Bob Woolmer
Encyclopedia
Robert Andrew Woolmer was an international cricketer
, professional cricket
coach and also a professional commentator
. He played in 19 Test matches
and 6 One Day Internationals for England and later coached South Africa
, Warwickshire
and Pakistan
.
On 18 March 2007, Woolmer died suddenly in Jamaica
, just a few hours after the Pakistan team's unexpected elimination at the hands of Ireland in the 2007 Cricket World Cup
. Shortly afterwards, Jamaican police announced that they were opening a murder investigation into Woolmer's death. In November 2007, a jury in Jamaica recorded an open verdict on Woolmer's death, after deciding that there was insufficient evidence of either a criminal act or natural causes.
, in India
. His father was the cricketer Clarence Woolmer
, who represented United Provinces
(now Uttar Pradesh
) in the Ranji Trophy
. Woolmer went to school in Kent
, first at Yardley Court
in Tonbridge
and then The Skinners' School
in Tunbridge Wells
. When he was 15, Colin Page, the coach and captain of the Kent second XI, converted him from an off-spinner to a medium pace bowler.
Woolmer's first job was as a sales representative for ICI
, and his first senior cricket was with the Tunbridge Wells
club and with Kent's second XI. In 1967 he broke the Kentish Leagues' Bat and Trap record for most consecutive strikes between the white posts - 13 in one game. Then in 1968, at the age of 20, he joined the Kent cricket staff and made his championship debut against Essex. His ability to move the ball about at medium-pace was ideally suited to one-day cricket at which he became a specialist. He won his county cap in 1969. Woolmer began his coaching career in South Africa in 1970-71 at the age of 22 and by 1975, when he made his Test debut, he had become a teacher of physical education
at a prep school in Kent as well as running his own cricket school - at the time one of the youngest cricket school owners anywhere.
for Kent
, initially as an all-rounder
. He graduated to Test cricket
with England in 1975 again, at first, as an all-rounder, having taken a hat-trick for MCC
against the touring Australian cricket team
with his fast-medium bowling. But he was dropped after his first Test, only reappearing in the final match of the series at The Oval
where he scored 149, batting at number five, then the slowest Test century for England against Australia. Further batting success followed over the next two seasons, including two further centuries against Australia in 1977. Rarely for an Englishman since the Second World War, all his Test centuries were made against Australia.
Woolmer was also a regular in England ODI cricket from 1972 to 1976. But Woolmer's international career stalled after he joined the World Series
break-away group run by Kerry Packer
. Though he appeared intermittently in the Test team up to 1981, he never recaptured the form of the mid 1970s. He also took part in the South African rebel tours
of 1982, a move that effectively ended his international career.
at high schools. He also became involved in the Avendale Cricket Club in Athlone, Cape Town. He preferred to join a 'coloured' club rather than a 'white' one in apartheid South Africa. He was an inspiration to Avendale and was instrumental in assisting the club to grow and be successful. Because of him, there is still an annual programme for a talented Avendale cricketer to spend a summer at Lord Wandsworth College in Hampshire.
in 1991, the side winning the Natwest Trophy in 1993, and three out of four trophies contested the next year. He continued his success by leading Warwickshire to Natwest and County Championship success in 1995, before taking on the Post of South African National Coach.
Woolmer is thought to be the only man to witness both Brian Lara's
innings of 501 not out against Durham
in 1994 and Hanif Mohammed's 499 in Karachi
in 1958.
s to wicketkeepers in cricket. He later attracted attention at the 1999 World Cup by communicating with his captain Hansie Cronje
with an earpiece during matches. The practice was later banned.
in 1994. Initially his team performed poorly, losing all six matches on his first outing in Pakistan. However, in the next five years, South Africa won most of their Test
(10 out of 15 series) and One Day International matches (73%). However, the side failed to win either the 1996 World Cup
or the 1999 World Cup
, despite having the highest ODI success rate among international teams in that period.
