West Indies Cricket Legends...

The West Indies cricket Legends have made a significant contributions to the legacy of West Indian cricket, with both bat and ball. 

Cricket in the West Indies is huge and most of the players who have represented the Windies over the past seventy five years can be consider legends of the game.

But to feature all the players here is near impossible. So we will focus on a set criteria of a batting average above 40 and bowling average of under 30 for the purpose of this website.

This page gives you an overview of the most prominent West Indies Cricket legends. To find out more just follow the links.

West Indies Cricket Legends

• Alf Valentine - Is a true West Indies Cricket legend. He was born in Kingston Jamaica in 1930, he made his debut as a slow left-arm orthodox bowler, against England at Mancester on June 8th 1950. Valentine played in 36 Test matches taking 139 wickets at an average of 30.32, he played his last Test match against India in April 1962.

• Allan Rae - was born into a cricket family his father Ernest Rae toured England with West Indies in 1928. It was no surprise when Allan Rae made his Test debut for West Indies in 1948 against India at Delhi as a left-handed opening batsman. Rae played his last test match in 1953.

• Alvin Kallicharran - was a small orthodox West Indian middle order batsman... full of poise and balance he had a full range of strokes off either front or back foot. Kallicharran made his Test debut in the 1972 home series against New Zealand at Georgtown.

• Andy Roberts - is a West Indies Cricket legend... held in high esteem he is one of the game's great fast bowlers. He made his Test debut in the 1974 home series against England at Bridgetown. The modern West Indian game based on the four prong fast bowling attack, that served so well during the 1970's, 80's and early 90's, began with Roberts.

• Basil Butcher - Was born in Britsih Guiana in 1933, he made his debut for the West Indies on the 1958-59 tour if India where he average 69.42. Butcher was an extreamely reliable number four batsman as his Test cricket average of 47.31 will attest.  

• Brian Lara - Made his debut for the West Indies in 1990 and for the last 16 years he has carried the batting fortunes of the West Indies cricket team almost single-handed. Lara holds the record for highest first class score 501 for Warwickshire against Durham in 1994, and the highest Test score 400 for West Indies against England at the Antigua Recreation Ground in St. Johns in 2004. Lara a West Indies Cricket legend...

• Charlie Griffith - Made his Test debut for the West Indies in the 1960 home series against England at Port of Spain. Griffith became the new ball partner of Wes Hall  they formed one of the greatest and most feared opening attacks in the history of cricket.

• Clive Lloyd- Made his Test debut for West Indies in 1966-67 against India as a left-handed middle order batsman, right arm medium pace bowler and brilliant cover fielder. Standing 6'5" with an imposing presence in the middle Lloyd took over the captaincy of a talented West Indies team from Rohan Kanhai in the 1974-75 series against India and led them to a 3-2 win. He went on to captain the West Indies in 74 Test matches more than any other person in the history of Test cricket. Clive Loyd a West Indies Cricket legend...

• Sir Clyde Walcott - In full flow was one of the most intimidating sights in cricket. This west Indies Cricket legend Stood at 6ft. 2in. tall with broad shoulders, Walcott drove the ball with immense power, especially off the back foot and he could hook and cut with the best of them. Clyde Walcott emerged as a force in West Indies cricket immediately after the Second World War, and for a decade he was an integral part of the West Indies side, immortalised as one of the Three Ws -- Walcott, Weekes and Worrell.

• Colin Croft - Books, manuals and software programs that will help you develop new internet business ideas.

• Sir Conrad Hunte - was born in Shorey Village on the east coast of Barbados. He was the eldest of nine children, he grew up playing cricket in the village and at the Alleyne school where he was educated. Hunte first came to national focus in 1950-51 in the annual Barbados Cricket Association versus the Barbados Cricket League match. He scored a century and was selected to the Barbados national team at the age of eighteen against Trinidad he scored 63 on debut.

• Courtney Walsh - can lay claim to being the most durable fast bowler in the history of Test cricket. Walsh made his Test debut on the 1984 tour of Australia at the age of 22, and for the first half of his career, Walsh was the workhorse in a side with bowlers of the quality of Joel Garner, Curtly Ambrose and Malcolm Marshall. But as he grew older and stronger he graduated to the new ball around 1993, and formed one of the great opening partnerships with Ambrose, they shared 421 wickets between them from 49 Tests.

• Curtly Ambrose - Made his debut for the West Indies after only six first class matches in 1988. After bursting into the Test team in 1988 Curtly Ambrose was the bowler on whom the West Indies depended on, more than any other. And time and time again during his career, Ambrose inspired dramatic West Indian victories with his incisive fast bowling.

• Desmond Haynes - Made his Test debut on March 3, 1978, against Australia at Port-of-Spain. And for thirteen years Desmond Haynes and Gordon Greenidge formed what was the most successful opening partnership the West Indies have had.

• Sir Everton Weekes - Made his debut against England in 1947-48 after having a modest series in the first three Test Weekes was flown in to replace the legendery George Headley in the final Test, he made his maiden Teat century 141. He also emerged as a force in West Indies cricket immediately after the Second World War, and for a decade he too was an integral part of the West Indies side, a West Indies Cricket legend immortalised as one of the Three Ws -- Weekes, Worrell and Walcott.

