Alf Valentine
Encyclopedia
Alfred Louis Valentine, April 28, 1930–11 May 2004 (age 74), was a West Indian cricketer in the 1950s and 1960s. He is most famous for his performance in the West Indies' 1950 tour of England
, which was immortalised in the Victory Calypso.
, Everton Weekes
and Frank Worrell
), but they were unusually short of bowlers. They took two young spinners
, 20-year-old Alf Valentine and 21-year-old Sonny Ramadhin
, who had only played two first-class
matches each. Valentine in particular was a surprising choice as he had only taken two wicket
s in those matches at an average
of 95, but somehow he had caught the eye of the West Indies captain, John Goddard.
Valentine did not impress in the first few matches of the tour, and was not certain to be in the Test
team, until in the final warm-up match before the Tests he took 8 for 26 and 5 for 41 as the West Indies beat Lancashire
by an innings and 220 runs.
He justified his selection for the Test side when in the first innings
of the first Test, he took the first eight wickets, five of them before lunch on the first day. He finished with 8 for 104 in the innings, and 11 for 204 in the match off 106 overs
. He was the first bowler ever to take eight wickets in his first Test innings, a feat which has only been achieved twice more .
England won that match, but in the second Test, at Lord's
, the West Indies recorded a 326-run victory, thanks to Clyde Walcott's 168 not out
in the second innings, and to the bowling of Ramadhin (11 for 152) and Valentine (7 for 127). This was West Indies' first ever Test victory in England, and it was commemorated in the famous Victory Calypso:
The West Indies' success continued as they won the third and fourth Tests to record a series victory, Valentine taking five wickets in the third Test and ten wickets in the fourth Test. He bowled 92 overs in the second innings of the third Test, then a Test record. In all, Valentine took 33 wickets in the series at an average of 20.42. He bowled a massive 422.5 overs, conceding only 1.59 runs per over.
In the tour as a whole, Valentine bowled 1185.2 overs in 21 matches. He took 123 wickets at an average of only 17.94, conceding only 1.86 runs per over. He took five wickets in an innings ten times, including an analysis
of 13.2-9-6-5 against Kent
. With this record, it was no surprise when he was chosen as one of the Wisden Cricketers of the Year
in 1951.
in 1951-52, he took 24 wickets in five matches; and when India
visited the West Indies in 1953, he took 28 wickets, again in five matches. In 1954 he became the first West Indian to reach 100 Test wickets, in only his 19th Test. But in his last 20 Test matches, from 1954 to 1962, he only took 46 wickets at an average of 40.63. He was still an effective containing bowler, conceding only 2.06 runs per over in those later years, but he didn't have the attacking effectiveness of his dramatic debut. On the 1957 tour of England he suffered a complete loss of confidence.
After his last Test, he served as the national coach of Jamaica.
, Valentine was married twice. He had four daughters with his first wife, Gwendolyn, who died. He moved to Florida
with his second wife, Jacquelyn, where they fostered dozens of children whose parents were in prison. He died in Orlando
, Florida
in 2004, aged 74.
English cricket team
The England and Wales cricket team is a cricket team which represents England and Wales. Until 1992 it also represented Scotland. Since 1 January 1997 it has been governed by the England and Wales Cricket Board , having been previously governed by Marylebone Cricket Club from 1903 until the end...
, which was immortalised in the Victory Calypso.
The 1950 tour
The West Indies toured England in 1950. They had a good batting line-up including the "three W's" (Clyde WalcottClyde Walcott
Sir Clyde Leopold Walcott, KA, GCM was a West Indian cricketer. Walcott was a member of the "three W's", the other two being Everton Weekes and Frank Worrell: all were very successful batsmen from Barbados, born within a short distance of each other in Bridgetown, Barbados in a period of 18...
, Everton Weekes
Everton Weekes
Sir Everton DeCourcy Weekes, KCMG, GCM, OBE is a leading former West Indian cricketer. Along with Frank Worrell and Clyde Walcott, he formed what was known as "The Three Ws" of West Indian cricket.-Youth and early career:...
and Frank Worrell
Frank Worrell
Sir Frank Mortimer Maglinne Worrell is sometimes referred to by his nickname of Tae and was a West Indies cricketer and Jamaican senator...
), but they were unusually short of bowlers. They took two young spinners
Spin bowling
Spin bowling is a technique used for bowling in the sport of cricket. Practitioners are known as spinners or spin bowlers.-Purpose:The main aim of spin bowling is to bowl the cricket ball with rapid rotation so that when it bounces on the pitch it will deviate, thus making it difficult for the...
, 20-year-old Alf Valentine and 21-year-old Sonny Ramadhin
Sonny Ramadhin
Sonny Ramadhin was a West Indian cricketer, and a dominant bowler of the 1950s. He was the first West Indian cricketers of Indian origin, and was one of the five Wisden Cricketers of the Year in 1951.- Biography and career :...
, who had only played two first-class
First-class cricket
First-class cricket is a class of cricket that consists of matches of three or more days' scheduled duration, that are between two sides of eleven players and are officially adjudged first-class by virtue of the standard of the competing teams...
matches each. Valentine in particular was a surprising choice as he had only taken two wicket
Wicket
In the sport of cricket the word wicket has several distinct meanings:-Definitions of wicket:Most of the time, the wicket is one of the two sets of three stumps and two bails at either end of the pitch...
s in those matches at an average
Bowling average
Bowling average is a statistic measuring the performance of bowlers in the sport of cricket.A bowler's bowling average is defined as the total number of runs conceded by the bowlers divided by the number of wickets taken by the bowler, so the lower the average the better. It is similar to earned...
of 95, but somehow he had caught the eye of the West Indies captain, John Goddard.
