County didn’t bring me here to be smiling or to be a comedian... we needed serious work!
Last weekend, a 1980s Leicestershire cricket legend was back at Grace Road for an official cap presentation. Sir Andy Roberts, who was alongside his good friend Sir Viv Richards, chatted to Jack Gabriel about his fond memories of turning out for the Foxes, and how his time in England helped shape his game and an era of West Indies dominance
ON a chilly April morning in Aylestone, a far cry from the tropical Caribbean climes of Antigua, Sir Andy Roberts strolls out on to the hallowed Grace Road turf – some 40 years after his final appearance in Leicestershire colours.
“It’s a warm welcome on a cold day,” he jokes, as the waiting Leicestershire members applaud him on to the field during the luncheon interval of day two’s meeting with Northamptonshire.
There, the former West Indies international – accompanied by countryman and legend of the game, Sir Viv Richards - receives his county cap, personalised with number 289 - from club chairman John Thorpe.
It is a gift in recognition of Sir Andy’s extraordinary contribution to cricket, not just on the international stage but in Leicestershire, too.
The 73-year-old, still as sharp as the lightning-quick deliveries he used to send down, holds fond memories of his four years as a Fox, from 1981 and 1984.
“I really enjoyed playing here at Grace Road over the years,” he beams. “I made some good friends, and, as you’ve seen, a lot of people remember the good times that I gave them while I was here.”
Swarmed for autographs and selfies by the adoring Leicestershire supporters, Sir Andy chuckles at the juxtaposition between the love he is shown off the field and the hostile reputation he carried on it.
“Leicestershire’s members have always been so kind to me,” he says.
“Although a lot of people feel I wasn’t that friendly on the cricket field, it was because I was brought here to do a job. You didn’t bring me here to be smiling or to be a comedian. We needed serious work.”
A fearsome fast bowler, the Antigua-born icon once clocked 99.1mph on the speed gun during a fixture against Australia in 1975 – the sixth quickest delivery ever recorded in international cricket.
It’s an art he helped transfer to his teammates across his spell in the East Midlands.
“The work ethic that I brought paid off in Leicestershire gaining two Test fast bowlers in Les Taylor and Jonathan Agnew,” he recalls.
“Some great players came out of Leicestershire, but those guys could have played more Test cricket if they were encouraged to bowl fast.”
With 191 wickets to his name in just four seasons at Grace Road, including 141 wickets at 21.75 in first-class matches, Sir Andy made memories to last a lifetime.
But the bonds he made with his Foxes teammates are the ones that he remembers most affectionately.
“I keep in touch with a lot of the Leicester guys, they are still good friends of mine,” says Sir Andy.
“I’ve spoken to Gordon Parsons, who is in South Africa now, quite a few times, and I’ve talked a lot to Jonathan Agnew over the years. “The only one I haven’t been able to keep in contact with as much is Les Taylor – which is a shame as he was one of my favourite bowlers at Leicestershire.
“I must pay a lot of tribute to David Gower and Mike Turner as well”, he says.
“I’ve always been treated fairly by Mike, and by David, even when playing Test cricket against him.
“I made a lot of friends here in the boardroom, on the field, and with the club’s members.”
His time in LE2 followed a successful spell with Hampshire in the mid-seventies, with Sir Andy crediting the importance of both stints for his development as a bowler for the West Indies.
“I played most of my cricket in England from an early age,” he says.
“I only played one Test match before playing county cricket, and I was in England for about 10 or 12 years consecutively.
“I learned a lot about my game playing for Hampshire, where we had uncovered pitches. We had to make adjustments and think quickly on our feet, you couldn’t have a relaxed time.”
Such progression accelerated his rise through the West Indies ranks, where he formed part of the iconic quartet of West Indian fast bowlers from the mid-70s to the early 80s alongside Michael Holding, Joel Garner and Colin Croft.
The group had a devastating effect on opposition batsmen at both Test and One Day International level, with Roberts picking up 289 wickets for his country as the West Indies won successive Cricket World Cups in 1975 and 1979, before dominating world cricket throughout the 1980s.
Such supremacy brings a smile back to Sir Andy’s face as he recalls that era.
“It was very special,” he says. “We created memories that I will never forget.”
On the never-say-die West Indian spirit, he adds: “Most of the time we looked as though we were on our way out of the competition, but one of us always brought the entire team up.”
As with Leicestershire, Sir Andy still enjoys reminiscing with those he shared such special moments with out in the middle.
“We still talk about the good times when we meet together,” he says.
“Viv and I see each other on a daily basis. Michael Holding, I’m in contact with him all the time - he’s been a lifelong friend. Deryck Murray, Desmond Haynes and Gordon Greenidge, too.
“I have made friends all around the world and we still keep in touch with each other.”
That 80s epoch saw the production of some of Test cricket’s greatest sons – with Antigua responsible for four of the West Indies’ most decorated legends. Sir Andy, the first Antiguan to play Test cricket was a trailblazer for what was to follow from the idyllic island’s assembly line.
With 995 international appearances between them, Sir Andy, Sir Viv Richards, Sir Richie Richardson and Sir Curtly Ambrose stand as one of the game’s most extraordinary golden generations.
“I don’t know if it can ever be repeated again,” he says.
“To have four of the greatest players in the history of the game all come from Antigua, a small island of under 100,000 people, is amazing. We are very proud.”
After a fleeting visit back to Leicester, Sir Andy is eager to return to the toastier temperatures of the Caribbean.
He will not need to wait too long, however, to see some friendly faces, as England fans flock to Antigua & Barbuda for two of their ICC Men’s T20 World Cup matches in June, before returning for a white-ball tour in November. “The country always looks forward to an English tour, because they know that there will be a lot of English people coming over,” he says.
“There has been stiff competition between the two sides over the years, and we know we are going to get some good performances.”
Assessing the West Indies’ prospects for the upcoming World Cup, Sir Andy is measured in his forecast.
“In T20 cricket, any team can beat another.
“It doesn’t matter if it’s Oman or Ireland, who have shown they can beat all of us.
“So much T20 cricket is played all over the world now, so I don’t believe there’s an overwhelming favourite at this World Cup.”
It was a format Sir Andy never got to play, having been introduced almost 20 years after his retirement.
But he reckons it is a form of the game he would have been well equipped for.
“Bowling four overs in a game instead of 44 – I would have loved that,” he says.
“Taking pace off the ball has never been new to me, that’s what I did in my career.
“If you listen to batters of the past, they will say the hardest thing about facing Andy Roberts was the deception and the variation of pace. It is something I started in the 70s and 80s. It’s new to some people, but not to me.”
Sir Andy’s visit is part of the Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Authority’s Cricket and Culture UK Tour – where West Indies legends Sir Andy, Sir Viv Richards, Sir Curtly Ambrose and Sir Richie Richardson bring the spirit of the twin-island paradise to cricket enthusiasts across the UK.
The visit is also celebrating a momentous year of cricket ahead in Antigua and Barbuda, kicking off with the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup in June, where Antigua and Barbuda will play host to eight matches at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium – while England Men will tour the West Indies for a white-ball series in November.