Cricket
SIR WES HALL
Arise
Sir Wesley Winfield Hall, Knight Bachelor (KB)
A
Seasoned cricket lovers will recall with some trepidation the fearsome fast bowling partnership of Hall and Griffith that terrorized leading test batsmen over 50 years ago and who became one of the greatest opening attacks in the history of the game. Wes Hall and Charlie Griffith were legends in their time and in tandem with the great Garry Sobers they formed a unique trio of pace unrivalled anywhere in the cricketing world. Wes Hall has had an amazing journey in life since he first burst into Barbados cricket and it all came to a climax last year when he was knighted in the Queen’s Birthday Honours List, a fitting tribute to a much-loved man whose charisma and energy has endeared him to everyone. Now Sir Wes Hall and Reverend Wes Hall, his infectious vivacious personality is still much in evidence in everyday Barbados life where he continues to play a leading role in church, tourism and cricket matters, probably in that batting order. Wes Hall started his cricket career at Combermere School as a wicketkeeper/batsman, but as soon as he took off the gloves and reverted to pace bowling his status rose to another level. At the time Ronnie Hughes was his cricket master and the school Curator was West Indian pace bowler Frank King. Amongst his schoolmates were Peter Lashley and Rawle Branker, both of who also played for the West Indies in later years. Such was Wes’s success as a tearaway fast bowler that he was fasttracked into the West Indies test squad in 1957 before he had played for Barbados. He didn’t debut until the following year against India in 56
Mumbai when he dismissed NJ Contractor in his first over. Test matches in those days were not as prevalent as they have become in the modern era, but Wes became the first West Indian bowler to claim a hat-trick in a test match against Pakistan the following year, and over the next 10 years he reeked havoc wherever he bowled all over the world. In total he played 48 tests and took 192 wickets, including some outstanding and unforgettable performances. He was the central figure in the famous drawn test with Australia in 1960 bowling the last over when three wickets sensationally fell including that of Richie Benaud. His feats in England in 1963 in tandem with Charlie Griffith elevated him to superstar status and an historic test series win for the West Indies. Tall, handsome and athletic he was a powerful physical force and much-loved in Australia where he played for Queensland for two years in the Sheffield Shield. The test career of Sir Wes finished in 1969 after a series of injuries, but he still played at club level and entered into a colourful career that embraced marketing, human resources, administration, tourism and politics. He was as lively and as energetic as a public speaker as he was on the cricket field and proved to be a capable politician. He never lost his passion for sport and as Minister of Tourism in 1987 he launched many initiatives to promote sports tourism. His life took a dramatic shift in direction in 1990 when he was ordained as a Minister in the Pentecostal Church, a role he has continued to carry out alongside his many other civic and community responsibilities. He was a West Indies selector, Team Manager and later President and almost an automatic nomination into the West Indies Hall of Fame. In more recent times he has been one of the driving forces behind the Cricket Legends initiative and he has been an integral part of many of the government’s sports tourism projects. His experience and knowledge of sport and tourism have been invaluable across many initiatives, but it is his ebullient effervescent personality that has continued to endear him to everyone. His elevation to the Knighthood was long overdue and he now deservedly sits amongst an elite group of knighted cricketers who have brought great distinction to their island. Sir Wes was not only knighted for his services to cricket, but to the wider community in general. He is a true icon of Barbados sport.