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1988 - The Summer of 4 Captains

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TopCat

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It's a topic that's been discussed on here before I'm sure, but there is a good article in The Guardian today

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When you look at the numbers it's quite frightening just how easy the selectors would chop and change the side

5 tests and 23 players used. Only 1 player (Gooch) played all 5 tests
Poor Phil DeFreitas played one, dropped one, played one, dropped one (3 tests)
Bill Athey got one test, scored 27 runs and was never seen again
7 changes made for the 4th test :lol:
9 different bowlers, 2 wicketkeepers, 4 opening batsman and 4 captains (5 if you include when Pringle deputised for the injured Gooch during the 5th test)

The best story of the lot (courtesy of the England Captain, Chris Cowdrey) is excluded from this article:

The England captain said he was made to wait in his whites and blazer for about 20 minutes before Viv emerged. The great Antiguan won the toss, and asked Cowdrey: “What do you want to do, maan?”

“Bat…?” Cowdrey answered, not sure what to say.

“Okay maan, you bat.”

Viv bowled. And won.
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TopCat said:
Old Trafford was the first Test Match I ever went to. Me and my mate kept running round the edge of teh boundary to chat with Gatting. He had a stack of food piled up by the rope - all thrown down by people in the crowd :lol:
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I’m reading jack russells autobiography and this series is mentioned.
 
smoker said:
What a miserable time to be an England fan that was.
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It's all I can remember. My first real interest was the 86-87 Ashes, but proper memories are from 1988 onwards. It wasn't for another 15 years or so before we were anywhere near decent
 
TopCat said:
It's all I can remember. My first real interest was the 86-87 Ashes, but proper memories are from 1988 onwards. It wasn't for another 15 years or so before we were anywhere near decent
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84 Blackwash for me. People talk about the 90's being shite, but other than a couple of Ashes series, the 80's were pretty miserable.
 
The first series I remember distinctly is the 1973 West Indies tour; still recall Frank Hayes 106* in the first test at The Oval. Fruitless, as we lost that one, and then the 3 test series 2-0.

In 1988, I was living in Leeds as a student, Headingley to be precise. Being skint, we couldn't afford tickets, so we'd sneak in for free when they opened the gates at 5.30, which was more than Cowdrey apparently did on the first morning when a YCCC steward wouldn't let him park his car as he didn't believe it was the England captain. Anyway, so slow was the over rate from WIndies that to get the required number in, play was extended until about 7.15 each night, so there was plenty to see for free. When questioned on the slow over rate, Viv pointed out if they upped the rate, the game would be over quicker, so they were making TCCB, as was, money by their slow play.
 
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