'I am not a guy for numbers'
By K.C. Vijaya Kumar

(Bangalore, India) - Staying calm amidst swirling memories, Carl Hooper says, "I am not a guy for numbers."

Yet, a special number will crown his career when he leads the West Indies against India in the first Test at Mumbai today ( The match starts 1:00pm Guyana time). The match will be Hooper's 100th Test in a career spanning 15 years.

In a tale that spins a circle, Hooper will cross the milestone at the same venue where he made his debut in 1987.

"I have enduring memories of India. I made my Test debut here, got my first Test century (100 n.o. at Kolkata' 1987) and my first one-day hundred (113 at Gwalior' 87) here. I love Indian food and back home in Guyana, 60 per cent of the population is Indian," he said, and with an impish smile added, "and hopefully if things go well, we will beat the Indians in Mumbai and I can celebrate."

PAST STEEPED IN TALENT

The past, however, was steeped in talent, turmoil and the odd tear. Hooper, after making his debut against Dilip Vengsarkar's Indians at Mumbai (then Bombay), stroked an unbeaten 100 in the next Test at Eden Gardens.

And, in a team that boasted of Haynes, Greenidge, captain Viv Richards and Richardson, Hooper was expected to be the torch-bearer of West Indian batting through the Nineties.

A century (134) against the likes of Imran, Akram, Waqar Younis and Abdul Qadir at Lahore saw his potential draw prodigal lines.

"It was a special knock... that, too, against the likes of Akram...he troubled me a lot, most often with others you can survive their unplayable balls but with him, you get out," Hooper said.

Hooper, however, failed to convert some of his starts. He has 5638 runs and 13 centuries, averaging 36.84 but he knows that he could have got more.

"Have you ever heard of Hooper having lost form? Never.....

"I was getting those 30s and 50s but I was unable to convert them into 100s. That was a problem and I don't know why...But the break helped me...," his voice trails.

BREAK HELPED

The break. It was a time when his son Carl Junior was not well.

And Hooper had to be with his family in Australia. The West Indies was gearing for the World Cup in England in 1999 when Hooper retired. The news shook the Caribbean Isles and the 'deserter' tag trailed him. "My wife and son needed me. And at that stage in my career, I had played non-stop for 13 years. I played all the games for the West Indies, I never even missed tour games and then I was a full time professional with Kent. I was fatigued," he said.

Hooper returned as captain of the team in 2001 for the home series against South Africa. The Caribbean lost - 1-2 and Hooper was busy ducking under Allan Donald's bouncers and Michael Holding's barbs.

The 'deserter' tag was still in place and Hooper had to break the prejudices. He did that with a measure of comfort. "I stay focused on my job and don't let others affect me. I am settled now. During the break I understood the value of my family and the funny thing is, I am performing much better now than when cricket was everything in my life. I know that even if I go to Timbuktoo, my wife and son will be with me. God is with me and this security has helped my game," he said.

SECOND COMING

A second life is rare in sports. But for Hooper, it's been a case of second- time-lucky. His return to the crease is rich with runs and a new-found belief among his mates. Hooper averaged 33.76 in his first 80 Tests but ever since his comeback, he averages 49.50 in 19 Tests.

The 35-year old Hooper is aware that he is in his twilight years as a cricketer.

"Nothing is permanent. I just want my team to improve. We have the nucleus of a good side. Chanderpaul has been around for a while and guys like Sarwan, Samuels, Gayle will mature in a year's time. Here, people have written us off after Brian (Lara) was ruled out, but if we play good cricket, people will revise their opinions," he said.

The eight-year old who left Guyana in search of cricket has come a long way. Batsman, off-spinner, captain....roles that he has donned with dignity ever since wearing the maroon cap in `87. And when he walks out for the toss with Sourav Ganguly at the Wankhede Stadium today, he will leave permanent footnotes in cricketing history. (Reprinted from: 'The Hindu, India' website)

Tribute to Hooper ...from the Guyana Cricket Board
The Guyana Cricket Board salutes Guyana and West Indies captain, Carl Llewelyn Hooper on his 100th appearance in a Test and congratulates him on a truly magnificent achievement.

