Sir Viv backs Englishman

Former West Indies cricket captain Sir Vivian Richards believes that an Englishman will be the next batsman to shatter the record for the most runs scored in a calendar year.

According to the Antiguan, it will not be Brian Charles Lara, the current double world record holder from Trinidad and Tobago. When Michael Vaughan reached the total of 1,481 Test runs last year, a famous pair of eyebrows was raised on the Caribbean island of Antigua. After all, Richards is the only man on the planet to have enjoyed a more prolific year than Vaughan’s miraculous 2002 — a mind-blowing 1,710 runs in just 11 Tests, back in 1976. But the Windies legend believes England’s run star could even go on to surpass his own imposing record. This comes as a surprise because Brian Lara has already shown signs, since he has been given a second chance with the captaincy, that he is ready to score heavily with scores of 26, 110, 91 and 122 in the first two Tests against Australia. Of course it has been well documented that Sir Viv preferred Carl Hooper for the West Indies captaincy but was out-voted by the other two selectors Michael “Joey” Carew and Gordon Greenidge.

Sir Viv insists he had earmarked Vaughan for potential greatness when the Yorkshire batsman was a mere rookie during England’s victory over the West Indies, back in 2000. Richards, now the Windies’ chairman of selectors, said: “Batsmanship has a lot to do with concentration and a lot to do with having the stomach for a fight. “When I first saw Michael Vaughan, I could see that he had those qualities in abundance. He was a tough customer and a class act. Right away I thought ‘England have found something special here.’ “Since then he has progressed and become more confident. He was defensive then but now he’s a real stroke-player. England lost 4-1 in the Ashes series but Vaughan outshone the Aussie batsmen at times. “Matthew Hayden of Australia is probably the only player who can compare to him now. It is during the tough times like these when you can identify your real quality players. “When you are playing against this great Aussie side and things aren’t going well, you need a few good men to pull the ordinary players through. Vaughan is one of those really good players who have the stomach and the character to succeed against the best. “England hasn’t had a player this good for some years,” Richards said.

Back in the blazing-hot summer of 1976, one tourist had an unquenchable thirst for runs. Richards hammered two double tons against England and five more Test hundreds during the calendar year to announce the arrival of a true great. Now 50, he believes Vaughan has experienced those same superhuman feelings during his amazing year. “I know how Vaughan has felt — and not many batsmen can say that because it doesn’t happen very often. You are in the zone, at your peak, and it’s the most extraordinary feeling. Every time you go out to bat, you feel you can do no wrong. But Vaughan can still improve and go on to enjoy even better years than this last one. “He might even beat my record. He looks like a future Test captain — but England should not be in a hurry to lose Nasser Hussain. It’s not his fault England’s winter was so ill-fated with injuries,” said Richards.