he moved with long strides which, even when he was hurrying, had an air of laziness, the hip joints rippling like those of a great cat”.
On that note we must return to the words of the prophet and scribe of West Indian cricket, history, life, literature and art, the great C.L.R. James. He answers the question “What is art” himself, in his textbook of Caribbean life and culture Beyond a Boundary: “Cricket”, he says, “is first and foremost a dramatic spectacle. It belongs with the theatre, ballet, opera and the dance.” He concedes: “It is limited in variety of range, of subject matter. It cannot express the emotions of an age on the nature of the last judgement … It must repeat. But what it repeats is the original stuff of which everything visually or otherwise artistic is quarried. The popular democracy of Greece, sitting for days in the sun watching The Oresteia; the popular democracy of our day, sitting similarly, watching Miller and Lindwall bowl to Hutton and Compton – each in its own way grasps at a more complete human existence.”
And if James would permit a more contemporary rendition of his conclusion: “We may, some day, be able to answer Tolstoy’s exasperated and exasperating question ‘What is art?’ but only when we learn to integrate our vision of Sobers on the back foot through the covers with the outstretched arm of the Olympic Apollo”.
Sir Garfield Sobers is not only the greatest cricketer in the world, he is the embodiment of the West Indian dream. To quote Burton, Hughes and Sandiford again: “As an international star lifting himself to the top by the magnificence of his cricket Sobers has served as a role model also for millions of youngsters beyond the shores of Barbados. He is the single most popular of all Barbadians and he has taken our name to all parts of the world and covered it with glory.”
Sir Garfield lacks the one all-too-common characteristic of so many great and popular international stars – conceit. His modesty is disarming. His generosity of heart, his spontaneity, and his willingness to help whoever he can remain unspoilt by unrivalled adulation – more than anyone in cricket history except possibly Bradman. His versatility made him a national footballer and basketballer in his teens, and in more recent years a national golfer. His desire to do well and to see his team do well in every endeavour was combined with a rare ability to concentrate and to apply himself to the task in hand while enjoying every minute of it. He continues to inspire, in word as well as deed, speaking to local clubs and groups, and working as a consultant for the Ministry of Tourism, promoting Barbados as a sports tourism destination. He has liaised with over 2 300 cricket teams coming to Barbados, while the Sir Garfield Sobers International Schools Tournament has become a major international event over the last six years.
Like Sir Frank Worrell, his mentor and friend, Sir Garfield Sobers has become a legend in his own lifetime. His impact has gone far beyond the boundary, and it is timely that the University of the West Indies should recognise this. That it should do so in the 365th year of our history is but par for the Sobers course and the perfect Sobers timing.
Chancellor, I have the greatest pleasure in calling on you to receive into the fellowship of the University of the West Indies an artist and athlete supreme, a West Indian hero and a hero of the world, Sir Garfield Sobers, for the conferment of the degree of Doctor of Laws, honoris causa.”
Postscript: Although I had hero-worshipped Sir Clyde Walcott as a youth and tried to emulate his famous cover drive, had met Sir Everton once as teenager, and as a UWI student at Mona I met another hero Sir Frank Worrell in his role as Warden and mentor at Irvine Hall, I had never met Sir Gary until 1992. I had read his first biography, so the first thing I did was to read it again. I then re-read Beyond a Boundary by c.L.R.James, read Burton, Hughes and Sandiford, and borrowed a number of articles from Tony Cozier. I then felt prepared to meet with Sir Gary. He came to my home, and while enjoying a couple of Banks each we chatted until midnight. I made copious notes. A few nights later we met again, for some more questions, and a couple more Banks.
Finally, I sat down to write that first sentence: “Chancellor, I present to you the man who has done more than anyone else in (BLANK) years of recorded history to bring Barbados to the attention of the rest of the world.” I then wrote down the year 1992 and subtracted the year of Anglo-African settlement, 1627. The result: 365 (years and runs!) I came out in a cold sweat. You would have too …
(Professor Fraser is past Dean of Medical Sciences, UWI and Professor Emeritus of Medicine. Website: profhenryfraser.com)