The G.C.B can take great satisfaction and pride that the long journey to 100 tests began with the identification of the exceptional talent here in Guyana, and with the nurturing of that talent through the youth programmes and its development into truly world class skills.

Participation in one hundred test matches must be placed in proper perspective. It is a demonstration of dedication and commitment to the cause of West Indies cricket. It is testimony to great physical and mental strength and endurance. It is a tribute to character.

From the time the West Indies was admitted into test cricket in 1928, only five others have completed this marathon course and achieved the distinction; Clive Lloyd, Gordon Greenidge, Desmond Haynes, Vivian Richards and Courtney Walsh.

While the others have been more widely recognized for either their spectacular batting or bowling feats, Carl Hooper has performed more than creditably as an all-rounder, in all aspects of the game.

Appearing at most of the international arenas - from Bourda to Bombay, from Port-of-Spain to Perth, from Kingston to Kanpur - Carl has competed against the most talented and has scored over 5,500 runs dismissed over 100 batsmen and snared over 100 catches. It is a phenomenal work rate. He has been blessed with talent and with strength.

The vast experience he had accumulated playing over those years in varying conditions around the world and his sound knowledge of the game recommended him strongly for the captaincy of the West Indies team. He had eventually reached the summit.

Significantly, it was on his home ground, our mecca, Bourda, that he led the team against South Africa.

It is as the leader of the regional team that Carl Hooper makes his 100th appearance. We would stimulate his personal and his charges' performances and produce results that would make the game memorable for all of us.

It is for him 100 not out, an undefeated century with promise of many more international series both within the region and without, entertaining those who enjoy the beauty in cricket, as long as his inevitably tiring limbs will allow.

The Board expresses the hope that the anxiety he has to help restore the West Indies to the top of the world's cricketing ladder will sustain his interest in the game and persuade him to continue to make his talents and leadership available.



Talented yeah...but a hard worker too
- Pat Legall gives his assessment of Carl Hooper

By Sean Devers

When Carl Llewellyn Hooper leads the West Indies team onto the Wankhede Stadium field to face India at Mumbai in the first of three Tests against India today he joins a select group of only five other West Indians to play in 100 test matches.

In what is somewhat unique, the batting stylist Hooper, will achieve the feat on the very ground he made his debut as a 20 year-old, 15 years ago in the 1987/88 series.

Hooper turns 36 on December 15, and, according to manager of the national cricket team Pat Legall, Hooper is fitter than most in the West Indies and has "a lot more" cricket left in him.

The elegant right-hander, who was out of international cricket for two years after retiring in 1999, becomes the 27th cricketer to play in 100 Tests.

"Clive Lloyd (110) is the Guyanese with the most Test matches but if Carl had not retired when he did he would have gone past that by now," Legall opined.

"He is so fit that I feel he can go on for a few more years at the highest level," Legall added.

Courtney Walsh (132), Sir Viv Richards (121), Desmond Haynes (116), Lloyd (110) and Gordon Greenidge (108) are the other West Indians to play 100 Test matches.

Fitness The Key

Legall feels Hooper's fitness programme is a key factor in keeping his rejuvenated test career alive.

"Carl gets up before the other players when on tour with the Guyana team and goes for a run by himself. When it comes to cricket, Carl means business. Carl is like the old time players. You don't have to wait for the coach to tell you to get fit, you go out on your own and work hard. Carl is getting older and he knows the importance of training," Legall said. He suggests the younger players take a leaf from Hooper's book when it comes to being serious with the game.

Hooper has scored 5,638 runs from 99 Tests at an average of 36.84 and has reached the three figure mark 13 times. He has 27 fifties with his highest score being the magnificent 233 made against India at Bourda this year.

Since returning as skipper, Hooper has played 19 Tests and scored 1,485 runs to average 49.5 with four centuries and nine fifties. This year, he scored 772 runs from nine Tests at an average of 59.38.

Legall fells that if Hooper batted with the maturity he has shown since his return he would have been now among the great Test batsmen of all time.

