Sir Garry Sobers dies aged 89
Sir Garry Sobers, the West Indies all-rounder widely regarded as the game's greatest, has died aged 89.
Sir Garry Sobers died on Friday at 89. The West Indies all-rounder spent two decades redefining what it meant to be complete — a batsman who could anchor an innings (8,032 Test runs at 57.78), a bowler who took 235 wickets, a fielder who didn't miss. He played 93 Tests between 1954 and 1974, captaining 39 of them and steering West Indies to a series victory in England in 1966.
Cricket Australia and the ECB released statements Friday morning. Both noted a feat that captures him whole: Sobers once scored a Test triple century and took five wickets in the same match — something that's never been done before or since in Test cricket.
CricHubb Take
The all-rounder has no successor. Botham came close. Kallis came close. Stokes is trying. But none solved the problem Sobers solved: how to be genuinely world-class at three disciplines at once.