At the 1996 tournament on the Indian subcontinent
, his team won all their preliminary group matches before succumbing to the West Indies in the quarter finals.
At the 1999 tournament, South Africa faced Australia in the final match of the Super Six round; Australia needed to win to qualify for the semifinals, whereas South Africa had already done so. Australia boasted a superior recent record in must-win matches against South Africa. Media speculation was focused on Woolmer's team being less adept at handling high pressure situations. In the 1997/98 Australian international season, Australia had lost all four of their qualifying matches against South Africa in a triangular tournament and conceded a 1-0 finals series lead, before recovering to take the series 2-1. The Super Six match saw Australia win the match in the last over
, after Herschelle Gibbs
dropped Australian captain Steve Waugh
in a premature celebration of a catch. Waugh went on to score an unbeaten century and score the winning runs. The semifinal rematch saw a late Australian comeback culminate in a tie, when with match scores level, South African batsmen Lance Klusener
and Allan Donald
had a mix up, with Donald dropping his bat and being run out
. As a result South Africa were eliminated due to their inferior performance in the earlier matches. and Woolmer resigned.
Woolmer was a strong candidate to replace David Lloyd
as coach of England in 1999 but wanted a break from cricket and was reluctant to lead England in a tour of South Africa
so soon after having relinquished the South Africa coach job.
for match-fixing. Woolmer spoke openly about Cronje and match fixing in an interview on the BBC TV programme "Panorama" in May 2001. He then worked for the International Cricket Council
in helping with cricket development in countries where the sport was not well established.
team in 2004. This came after Javed Miandad
was sacked when the Pakistanis conceded a 2-1 Test and 3-2 ODI series loss on home soil to arch rivals India
, their first series win there in two decades. He was feted when his team reversed the result in early 2005 on their return tour to India, drawing the Tests 1-1 and winning the ODI series 4-2. In 2005 Pakistan beat England in a home series immediately after England had beaten the Australian team in England to secure the Ashes. In the home series against India that followed, Woolmer's side were victorious in the Test series, winning it 1-0; however, the side lost the ODI series that followed 4-1. Woolmer's side then beat Sri Lanka 2-0 in a 3 ODI series and achieved a 3rd consecutive Test series win with a 1-0 win in a 2 test series with Sri Lanka.
's Twenty20
international against England in Bristol
, Bob Woolmer was forced to defend his reputation when it was claimed Pakistani players lifted the seam of the ball when he was in charge of the team. Former International Cricket Council
match referee Barry Jarman
alleged that during the 1997 triangular one-day tournament involving South Africa
, Zimbabwe
and India
, a match ball, still in Jarman’s possession, that was confiscated after just 16 overs showed evidence of tampering by Woolmer’s team. Woolmer could not recall any such incident and he denied advocating ball-tampering. He also indicated that he contacted the match officials from that game who also could not recall any such incident.
Woolmer stated in 2006 that he believed that ball-tampering should be allowed in cricket and that a modification to existing laws should be made.
. The initial report was that Woolmer had died of a heart attack. On 22 March, Jamaican police confirmed that a murder
investigation had been launched due to the circumstances of Woolmer's death, based on a report by pathologist Ere Seshaiah that Woolmer had died of asphyxia
via manual strangulation. Police suspected that the murderer might have been a Pakistani upset over Pakistan's recent defeat by Ireland in the World Cup.
On 12 June 2007, Lucius Thomas, the commissioner of the Jamaica Constabulary Force
, announced that the investigation had concluded that Bob Woolmer died of natural causes, and was not murdered as indicated by the earlier pathologist's report. Three independent pathologists' reports commissioned by the police had found that the initial conclusion of manual strangulation was incorrect, and toxicology tests found no evidence of poisoning. The findings of the pathologists, and of Scotland Yard
detectives who had visited Jamaica to assist with the investigation, were reported in the weeks leading up to the announcement, which was widely expected by the time it was made. Reports suggested that Woolmer suffered from health problems including an enlarged heart and diabetes, which may have contributed to his death.