"The main difference with the new Hooper (after 2001) and the old Hooper (before 1999) is that he has gotten wiser with age and matured as a person which is reflected in his batting. He is so responsible in building an innings.You no longer see him giving his wicket away with lofted drives, the bowlers have to work to dismiss him. Young batsmen should try to see Hooper bat and see how simple he makes batting look, how he picks up ones and twos in the early stages of his innings," Legall stated.

Hooper, who began his first class career in 1983 for Demerara against Berbice in the inter-county competition and his regional first class career as an 18-year-old in Barbados in 1985 with a century, has scored most of his centuries (5) against India and is one of the best players of spin bowling in the world.

Though he is described as an under-achiever, Hooper is the only cricketer to score over 5000 runs and take over 100 catches and 100 wickets in both forms of the game.

Another Milestone

Today he reaches another milestone becoming the only West Indian to play one hundred Tests and one hundred one-day internationals.

Legall agrees that Hooper should have scored more runs but pointed out that Hooper is averaging almost 50 since he took over the captaincy of the struggling West Indies team.

As skipper, Hooper has been accused of being too defensive but Legall disagrees. "`Hoops' plays it safe but I don't think he is defensive. You can't attack all the time and Carl always stresses the importance of patience and not losing games," Legall explained. Legall, who played for British Guiana in the 1950's and 60s as a pacer, said Hooper leads by example and is a great motivator who has been of tremendous help to young Guyana players.

"Carl encourages young players to work hard at their game. He says the players in the 1980's worked really hard on their game on their own and feels that some of the players now take things a bit too easy. He can be a very serious captain who has the respect of all of the players," Legall disclosed.

Legall feels that as a person Hooper is very approachable and like a father to most of the young Guyana players. He says Hooper has an easy way of motivating people to do what he wants them to do.

"Carl has accepted Jesus Christ as his saviour and spends most of his time with his wife (Connie) and son (Carl Jnr.) They travel with him when he is on tour. He is a big family man and when he is not playing he is not the night club type. Even though he would attend team functions he prefers to stay at the hotel with his family," Legall revealed.

Cricket is still his first love and he wants to play for Guyana and the West Indies for as long as he can and try to assist in returning West Indies cricket to the glory days of the 1980's said Legall.

Few More Committed

"Hooper is a really nice person who seems at peace with himself and this is reflected in his cricket. Some people talk about lack of commitment but if they knew Hooper they would quickly realize that there are few people more committed to West Indies cricket than Carl. His heart and soul is in West Indies cricket and his wife fully supports his involvement in the game in the Caribbean," Legall stated.

Legall's most memorable moment with Hooper was in 1984 when he managed the Demerara under-19 team in Essequibo where Hooper was captain. Essequibo made 142 and Hooper made that score by himself as Demerara made 280 odd. Essequibo lost by an innings.

"That was the first time I had really seen Hooper. He sat next to me, looked at the bowling and said "you must try to score a hundred when the bowling is easy." He got another century in the next game against Berbice and then made 404 runs and took 33 wickets to single-handedly give Guyana the regional under-19 title the next year in Guyana, Legall recalls.

Destined to play Test cricket

"I knew from the first time I saw this kid that he would play Test cricket. Not because of his tremendous talent but because he loved the game so much and always wanted to score the most runs and take the most wickets and worked hard to do it. Carl opened the bowling and then came back to bowl spin in those days he just had to be in the game," Legall said. With three Test matches to be played by year end, Hooper should pass the 228 runs he needs to score 1000 Test runs in a calendar year for the first time in his career.

And with 15 years international experience under his belt, a new found responsibility and consistentcy and a loving wife and son urging him on, the Indians could feel the weight of Hooper's bat.

With star batsman Brian Lara absent, a lot rests on Hooper's broad shoulders as he attempts to follow in the footsteps of Lloyd, and win a Test series on Indian soil.

His greatest innings ever
Ian Mc Donald tells us that Hooper's greatest innings is not his 233 made against India this year, nor his unbeaten 94 against England which gave the West Indies a famous Test win but his majestic 178 not out made against Pakistan in the 1992/93 series at St John's.

