Frank Worrell
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 West Indies (WI) |
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| Batting style | Right hand bat | |
| Bowling type | Left arm fast medium | |
| Tests | First-class | |
| Matches | 51 | 208 |
| Runs scored | 3860 | 15025 |
| Batting average | 49.48 | 54.24 |
| 100s/50s | 9/22 | 39/80 |
| Top score | 261 | 308* |
| Balls bowled | 7141 | 26740 |
| Wickets | 69 | 349 |
| Bowling average | 38.72 | 28.98 |
| 5 wickets in innings | 2 | 13 |
| 10 wickets in match | 0 | 0 |
| Best bowling | 7/70 | 7/70 |
| Catches/stumpings | 43/0 | 139/0 |
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Test debut: 11 February 1948 |
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Sir Frank Mortimer Maglinne Worrell (born 1 August 1924, Bank Hall, St Michael Barbados, died 13 March 1967, Kingston, Jamaica)
He is sometimes referred to by his nickname of Tae and was a West Indies cricketer and Jamaican senator. He became famous in the 1950s as one of the three Ws along with Sir Clyde Walcott and Sir Everton Weekes.
By 1947 his mother had moved to New York and his father was away at sea most of the time so he moved to Jamaica.
As a player for West Indies, Worrell made his debut in 1947–48 versus the England team of Gubby Allen. Worrell was a fine batsman and bowler, and was a Wisden Cricketer of the Year for 1951.
Following a successful campaign led by CLR James, then editor of The Nation in Trinidad, he became the first black cricketer to captain the West Indies cricket team for an entire series, thus breaking the colour barriers then found in West Indian cricket.[1] He led the side on two particularly notable tours. The first was to Australia in 1960-1. Both Worrell and his opposing captain, Richie Benaud, encouraged their teams to play attacking cricket. The first Test of the series ended in a dramatic tie. Though West Indies lost the series 2-1, with one draw in addition to the tie, they took much credit for contributing to such a fine series. In 1963, West Indies toured England. They were again very popular, and this time they also won the series, 3-1.[2][3]
Worrell retired after the West Indies versus England series. When he left professional cricket, he became Warden of Irvine Hall at the University of the West Indies, and was appointed to the Jamaican Senate by Sir Alexander Bustamante. He strongly supported a closer political union between the nations of the Caribbean. He was knighted for his services to cricket in 1964.
Worrell managed the West Indies during the 1964-65 visit by Australia, and accompanied the team to India in the winter of 1966-67. It was while in India that the was diagnosed with leukaemia. He died at the age of 42, a month after returning to Jamaica. A memorial service was held in his honour in Westminster Abbey, the first time such an honour was granted to a sportsman.
As of the 1964-65 series the Frank Worrell Trophy has been awarded to the winner of the West Indies–Australia series, although the winning of the trophy has been applied retroactively to the 1960-61 series.
Caribbean journalist Ernest Eytle (born Guyana 1918) wrote a biography of Worrell entitled Frank Worrell : The Career of a Great Cricketer in 1963.
[edit] Trivia
Worrell is the only batsman to have been involved in two 500-run partnerships in first-class cricket.[4]
One of the two Halls of Residence at at the University of the West Indies, Cave Hill Campus in Barbados is named after him.
| Preceded by Gerry Alexander |
West Indies Test cricket captains 1960/1 - 1963 |
Succeeded by Garfield Sobers |
[edit] Notes
- ^ Potted biography of James, including his part in getting Worrell made captain
- ^ Wisden Cricketers' Almanack, 1962 edition, "West Indies in Australia, 1960–61"
- ^ Wisden Cricketers' Almanack, 1964 edition, "West Indies in England, 1963"
- ^ [1] 500 run partnerships
