Little could the parents of Sonny Ramadhin, the West Indies right-arm spin bowler, have guessed what a stir their son would make in the cricket world when he was born at Esperance Village, Trinidad, on May 1, 1930. His mother and father were West Indian, and a grandparent Indian. There had been no history of cricket players in the family, yet the boy, almost entirely self-taught in the game, became a bowler of remarkable merit before he was 21.
In the summer of 1950, the pride of English batting was bemused and bewildered by Sonny Ramadhin – an unknown 20-year-old West Indies spinner. His feats made him a shoo-in as a Wisden Cricketer of the Year.
Last summer Ramadhin took 135 wickets for 14.88 runs apiece – a bigger number than any other West Indies bowler had ever captured in England. His performances during the tour are given fully in the West Indies section of this issue. Here is the story of his astonishing rise to fame.
Ramadhin, who owns to no other first name but Sonny, was introduced to cricket at the Canadian Mission School, Duncan Village, Trinidad. He took bat in hand as naturally as most youngsters, but never bowled at school. His reward for batting prowess came when he carried off the Juggernaut Cup for the best average.
Ramadhin has two hobbies – cycling, and dabbling into the mechanics of motor cars – and a great ambition to play in Test matches in Australia. Instead of returning home he went with the Commonwealth XI to India, and intended to follow that tour with a summer engagement as professional to Crompton, the Lancashire League club.
Sonny Ramadhin played in 43 Tests for West Indies, taking 158 wickets at 28.98.
