Gentlemen and Sledgers by Rob Smyth

Author:Rob Smyth [Smyth, Rob]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781784080792
Publisher: Head of Zeus Ltd.

Geoff Boycott drives Greg Chappell for four to reach his hundredth hundred, Headingley, 1977.

Australia had not yet been seriously weakened by Packer; only Dennis Lillee was missing from the side that beat England in the Centenary Test. Tony Greig was sacked as England captain for his dealings with Packer, though he stayed in the side under his replacement Mike Brearley. England recovered to have the better of the drawn first Test, with Bob Willis’s first-innings seven for 78 the start of a fine personal series. England won the second Test at Old Trafford despite a high-class 112 from Greg Chappell, which accounted for more than half of Australia’s second-innings 218. It was one of only two centuries for the Australian batsmen in the series.

Boycott managed that on his own. His exile ended when he replaced Dennis Amiss for the third Test at Trent Bridge; he was joined in the team by the debutant all-rounder Ian Botham from Somerset. The twenty-one-year-old Botham took five for 74 in the first innings, including the grandest of first Test wickets: Chappell bowled, dragging on a loose delivery. A golden arm was born.

When England replied to Australia’s 243, Boycott, not always the best judge of a run, ran out the local hero Derek Randall. The footage shows Boycott with his head in his hands after his act of folly. He was already under asphyxiating pressure because of the expectation surrounding his return. Given the circumstances, Boycott regards his 107 as his greatest innings. He added a match-turning 215 for the sixth wicket with Alan Knott, and saw England to a seven-wicket victory with 80 not out in the second innings.

After his best innings came his most famous, two weeks later at Headingley. Boycott knew there was a chance to play an innings that would define him. Rarely has a century felt as inevitable as it did that day. Dame Fortune was clearly on Boycott’s side: he was dropped on 22 and survived a huge appeal for caught behind later in his innings. Just before the close on the first day, he on-drove Greg Chappell for four and raised his arms in triumph, prompting an eight-minute pitch invasion. It was his hundredth first-class hundred, on his home ground, in the Test when England regained the Ashes. ‘It was like knowing the weather is hot without being aware of the temperature,’ he said. ‘It was all just noise. It was the most magical moment of my life.’

He went on to score 191, more than three times the next highest score in the match; it was a performance spread over more than ten hours. Boycott didn’t so much book in for bed and breakfast as a John and Yoko bed-in. This time, however, nobody seemed to mind his snail-like progress. Botham made it two five-fors in his first two Tests as England trounced Australia by an innings.

The final Test was a rain-affected draw, in which Australia’s Mick Malone became one of the more interesting one-cap wonders: he made 46, his highest first-class score, and bowled 47 out of 111.

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