Arunabha Sengupta looks at some of the most famous feuds of cricket. In this episode he covers the rift between the maverick paceman Roy Gilchrist and his captain Gerry Alexander
Gerry Alexander
Roy Gilchrist
Roy Gilchrist was one of the fastest bowlers West Indies has ever produced, and given that we are talking of a cricketing power that used to produce high quality fast men by the dozen, it is saying a lot.
When Wes Hall undertook his debut series in India in 1958-59, he himself bowled at a Pace Like Fire – later the title of his refreshingly-entertaining autobiography. And yet, when the clueless Indian batsmen faced the duo, they tried to score off Hall because compared to Gilchrist he seemed less lightning fast and more playable.
In spite of his formidable reputation, Gilchrist played just 13 Tests for West Indies, capturing 57 wickets at 26.68.
His career could have been considerably longer, but was cut tragically short due to altercations with the opponents and finally a showdown with his captain, the Cambridge-educated Gerry Alexander.
Gilchrist had a penchant for intimidating batsmen by overstepping by yards and hurling beamers from up close. In the fourth Test match at Nagpur, when struck for three consecutive boundaries by AG Kripal Singh, he charged beyond the line by six yards and bowled a bouncer that struck the Sikh batsman on the head.
Warned by his captain, Gilchrist claimed that the Cambridge University man was speaking down to him and not at him.
Things came to an irreversible head when, in the next match against North Zone at Amritsar, the fast bowler started bowling beamers at left-handed batsman Swaranjit Singh.
Alexander, who had known Swaranjit at Cambridge, asked Gilchrist to stop the barrage at once, but the paceman refused to listen. During lunch, the captain substituted him and said, “You will leave by the next flight. Good afternoon.” It is rumoured, but never explicitly verified, that Gilchrist had pulled a knife on his captain.
That marked the end of a promising Test career. Later Gilchrist did play in the Lancashire League and had the dubious distinction of uprooting a stump and hitting a batsman on the head with it.