Rohan Kanhai
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Rohan Kanhai | ||||
West Indies | ||||
Personal information | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Batting style | Right-handed batsman | |||
Bowling style | Right-arm Medium | |||
Career statistics | ||||
Tests | ODIs | |||
Matches | 79 | 7 | ||
Runs scored | 6227 | 164 | ||
Batting average | 47.53 | 54.66 | ||
100s/50s | 15/28 | 0/2 | ||
Top score | 256 | 55 | ||
Overs | 30.3 | - | ||
Wickets | 0 | - | ||
Bowling average | N/A | - | ||
5 wickets in innings | 0 | - | ||
10 wickets in match | 0 | n/a | ||
Best bowling | N/A | - | ||
Catches/stumpings | 50/- | 4/- | ||
Rohan Bholalall Kanhai (born December 26, 1935 in Port Mourant, Berbice, British Guiana) was a right-handed West Indian batsman in the late fifties, sixties and early seventies. He is considered a cricketing legend and rated as perhaps the best batsman among West Indian players of East Indian descent. Kanhai featured in several great West Indian teams, playing with, among others, Sir Garfield Sobers, Roy Fredericks, Lance Gibbs, and Alvin Kallicharran. C. L. R. James wrote in the New World journal that Kanhai was "the high peak of West Indian cricketing development", and praised his "adventuresome" attitude.[1]
Kanhai made his Test debut for the West Indise in England in 1957 and kept wicket for his first three Tests in addition to opening the batting. Gerry Alexander took over the gloves for the last two Tests. As a specialist batsman, Kanhai hit 6,227 runs in 79 Tests at a robust average of 47.53, with his highest score of 256 coming against India in a Test at Calcutta. When Kanhai retired, his batting average was the fifth-highest of all West Indian cricketers with more than 20 Tests. He was famous for his unorthodox shots, most notably the "falling hook" shot, in which he finished his follow through lying on his back.
Throughout his first class cricket career Kanhai played for British Guiana, Guyana, North of South Africa (SACBOC), Tasmania, Transvaal (SACB), Trinidad, Warwickshire, and Western Australia.
In his county cricket career for Warwickshire, he also starred alongside Kallicharran, as well as John Jameson, and Dennis Amiss. Kanhai scored 11,615 first class runs for Warwickshire at an average of 51.62, which is the highest for any batsman who played for the county for a considerable time.[2]
The Indian opening batsman Sunil Gavaskar named his son Rohan after Kanhai,[3] and wrote of Kanhai, "To say that he is the greatest batsman I have ever seen so far is to put it mildly."[4]
There is a pub in Ashington, Northumberland named after him due to his stint there when he was West Indies captain. [5]
Preceded by Garfield Sobers |
West Indies Test cricket captains 1972/3 - 1973/4 |
Succeeded by Clive Lloyd |
[edit] References
- ^ "Rohan Kanhai: A study in confidence" by C. L. R. James
- ^ Rohan Kanhai profile at Warwickshire County Cricket Club official website.
- ^ "Famous son steps out of shade" by Scott Heinrich, BBC Sport website, 18 January, 2004, retrieved 2 December, 2005.
- ^ [ "Rohan Kanhai, An Appreciation"] by Albert Badeo.
- ^ The Rohan Kanhai, Ashington. pub-finder. Retrieved on 2007-04-28.
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