By Ian McDonald

At the beginning all went more than well with young Hooper. He soon became one of the great young West Indians - in 1987, for instance, dominating the regional Youth series as it had never been dominated before and is unlikely to be dominated again. When he entered upon his first-class career in the regional competition he at once scored a century which he himself remembers with particular delight and which made him a hero in the eyes of the knowledgeable cricket-lovers at Kensington. Very soon, as if by royal right, he was called to Test cricket and in his second match, in India in 1988, in the natural order of things he scored a century. It all seemed effortless and ordained. One could sit back and admire and not worry too much any longer about our middle order batting. In due course he would enter the kingdom where only the likes of the three W's and Sobers and Lloyd and Kanhai and Richards reign.

We all know what happened then. His career entered a strange and bewildering doldrums from which he has struggled to emerge. In his batting there have been anyn umber of inexplicable failures. It is not that he has lacked temperament - many times he has played a crucial role at nerve-tingling times: witness only his acclaimed 134 in the third Test in Pakistan in 1989 and, of course, his role in the famous tied International at Bourda a few weeks ago. And it certainly is not that there is any fundamental flaw in his technique - the technical apparatus of his batting is superb. And his brilliant talent has been acknowledged even by his most stubborn detractors.

It has seemed more a matter of carelessness and lack of concentration. And perhaps there was in it an element of mounting over-anxiety to please, to make amends to those who kept the faith in him. He must prove at once, or very early in an innings that he was the masterly batsman everyone expected him to be. And when he failed, again, so the next time it was even more important to prove his talent quickly and dramatically. So do young men overawed by adulation put pressure on themselves to perform at some supreme, impossible pitch. He should have grafted more and longer - expect that genius finds it hard to graft.

The set-backs and the long periods when achievement did not match the expectional talent (had the promise been less, perhaps the criticism would have been lower-keyed) led to an increasing stream of criticism which must have become hard for the young man to bear. Despite his many achievements and growing contribution to the West Indian team as a steadily improving slow bowler and peerless slip catcher, the criticism has focused exclusively on his batting failures. (And there is merit in that. I think Hooper will end up taking over 10 Test wickets. But it is true that one doesn't spend much time describing Mozart's literary efforts or Derek Walcott's paintings. Carl Hooper is a batman). Even on those occasions when he has done reasonably well with the bat the success has been belittled as too little too late. At times the voices raised against him have become a chorus which seemed to endanger his place on the team. Even Tony Cozier, most knowledgeable of cricket commentators, has been strangely perverse in emphasizing Hooper's failures, down-grading Hooper's successes, and making the case more often than not why he should be dropped. For a young man, as I say, it must have been hard to bear.

The anti-Hooper campaign has always seemed to me utterly misguided. You do not lightly cast aside genius when you are lucky enough to have discovered it. The selectors must have sensed that. Certainly Richie Richardson knew it: is it my imagination or has Richardson over the last few difficult months for Hooper made a point of putting an arm around the young man's shoulders whenever the opportunity arises? At least Hooper will have known that his captain's confidence in him is secure.

Those who have been prepared to drop Hooper should remember the story of Frank Worrell and the English batsman Tom Graveney. I think it was in 1963 the West Indies were touring England. Two days before the first Test the captain Frank Worrell came into the dressing room where the West Indian team were relaxing after a work-out. He had a bottle of champagne in his hand and with a smile he invited the team to join him in a drink. A couple of the boys, mystified, asked him why the celebration on what was only the eve of the first Test. With a broad grin Frank Worrell explained: "The jack-asses! They leave out their best man - Tom Graveney not in the side!"

So let us come to the occasion when Carl Hooper at last, surely, put even the most tenacious of doubters to flight. Sadly, we in Guyana were not able to watch his great innings of 178 not out at the Antigua Recreation Ground. The failure of the television transmission was a serious deprivation. But still it was music to the ears to listen with growing satisfaction as Hooper's innings unfolded from its first careful and even tentative beginnings to assured mastery as he gathered confidence to dominating brilliance as his genius flowered.

