73 Facts About Garry Sobers

Sir Garfield St Aubrun Sobers, AO, OCC, NH was born on 28 July 1936, and known as Sir Gary or Sir Garry Sobers, is a former cricketer who played for the West Indies between 1954 and 1974.

Against Pakistan in 1958, Garry Sobers scored his maiden Test century, progressing to 365 not out and establishing a new record for the highest individual score in an innings.

Garry Sobers's record was not broken until Brian Lara scored 375 in 1994.

Garry Sobers was made captain of the West Indies in 1965, a role which he would hold until 1972.

Garry Sobers has the fifth-highest batting average in Test cricket in the list of cricketers with more than 5,000 runs.

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Garry Sobers was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in 1975 for his services to cricket.

Garry Sobers became a dual Barbadian-Australian citizen through marriage in 1980.

Garry Sobers criticised the decision for Barbados to become a republic in 2021, seeing it as "a sad day" for many Barbadians.

Garfield St Aubrun Garry Sobers was born on 28 July 1936 to Shamont and Thelma Garry Sobers of Walcott Avenue, Bay Land, St Michael, Bridgetown, Barbados, and was the fifth of six children.

From an early age, Garry Sobers demonstrated the ability and enthusiasm to play with great skill almost any sport involving a ball, particularly cricket, football and basketball.

Garry Sobers gained useful experience by bowling to Wanderers batsmen, including West Indies Test player Denis Atkinson, at practice in the nets and soon developed his great skill as a left arm spin bowler.

Garry Sobers was initially selected as 12th man but then made the team itself when Frank King was forced to withdraw with an injury.

Garry Sobers therefore made his first-class debut on 31 January 1953, aged only 16.

Garry Sobers batted at number five against Marylebone Cricket Club, scoring 46 and 27; and took two wickets in the match.

Garry Sobers had shown enough talent in these two matches to be selected for West Indies and his third first-class appearance was his Test debut.

Garry Sobers had progressed quickly and made his Test debut in March 1954, aged 17, against England at Sabina Park in Kingston, Jamaica, for the fifth and final Test, after Alf Valentine had fallen ill.

Garry Sobers was selected as a bowler, despite only mediocre performances against England for Barbados.

Garry Sobers scored 14 not out and 26 batting at number nine; however, England won the match by nine wickets.

Garry Sobers was not selected for the First Test, which the West Indies lost by nine wickets.

Garry Sobers was barely used with the ball, bowling three overs for ten runs, as Australia amassed a first-innings total of over 600.

Garry Sobers was given a further opportunity in the next Test in Georgetown, Guyana in South America.

Garry Sobers was eventually dismissed for 43 out of a first-wicket partnership of 52 with JK Holt.

The match was drawn, and Garry Sobers took one wicket in the Australians' only innings, before scoring 11 in the West Indies second innings.

Garry Sobers went on his first overseas tour in the early months of 1956 when, aged 19, he was part of the West Indian tour of New Zealand.

Garry Sobers was sent home from New Zealand early to play an unofficial Test match against an England team that included feared fast-bowler Frank Tyson.

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The matches saw Garry Sobers get his first look at West Indian cricket politics.

Batting at number 3, Garry Sobers made 39 and 42, while none of his colleagues passed 30 in either innings.

At this stage of his career, Garry Sobers had frustrated his admirers by failing to convert good starts into high scores.

Garry Sobers had reached double figures in 18 of his 22 Test innings, although his highest score was still only 66.

Garry Sobers batted for 614 minutes and scored 38 fours but, unusually in such a large total, no sixes.

Sir Garfield Garry Sobers set the world records for the highest maiden test ton as well as becoming the first batsman in test history to convert his maiden test ton into a triple ton.

Garry Sobers underwent trauma following the death of Collie Smith in September 1959, but he continued to play cricket successfully.

Garry Sobers scored a celebrated 132 on the first day of the First Test at Brisbane Cricket Ground, the match which resulted in the first Tied Test.

Garry Sobers was never a prolific wicket-taker in Test cricket, and his average of three wickets per game in this series typified his whole career.

Garry Sobers enjoyed immediate success as West Indies captain when his team defeated Australia by 179 runs in the First Test at Sabina Park.

Garry Sobers enjoyed spectacular success in England in 1966 and was widely acclaimed as "King Cricket".

Garry Sobers's status was celebrated at that time by the Trinidadian calypso artist Mighty Sparrow, with his song "Sir Garfield Sobers".

Garry Sobers did not play in that series but returned to play under Kanhai in England in 1973.