• Sir Frank Worrell - Frank Worrell made his Test debut for the West Indies in the 1948 home series against England at Qeens Park Oval, immediately after the Second World War, and for a decade he was an integral part of the West Indies side, immortalised as one of the Three Ws -- Walcott, Weekes and Worrell. He went on to become the first black-man to captain a West Indies team. Sir Frank Worrel my favourite of all the West Indies Cricket legends

• Sir Gary Sobers - Is perhaps the greatest of all the West Indies Cricket legends. He made his debut for the West Indies in the last test against England at Sabina Park in 1954. And for two decades he totally dominated the cricket arena with both bat and ball. His Test record of 8032 runs at an average of 57.78 and 235 wickets at 34.03 earn him the title of greatest alrounder ever. 

• George Headley - made his debut in 1930 and for the period between the wars he carried the West Indies batting with his scoring feats. Through this period Headley's contribution was critical to the achievements of the West Indies. When the war came George Headley had played 35 test innings in ten years. He had scored two double centuries, eight centuries and five fifties at an average of 70.64.

• Gordon Greenidge At twenty three years old Greenidge made his Test debut for the West Indies under new captain Clive Lloyd on the 1974 tour of India. Over the course of an outstanding career Gordon Greenidge was to be acclaimed, along with Gavaskar of India as the finest opening batsman of the 1980's and the best ever opener from the Caribbean.

• Ian Bishop - Made his Test debut for the West Indies against India in Georgetown in 1989. However his bowling careeer was interupted by serious back injury when in 1991 he was diagnosed with stress fractures of the vertebrae.

• Jeffrey Stollmeyer - Played in his first Test at the age of eighteen on the 1939 tour to England making 59 in his debut innings at Lord's. In 1948-49 he and Allan Rae established West Indies' first reliable opening partnership, putting on 239 against India at Madras.

• Joel Garner made his debut for the West Indies in the 1977 home series against Pakistan. Along with this awkward bounce Garner also bowled the most devastating toe crunching yorkers the game had seen.

• Lance Gibbs - made his Test debut for the West Indies in the 1958 home series against Pakistan at Port of Spain. Tall and lanky with unusually long fingers and prodigious turn Gibbs embodied some unique qualities as a right arm offspinner. Gibbs was the second bowler in the history of Test cricket to take 300 wickets and the first spinner to do so.

• Larry Gomes - was Mr. dependability in a star studded West Indies battting line up from 1976-1987. Slightly built, upright and elegant Gomes was not in the typical mold of the traditional Caribbean batsman.

• Lawrence Rowe - made his Test debut against the touring New Zealand side of 1972-73, making history at Kingston scoring 214 and 100 not out, the first time that a cricketer had scored a double and single century on Test debut.

• Learie Constantine - was one of the great personalities of the game, although in his debut series against England in 1928 his figures was unremarkable in the form of 5 wickets for 262 runs and he made only 89 runs in six innings with the bat, Learie Constantine made a distinct impact.

• Malcolm Marshall - was the greatest fast bowler of his era and perhaps of all time. This West Indies Cricket legend made his Test debut on the 1978-79 tour of India as a 20 year old, for a West Indies team weaken when the senior fast bowlers opted to join Clive Lloyd to play in Packer's world series cricket.

• E.A. Mantindale - Martindale made his Test debut for the West Indies on the 1933 tour to England. Martindale along with Constantine form the first effective pace attack for the West Indies. Like most fast bowlers he was fast and menacing.

• Michael Holding - made his Test debut for the West Indies as an untried, loose-limbed twenty one year old in the 1975-76 series in Australia. In this series Holding still only twenty one his fastest ball was clock at 97 mph.

• Richie Richardson - Was a brilliant cavalier batsman he refused to wear a helmet for most of his career, opting for his trademark broad brimmed maroon sunhat. An attractive player with destructive shots square of the wicket and especially off the back foot he was extremely severe with the hook, pull and square-cut.

• Rohan Kanhai - Made his Test debut for West Indies in 1957 as an opening batsman (and wicket keeper!). However, in the following year, on Everton Weekes' retirement, he settled comfortably into the number three spot. And developed into a true West Indies Cricket legend...

• Roy Fredericks - will always be remembered for playing one of the greatest innings ever played in Test cricket. It came in 1975 in Australia when, like now, the West Indies were going through a period of rebuilding. In the second Test of the series, at Perth, he made a blistering 169 off 145 balls, including a hurricane hundred before lunch in just 71 balls as he cut and hooked Lillie and Thompson with impudence.

• Seymour Nurse - was first called to represent the West Indies, at the last moment for the third Test against England at Sabina Park in February 1960, he went on hit a sparkling 70 on debut.

• Sonny Ramadhin - Made his Test debut on the 1950 tour of England as a 20 year old, having played only two first class matches. Ramadhin was an off-spinner of high quality who because of his peculiar grip could produce a leg break with no change in action discernable to batsmen. Immortalised iicalypso Ramadin is a West Indies Cricket legend.

• Syvester Clarke - was a strong, powerfully built fast bowler with a typically West Indian love of life and the game he made his profession, Clarke was restricted to 11 Tests by the simultaneous presence of Andy Roberts, Michael Holding, Joel Garner, Colin Croft and Malcolm Marshall and his decision to join the West Indian teams that broke the international boycott against the apartheid of South Africa in the mid-1980s.

• Sir Viv Richards - made his Test debut as a twenty two year old, under new captain Clive Lloyd on the 1974-75 tour of India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. Richards was seen as the brightest of a whole new bunch of talented players who had been sent to India under Lloyd. In the second Test at Delhi Richards announced himself to the cricketing world with a chanceless 192 not out. Richards a West Indies Cricket legend...