How full the heart felt for the young man who has had to endure so long a travail and bear such a burden, a carping criticism! How good it was to hear the commentators' unstinted praise and acknowledgment of an extraordinary talent now finding full expression: a pull shot worthy of the great Richards, a straight drive with something of the power of Greenidge and the elegance of Dujon, a late cut whose original was Frank Worrell's patent, a most delicate leg glance which one remembered from the repertoire of Jeffrey Stollmeyer, a square drive which Lawrence Rowe might have fashioned. All of these great names were invoked. Here at last was Hooper mentioned in company he deserved.

Of course he impressed his own band of genius on the stroke-making and the commentators tried their best to measure it. But they found it hard. It was said of Frank Woolley that in one over there might be an exquisite off-drive, followed by a perfect cut, then an effortless leg-glide. In the next over, and the next, the same sort of thing happened. And soon the superlatives became repetitive. Now one felt that the commentators were having that sort of trouble with Hooper. So they called in aid our great men to compare.

After a while, though, my ear became attuned to something heard through the commentary which I might not have perceived if I had been viewing the innings on television. I might have missed it in the excitement of watching. I realized that the descriptions and the comments were not all there was to hear. There was something much more, something which put me more subtly, more richly, in touch with the true spirit of that great innings. In the end, one did not need the commentary to sense that something special was unfolding. Before the stroke's description one could hear the gasp of the crowd, the indrawn breath of sudden, high admiration and the drawn-out "aaah" of deep satisfaction which are the most heart-felt tribute any audience ever gives to any artist. They are the best measure of the triumph of genius. The commentator's, or the critic's, subsequent praise can only fall short of such spontaneous tribute.

Not long ago I read a passage in the autobiography of the sculptor Eric Gill:

"And while I am thus writing about the beauty and impressiveness of technical prowess I cannot, for it made an immense difference to my mind, omit the famous name of Ranjitsinhji. Even now, when I want to have a quiet wallow in the thought of something wholly delightful and perfect, I think of Ranji on the county ground at Hove...

There were many minor stars, each with his special and beloved technique, but nothing on earth could approach the special quality of Ranji's batting and fielding ..... I only place it on record that such craftsmanship and grace entered into my very soul."

I never saw Ranjitsinhji but I felt I knew what Eric Gill meant because I had seen Frank Worrell and I had seen Rohan Kanhai. And now, I think, the commentators, seeing Hooper's innings, sensed the feeling too.

When Hooper was well launched and beginning to exult in the freedom his exceptional gifts at last allowed him, one could sense through the cadences of the crowd's expressive voice the awe his batting was generating and the pure delight he was giving. What more could any sportsman, craftsman, artist desire? He was lifting his audience along on his wave of glory - you could hear and feel it. He knows that the feeling is like now for the first time - the unreserved blessing of a home crowd. He knows what heroes feel like. I hope he has got the unforgettable taste of it and that he will yearn to savour more. That is the spur. Forget statistics. That feeling is fame's true spur. May it drive him on the rest of a long career which will bless us all and honour the game.

Carl Hooper's new milestone

By Winston Mc Gowan

Today Carl Hooper reaches a landmark attained by relatively few cricketers. He will make his 100th Test appearance at the same venue where he made his Test debut nearly 15 years ago-namely, in Bombay in India. Only five West Indians have played more Tests that Hooper, Courtney Walsh (132 Tests) Vivian Richards (121), Desmond Haynes (116), Clive Lloyd (110) and Gordon Greenidge (108). Furthermore, of contemporary cricketers only Steve Waugh of Australia and Wasim Akram of Pakistan have been involved in Test cricket longer than Hooper.

Involvement in as many as 100 Test matches is testimony to a player's ability, durability, physical fitness and enduring appetite for the game at the highest level. Hooper has demonstrated all these qualities during his career. His achievement today has been made possible by his return to Test cricket in March of last year against South Africa after an absence of nearly two years, i.e. since April 1999 when he shocked the cricketing world by announcing his retirement from international cricket before the seventh and final One-day match against Australia at Kensington Oval in Barbados.