Garry Sobers played his last Test in March 1974 at Queen's Park Oval against England.

Garry Sobers was invited to captain the Rest of the World XI in England and a World XI in Australia.

Garry Sobers then scored "a magnificent" 183 and helped bowl out England in the second innings using his left arm wrist spin.

In January 1972, in the third unofficial Test between Australia and The World XI at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, Garry Sobers played an innings of 254 which was described by Don Bradman as "probably the greatest exhibition of batting ever seen in Australia".

Garry Sobers reached his century in 129 balls and after a rest day, reached 254 in 326 balls.

Garry Sobers wrote in his autobiography that these two "unofficial" series should be given full "Test" status due to the quality of the players involved.

Garry Sobers was driving a car in which Smith and another West Indian Test player Tom Dewdney were passengers.

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Garry Sobers "began drinking more" and there were concerns, expressed by himself and others, that the experience might affect his cricket career.

Garry Sobers got over the trauma by deciding that he would be letting his country down if he "disappeared into the mists of an alcoholic haze" and he resolved to play not just for Garfield Sobers but for Collie Smith as well, thus setting himself the task of playing for two men.

Garry Sobers gives an insight into the life of the club professional in his autobiography.

Garry Sobers sometimes received as much as £50 in a collection and "that represented a massive bonus".

Garry Sobers particularly liked playing in Yorkshire when he could because they would pay him £25 per appearance with a collection on top if he did well.

Norton lost the league title in 1966 while Garry Sobers was touring England with West Indies but regained it in 1967 when he returned.

Garry Sobers was fourth in the 1967 league batting averages with 41.

Garry Sobers spent three seasons with South Australia and in two he achieved the rare double of 1000 runs and 50 wickets.

Garry Sobers made his first appearance in the inaugural season of the new Shell Shield competition in February 1966.

Garry Sobers stated that, although he had enjoyed his time in league cricket, he had a definite preference for the first-class game and he looked forward to restoring Nottinghamshire's fortunes.

On 31 August 1968, Garry Sobers became the first batsman ever to hit six sixes in a single over of six consecutive balls in first-class cricket.

Garry Sobers hit the first four balls cleanly out of the ground but was caught on his fifth attempt by Roger Davis on the boundary at long-off.

Garry Sobers then smashed the next ball - the sixth ball of the over - clean over the East Terrace of the St Helen's Cricket Ground.

Garry Sobers's versatility enabled him to bowl all varieties of left-arm bowling from spin to fast-medium.

Benaud wrote, "Garry Sobers was a brilliant batsman, splendid fielder, particularly close to the wicket, and a bowler of extraordinary skill, whether bowling with the new ball, providing orthodox left-arm spin or over-the-wrist spin".

In James's view, only Sir Don Bradman and Garry Sobers were comparable with St Hill in having this capability of "seeing" the ball.

Garry Sobers could operate as a seamer, sometimes using medium pace, but he was much more effective when he bowled fast.

Garry Sobers married Prue Kirby, an Australian, in September 1969.

The marriage ended in divorce in 1990 after the couple broke up in 1984; however, Garry Sobers acquired dual Australian citizenship through marriage in 1980.

Garry Sobers says that his was a multi-sporting family who were all good at football, basketball, table tennis and tennis.

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Garry Sobers is the author of a children's novel about cricket, Bonaventure and the Flashing Blade, in which computer analysis helps a university cricket team become unbeatable.

Award was originally intended to be made in the 1975 Queen's Birthday Honours, but since there was a royal visit to Barbados planned for February 1975, it was moved forward to the New Year list so that Garry Sobers could be knighted by the Queen in person during the visit.

Garry Sobers was the subject of This Is Your Life in 1975 when he was surprised by Eamonn Andrews while attending a reception at the Barbados High Commission in London to celebrate his recent knighthood.

Garry Sobers was made a National Hero of Barbados by the Cabinet of Barbados in 1998 and is thus accorded the honorary prefix "The Right Excellent".

Garry Sobers is one of only eleven people to have received this honour and one of two recipients still living, along with Rihanna.

Garry Sobers coached internationally, having a one-time stint with Sri Lanka.

In 2000, Garry Sobers was named by a 100-member panel of experts as one of the five Wisden Cricketers of the Century.

The recommendation to name the award after Garry Sobers was made by a panel consisting of Richie Benaud, Sunil Gavaskar and Michael Holding, who were asked by the ICC "to select an individual with whom to honour cricket's ultimate individual award".