Barry Richards
Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Full name | Barry Anderson Richards | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Born | Batsman | 21 July 1945||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
International information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
National side | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Test debut (cap 234) | 22 January 1970 v Australia | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Last Test | 5 March 1970 v Australia | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Domestic team information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Years | Team | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
1964–1983 | Natal | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
1965 | Gloucestershire | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
1968–1978 | Hampshire | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
1970/71 | South Australia | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Career statistics | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Source: Cricinfo, 21 March 2008 |
Barry Anderson Richards (born 21 July 1945) is a former South African first-class cricketer. A right-handed "talent of such enormous stature", Richards is considered one of South Africa's most successful batsmen.[1][2] He was able to play only four Test matches – all against Australia – before South Africa's exclusion from the international scene in 1970. In that brief career, against a competitive Australian attack, Richards scored 508 runs at the high average of 72.57. Richards' contribution in that series was instrumental in the 4–0 win that South Africa inflicted on the side, captained by Bill Lawry. His first century, 140, was scored in conjunction with Graeme Pollock's 274 in a famous 103-run partnership.[1][3] Mike Procter, whose South African and English career roughly paralleled that of Richards, was prominent in that series as a bowler.
When the apartheid South African Government allowed for non-whites to play cricket with whites in 1974, Richards suggested that only one member of the side should be black, and the rest white. A sarcastic comment implying that the then selectors would just include one token black player to comply with the new regulations.[4]
With such limited international exposure, Richards plied his trade in first-class cricket between 1964 and 1983, becoming a prolific batsman with 28,358 runs. He scored 80 centuries, including a best of 356, at an overall average of 54.74. He also scored 8,506 one day runs, with 16 further centuries.
In 2009, Richards was inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame.[5]
Early life
Richards was born in
County Cricket
Richards was a prolific scorer in county cricket for many years for Hampshire. He scored 2395 runs in his first season, 1968, more than anybody else in the country. From 1970, Richards established one of the most successful opening partnerships for that county, along with West Indian batsman Gordon Greenidge.[6][7]
Sheffield Shield
In 1970–71, as an overseas player for
Currie Cup/SuperSport Series
Returning home to play for
Among his other achievements was scoring 155 not out in a score of 215–3 off 40 overs in the
Other International ventures
He did have the opportunity for international cricket in World Series Cricket in the summers of 1977–78 and 1978–79 in Australia playing 5 Supertests for the World XI scoring 554 runs in 5 matches. This included two centuries including 207 scored v WSC Australia on 27 January 1978 at Gloucester Park, Perth.[11]
In South Africa, Richards was Player of the Year in 1968. He also played for South Africa in 6 unofficial "Tests", captaining the team twice. In 1984 he came out of retirement to play against the rebel West Indian touring team in South Africa. Trevor Bisseker wrote this:[citation needed]
"Playing at Newlands, he held the stadium enthralled for an hour, as he simply carved up everything that was delivered at him. He played with all the time in the world and the decisive quality of a master craftsman at work. Alas the spell was broken. His concentration seem to snap and the inevitable end came. That innings put Richards into his right perspective. He was the closest thing to an insurance policy against defeat that anybody could take out. Certainly, if somebody had to bat for one's life, one would choose Richards ahead of the other world greats of the 1970s, and that includes his illustrious West Indian namesake and Graeme Pollock."
Later life and career
For a number of seasons he commentated for the
Richards was chosen by
Notes
- ^ a b c Manthorp, Neil. "Player Profile: Barry Richards". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 19 November 2009.
- ^ a b "Barry, Biff, Bruce and Bunter". ESPNcricinfo. 19 November 2009. Archived from the original on 20 November 2009. Retrieved 19 November 2009.
- ^ "2nd Test, South Africa v Australia at Durban, Feb 5-9, 1970 Cricket Scorecard". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 11 June 2013.
- S2CID 144628152– via T and F Online.
- ^ Cricinfo (2 January 2009). "ICC and FICA launch Cricket Hall of Fame". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 19 July 2019.
- ^ Harris, Daniel (8 January 2016). "West Indian epic: when Gordon Greenidge unleashed hell on Australia". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 6 November 2018. Retrieved 5 November 2020.
- ESPN Cricinfo). Archivedfrom the original on 28 January 2020. Retrieved 5 November 2020.
- ^ "The Home of CricketArchive". cricketarchive.com. Retrieved 5 November 2020.
- ^ Collins, Sams (2 October 2006). "A brief history of South Australia". ESPNcricinfo. Archived from the original on 5 November 2020. Retrieved 5 November 2020.
- ^ "The Home of CricketArchive". cricketarchive.co.uk. Retrieved 5 November 2020.
- ^ Scorecard v WSC Australia 1977–78
Further reading
- Murtagh, Andrew (2015). Sundial in the Shade: The Story of Barry Richards: the Genius Lost to Test Cricket. Hove, East Sussex, UK: Pitch Publishing. ISBN 9781785310102.
External links
- Barry Richards at ESPNcricinfo
- Barry Richards on Twitter (BARichards356)