Gordon greenidge autobiography in five short

Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews. Great book of one of the stars of the s and s West Indies cricket team. Patrick Symes being the ghost writer was an assurance that this would flow well and in that respect it did not disappoint in the main. The early parts of the book were excellent. GG detailed his move to the UK, the struggles he faced, and how he eventually managed to find his way.

It was insightful and clear writing that allowed us to get a window into his emotional wellbeing at the time. Medal record. Source: CricketArchive24 January Early life [ edit ]. Domestic career [ edit ]. International career [ edit ]. Coaching [ edit ]. Personal life [ edit ]. International cricket centuries [ edit ]. See also [ edit ]. References [ edit ].

The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 9 May Retrieved 23 April Cricket Country. May Retrieved 1 April BBC Sport. The Guardian. Retrieved 19 July Gordon Greenidge The Man in the Middle. David and Charles. The Man in the Middle. Wisden Cricketers' Almanack John Wisden. The London Gazette. Retrieved 18 March ESPN Cricinfo. Archived from the original on 9 April Retrieved 12 February Retrieved 7 February Retrieved 11 February Archived from the original on 13 January Retrieved 10 February Bleacher Report.

Living for Cricket.

Gordon greenidge autobiography in five short

Great Britain: Star. Archived from the original on 9 January Retrieved 25 January Archived from the original on 7 March Retrieved 7 March Archived from the original on 12 July Retrieved 21 January Retrieved 12 September The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the original on 12 January Cuthbert Gordon Greenidge MBE is a former member of the West Indies cricket team and with brooding and massively destructive strokeplay was one of the premier opening batsmen of the West Indies.

Gordon Greenidge was as much an integral part of the Caribbean dominance from the mids into the s as the celebrated pool of supreme fast bowlers. On the pitch, Greenidge exuded every bit of confidence and panache worthy of a player of his ability. But off it, he seldom appealed to the West Indian cricket fan in the same way as a Viv Richards. Born in Barbados on May 1,Greenidge spent his first fourteen years of his life on an island where cricket is followed with a zeal unsurpassed anywhere else.

There can be no doubt that these formative years in such an atmosphere provided the groundwork for his love and approach to the game. Gordon Greenidge, therefore, could hardly have been considered a clueless novice about the game when he entered Sutton Secondary School in Reading, his parents' new home in It was not long before he was in the school team as a middle order batsman, quickly attracting the attention of those keen to find new talent.

He was chosen for the Berkshire Bantams, the equivalent of the county's youth team, and appeared for the South of England Schoolboys against the North and Midlands in Reports of an innings of not out for the Bantams against Wiltshire youth made Hampshire and Warwickshire offering trials to Greenidge. He finally joined Hampshire in and opened the batting with South African Barry Richards and were a formidable pair for them.

In the county circuit saw a changed Greenidge who made it into the first team. He did not score much on debut against Sussex, but many were impressed by his show against the scorching pace of John Snow. A hook for six high into a nearby garden hedge was a memorable shot and it took five minutes for the ball to be found. Soon Greenidge was opening the batting for Hampshire with Barry Richards at the other end.

Later, Greenidge acknowledged the amount of influence of Richards, on his early days at Hampshire and subsequent success. With Richards the other end, Greenidge scored more than thousand in andhis highest score being an innings of against Sussex at Hove. It was this knock, made over five hours, that demonstrated to the last of the doubters that the flamboyance and often outrageously powerful strokeplay could be nurtured through reservoirs of patience as well.

Greenidge was destructive as well as dour. It was an important phase for Greenidge. He had to decide whether he was prepared to make himself available for England. There was enough reason for Greenidge to agree, not least due to the decision of the West Indian tour management to ignore him in favour of Ron Headley when an English-based replacement was required for the injured Steve Camacho.

However, he decided against the offer and waited for an opportunity to play for the West Indies. One wonders how his career and cricket history would have evolved if he had been a part of the side he helped maul for one-and-a-half decades, against whom he plundered 2, runs. The mind boggles too when one imagines Geoff Boycott at one end and Gordon Greenidge at the other.

However, it was not to be. InGreenidge returned to Barbados to play Shell Shield. Perceived as a foreigner and a turncoat of sorts by his fellow Bajans, Greenidge felt the first currents of resentment that he battled throughout his career. This innings ensured his selection in the West Indian team for the tour of India. The first Test at Bangalore launched two glittering Caribbean careers, a simultaneous start seldom paralleled in cricket history.

Viv Richards managed just 4 and 3 against the Indian spinners. Greenidge, tragically run out for 93 in the first innings, slammed 14 fours and 2 sixes in a second-innings effort of He did not score too many in the remaining matches, and failed in a couple of Tests in Australia during that dreaded tour. However, his reputation was made in England the following summer.

By this time, he had forged a formidable partnership at the top of the order with Roy Fredericks. He matched the ebullient Fredericks stroke for stroke, especially at The Oval when racing towards declaration, and laid the foundations for the systematic annihilation carried out by Lloyd, Lawrence Rowe, Alvin Kallicharran and Viv Richards. It was the first true glimpse the cricketing world got of the shabby and discoloured gordons greenidge autobiography in five short mingling with the extraordinary force of strokeplay.

The bullet-like square cut traced its way through the off-side often enough, but the most blistering of his strokes was perhaps the straight drive off Willis that landed in the upper regions of the Oval pavilion. When Pakistan visited inGreenidge was still riding the crest of his form, and plundered runs in 5 Tests, including and 82 at Kingston.

Through the late seventies and the early eighties, Greenidge did remain a permanent fixture as an opener, eventually forming one of the most successful associations at the top with Desmond Haynes.