A glorious finale
Australia v West Indies (final) •
Lord’s, London, 21 June 1975
 |
| West Indies skipper Clive Lloyd blazing away in the World Cup 1975 final. |
The stage was set for a battle royale at
the Mecca of cricket. The atmosphere was electric as the first-ever World Cup final
began. Dennis Lillee bowled a well-directed bouncer and Roy Fredericks, as was
his wont, hooked it perfectly for a six. As all eyes followed the ball,
Fredericks began to walk away. Soon everyone realised that the batsman had
dislodged the bails while completing the stroke. Remember, bouncers were not
no-balls in One-day cricket in those days. That was as dramatic a start as one
could have wished.
Not long after, the Australian pacemen
bagged two more wickets, both caught behind by Rod Marsh. That was the signal
to the tall, slightly stooping and stoic West Indies skipper Clive Lloyd to
enter the arena. And how he belted the Australian attack! There was so much
savage power behind those strokes that only he could have played them.
The experienced Rohan Kanhai was an
admirable foil, as they first repaired the fractured innings and then put it on
the road to a big total. Lloyd reached his century off just 82 balls, the
fastest in the World Cup until Canada's John Davison set a new mark in 2003.
The pair put on a record 149 runs for the fourth wicket off just 26 overs.
Lloyd’s contribution in this stand was 102 which included 2 sixes and 12 fours.
The last 81 runs of the partnership came in a mere nine overs. The Australians
were mesmerised by this brilliant performance.
The later batsmen carried on the good
work, and the West Indies finished just 9 runs short of 300 which put them
firmly in control of the match. Gary Gilmour did well to pick up a five-wicket
haul close on the heels of his six scalps in the semi-final.
The Australians are nothing if not gritty
fighters. After the early loss of Rick McCosker, they made steady progress as
Alan Turner and Ian Chappell put on valuable runs for the second wicket. They
were, however, stunned by the brilliant fielding of a rising Caribbean star
named Vivian Richards. He made direct hits to run out Turner, and then Greg
Chappell. Incredibly, he made another lightning pick-up and accurate return,
with Ian Chappell still out of his ground. These run outs must surely have been
the turning points of the match. They certainly set the stadium alight.
To the credit of the Aussie batsmen, most
of them chipped in with useful scores. But at 233 for nine the fight seemed to
have gone out of them. That was to under-estimate the Australians who were not
ready to surrender the ultimate prize easily. The unlikely pair of Jeff Thomson
and Dennis Lillee got together to try and carve out an even unlikelier win. As
the runs mounted along with the lengthening shadows, tension ran high.
Forty-one priceless runs had been added for the last wicket. With nine
deliveries left, and the clock nearing 9 p.m., only 18 runs were required. It
was possible. Was this a miracle in the making?
Just then Thomson panicked. Missing a
delivery from Vanburn Holder, he rushed out of his crease. His desperate dive
back was not enough as Deryck Murray effected a fifth run out. It was a
thrilling finish to a great final. Everyone wished there would be many such in
the future. E.W.Swanton wrote in Barclay's World of Cricket: "It had been
a miraculous day, in cricketing terms: perfect weather, perfect pitch, a superb
game and a great finish."
West Indies : 291 for 8 wickets (60 overs)
Australia : 274 all out (58.4 overs)
(Author Indra Vikram Singh can be contacted
on email singh_iv@hotmail.com).
Follow
his blogs:
Indra
Vikram Singh’s books are available at attractive prices on Amazon:
The
Big Book of World Cup Cricket 1975-2011
Published
in India by Sporting Links
ISBN
978-81-901668-4-3
Crowning
Glory
Published
by Sporting Links
ISBN
978-81-901668-6-7
Don’s
Century
Published
in India by Sporting Links
ISBN
978-81-901668-5-0
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Maharaja’s Turf
Published
in India by Sporting Links
ISBN
978-81-901668-3-6
Indra Vikram Singh’s forthcoming books:
Wonder Down Under,
special souvenir on the cricket World Cup 2015
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