At the time of his retirement Hooper had played 80 Tests, scoring 4153 runs, including 9 centuries and 18 fifties at a modest average of 33.76 runs an innings. He had taken 93 catches and 93 wickets with his steady off-spin at an average of 47.01 runs each.

Before his temporary retirement from international cricket, Hooper was the subject of much adverse comment. The most common description of his performance in Test cricket was "enigmatic". Both his critics and his adoring fans found the disparity between his moderate performance and his immense talent perplexing and frustrating. As the English commentator and writer, Christopher Martin-Jenkins, put it, "Carl Hooper's expectations never quite reached their full flourish and there were only intermittent glimmers at Test cricket of an extraordinary talent."

Hooper's detractors were more biting in criticism. Dubbed repeatedly a woeful underachiever, Hooper was maligned more often that any other prominent player in the history of Caribbean Test cricket. Tony Cozier, the region's leading cricket commentator, sarcastically referred to Hooper as the most graceful batsman in the world "the best to look at except that he doesn't score runs."

This puzzling aspect of Hooper's career is well described in an article entitled "Man of Mystery" in the most recent issue of the Wisden Cricket Monthly magazine. According to the author. "Hooper is without peer as a batsman of elegance, style and exquisite timing. Collect his finest moments and they complete the portrait of cricket as art. Yet there have been flaws beyond comprehension. He plays spin effortlessly, is unruffled by pace, but can suddenly descend into rank amateurishness to get out in full swing. Carelessness? Lost concentration?...His Test average has lingered too long in the 30s for a batsman of his ability."

His critics were angry over his return to Test cricket, not merely as a player but in the key role of captain - the fifth Guyanese to led the regional team, following in the footsteps of Maurius Fernandes, Rohan Kanhai, Alvin Kallicharran and Clive Lloyd. So far Hooper has not been particularly successful as skipper, winning only 4 Tests, losing 9 and drawing 6.

Hooper's achievements with the bat, however, have virtually silenced his critics, who are no longer able to keep harping on the fact that his average is only 33. Since his assumption of the captaincy Hooper, like Clive Lloyd before him, has shown more determination, concentration, discipline and productivity. Nowhere was this more evident that in the encounter with Saurav Ganguly's team earlier this year.

In that 5-match against India, Hooper made 579 runs, including a double century, two hundreds and one fifty, in seven innings. It was the first time he scored over 400 runs in a Test series in his career and only the sixth occasion a Guyanese made more than 500 runs in a rubber. His double century (233 runs) was his highest Test score, his first Test hundred at Bourda and the second highest Test innings played there. In that innings Hooper shared a record fifth-wicket partnership of 282 runs with his compatriot, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, the largest stand for that wicket by any team in a Test against India, eclipsing the 254 runs made by England's Keith Fletcher and Tony Greig at Bombay in 1973.

Since his return to international cricket last year, Hooper in 32 innings in 19 Test has scored 1485 runs, including 4 centuries and 9 fifties, with a commendable average of 49.50 runs an innings. Admittedly, his bowling has not been as effective as before in terms of the capture of wickets. He, however, has been the team's most economical bowler since the retirement in Courtney Walsh, conceding just over two runs an over. In these 19 games he has bowled 506 overs, including 130 maidens, conceded 1083 runs and taken 17 wickets at a high cost of 63.71 runs each.

Hooper continues to be one of the team's best fieldsmen, especially in the slips and at short extracover. As he makes his 100th Test appearance today at the age of 35 years and 9 months, his Test record is as follows: 5638 runs (including 13 hundreds and 27 fifties) in 168 innings at an average of 36.84 runs an innings, 110 wickets at an average of 49.50 runs each and 110 catches.

This record makes Hooper second only to Garfield Sobers as the West Indies' most successful all-rounder. Hooper, Sobers and the Englishman, Ian Botham, are the only players in the entire history of Test cricket to achieve the difficult treble of 5000 runs, 100 wickets and 100 catches. Hooper should go down in history as an accomplished batting all-rounder who so far is the only West Indian to score 1000 runs and take 100 wickets and 100 catches in both Test cricket and limited-over international cricket.