Valentine did not impress in the first few matches of the tour, and was not certain to be in the Test
Test cricket
Test cricket is the longest form of the sport of cricket. Test matches are played between national representative teams with "Test status", as determined by the International Cricket Council , with four innings played between two teams of 11 players over a period of up to a maximum five days...
team, until in the final warm-up match before the Tests he took 8 for 26 and 5 for 41 as the West Indies beat Lancashire
Lancashire County Cricket Club
Lancashire County Cricket Club represents the historic county of Lancashire in cricket's County Championship. The club was founded in 1864 as a successor to Manchester Cricket Club and has played at Old Trafford since then...
by an innings and 220 runs.
He justified his selection for the Test side when in the first innings
Innings
An inning, or innings, is a fixed-length segment of a game in any of a variety of sports – most notably cricket and baseball during which one team attempts to score while the other team attempts to prevent the first from scoring. In cricket, the term innings is both singular and plural and is...
of the first Test, he took the first eight wickets, five of them before lunch on the first day. He finished with 8 for 104 in the innings, and 11 for 204 in the match off 106 overs
Over (cricket)
In the sport of cricket, an over is a set of six consecutive balls bowled in succession. An over is normally bowled by a single bowler. However, in the event of injury preventing a bowler from completing an over, it is completed by a teammate....
. He was the first bowler ever to take eight wickets in his first Test innings, a feat which has only been achieved twice more .
England won that match, but in the second Test, at Lord's
Lord's Cricket Ground
Lord's Cricket Ground is a cricket venue in St John's Wood, London. Named after its founder, Thomas Lord, it is owned by Marylebone Cricket Club and is the home of Middlesex County Cricket Club, the England and Wales Cricket Board , the European Cricket Council and, until August 2005, the...
, the West Indies recorded a 326-run victory, thanks to Clyde Walcott's 168 not out
Not out
In cricket, a batsman will be not out if he comes out to bat in an innings and has not been dismissed by the end of the innings. One may similarly describe a batsman as not out while the innings is still in progress...
in the second innings, and to the bowling of Ramadhin (11 for 152) and Valentine (7 for 127). This was West Indies' first ever Test victory in England, and it was commemorated in the famous Victory Calypso:
- Second Test and West Indies won
- With those two little pals of mine
- Ramadhin and Valentine
The West Indies' success continued as they won the third and fourth Tests to record a series victory, Valentine taking five wickets in the third Test and ten wickets in the fourth Test. He bowled 92 overs in the second innings of the third Test, then a Test record. In all, Valentine took 33 wickets in the series at an average of 20.42. He bowled a massive 422.5 overs, conceding only 1.59 runs per over.
In the tour as a whole, Valentine bowled 1185.2 overs in 21 matches. He took 123 wickets at an average of only 17.94, conceding only 1.86 runs per over. He took five wickets in an innings ten times, including an analysis
Bowling analysis
In the sport of cricket, a bowling analysis usually refers to a notation summarising a bowler's performance in terms of overs bowled, how many of those overs are maidens , total runs conceded and number of wickets taken...
of 13.2-9-6-5 against Kent
Kent County Cricket Club
Kent County Cricket Club is one of the 18 first class county county cricket clubs which make up the English and Welsh national cricket structure, representing the county of Kent...
. With this record, it was no surprise when he was chosen as one of the Wisden Cricketers of the Year
Wisden Cricketers of the Year
The Wisden Cricketers of the Year are cricketers selected for the honour by the annual publication Wisden Cricketers' Almanack, based primarily on their "influence on the previous English season"...
in 1951.
Later career
Valentine's career never quite reached the spectacular heights of the 1950 tour again. In purely statistical terms, the 1950 warm-up match against Lancashire was his career-best first-class match, and his first Test was his career-best Test match. In the West Indies' next Test series, in AustraliaAustralian cricket team
The Australian cricket team is the national cricket team of Australia. It is the joint oldest team in Test cricket, having played in the first Test match in 1877...
in 1951-52, he took 24 wickets in five matches; and when India
Indian cricket team
The Indian cricket team is the national cricket team of India. Governed by the Board of Control for Cricket in India , it is a full member of the International Cricket Council with Test and One Day International status....
visited the West Indies in 1953, he took 28 wickets, again in five matches. In 1954 he became the first West Indian to reach 100 Test wickets, in only his 19th Test. But in his last 20 Test matches, from 1954 to 1962, he only took 46 wickets at an average of 40.63. He was still an effective containing bowler, conceding only 2.06 runs per over in those later years, but he didn't have the attacking effectiveness of his dramatic debut. On the 1957 tour of England he suffered a complete loss of confidence.
After his last Test, he served as the national coach of Jamaica.
Personal
Born in Kingston, JamaicaKingston, Jamaica
Kingston is the capital and largest city of Jamaica, located on the southeastern coast of the island. It faces a natural harbour protected by the Palisadoes, a long sand spit which connects the town of Port Royal and the Norman Manley International Airport to the rest of the island...
, Valentine was married twice. He had four daughters with his first wife, Gwendolyn, who died. He moved to Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
with his second wife, Jacquelyn, where they fostered dozens of children whose parents were in prison. He died in Orlando
Orlando, Florida
Orlando is a city in the central region of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat of Orange County, and the center of the Greater Orlando metropolitan area. According to the 2010 US Census, the city had a population of 238,300, making Orlando the 79th largest city in the United States...
, Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
in 2004, aged 74.
See also
- Sonny RamadhinSonny RamadhinSonny Ramadhin was a West Indian cricketer, and a dominant bowler of the 1950s. He was the first West Indian cricketers of Indian origin, and was one of the five Wisden Cricketers of the Year in 1951.- Biography and career :...
- West Indian cricket team
- Victory Calypso