On 6 November, coroner Patrick Murphy asked for further tests to be carried out on samples taken from Woolmer's body following discrepancies in the toxicology reports by forensic scientists from the Caribbean and the UK.
After hearing twenty-six days of evidence, the jury at the inquest returned an open verdict
, refusing to rule out the controversial strangulation theory put forward by Ere Seshaiah.
In an interview with Fox News, former South African cricketer Clive Rice
claimed that Woolmer was murdered by organized crime groups, saying “These mafia betting syndicates do not stop at anything and they do not care who gets in their way.”
Cricketer
A cricketer is a person who plays the sport of cricket. Official and long-established cricket publications prefer the traditional word "cricketer" over the rarely used term "cricket player"....
, professional cricket
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
coach and also a professional commentator
Sportscaster
In sports broadcasting, a commentator gives a running commentary of a game or event in real time, usually during a live broadcast. The comments are normally a voiceover, with the sounds of the action and spectators also heard in the background. In the case of television commentary, the commentator...
. He played in 19 Test matches
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...
and 6 One Day Internationals for England and later coached South Africa
South African cricket team
The South African national cricket team represent South Africa in international cricket. They are administrated by Cricket South Africa.South Africa is a full member of the International Cricket Council, also known as ICC, with Test and One Day International, or ODI, status...
, Warwickshire
Warwickshire County Cricket Club
Warwickshire County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Warwickshire. Its limited overs team is called the Warwickshire Bears. Their kit colours are black and gold and the shirt sponsor...
and Pakistan
Pakistani cricket team
The Pakistan cricket team is the national cricket team of Pakistan. Pakistan, represented by the Pakistan Cricket Board , is a full member of the International Cricket Council, and thus participates in , and cricket matches....
.
On 18 March 2007, Woolmer died suddenly in Jamaica
Jamaica
Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
, just a few hours after the Pakistan team's unexpected elimination at the hands of Ireland in the 2007 Cricket World Cup
2007 Cricket World Cup
The 2007 ICC Cricket World Cup was the ninth edition of the ICC Cricket World Cup tournament that took place in the West Indies from 13 March to 28 April 2007, using the sport's One Day International format...
. Shortly afterwards, Jamaican police announced that they were opening a murder investigation into Woolmer's death. In November 2007, a jury in Jamaica recorded an open verdict on Woolmer's death, after deciding that there was insufficient evidence of either a criminal act or natural causes.
Early career
Woolmer was born in the hospital across the road from the cricket ground in Kanpur, Uttar PradeshUttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh abbreviation U.P. , is a state located in the northern part of India. With a population of over 200 million people, it is India's most populous state, as well as the world's most populous sub-national entity...
, in India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
. His father was the cricketer Clarence Woolmer
Clarence Woolmer
Clarence Shirley Woolmer is a former English cricketer. He was captain of United Provinces during the Ranji Trophy in 1948-1949 against Bombay State ....
, who represented United Provinces
United Provinces of Agra and Oudh
The United Provinces of Agra and Oudh was a province of India under the British Raj, which existed from 1902 to 1947; the official name was shortened by the Government of India Act 1935 to United Provinces, by which the province had been commonly known, and by which name it was also a province of...
(now Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh abbreviation U.P. , is a state located in the northern part of India. With a population of over 200 million people, it is India's most populous state, as well as the world's most populous sub-national entity...
) in the Ranji Trophy
Ranji Trophy
The Ranji Trophy is a domestic first-class cricket championship played in India between different city and state sides, equivalent to the County Championship in England and the Sheffield Shield in Australia...
. Woolmer went to school in Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
, first at Yardley Court
Yardley Court
Yardley Court is a preparatory school in Tonbridge, Kent, England, for boys aged seven to thirteen. The school motto is Comites in comitate, "Courtiers in courtesy"....
in Tonbridge
Tonbridge
Tonbridge is a market town in the English county of Kent, with a population of 30,340 in 2007. It is located on the River Medway, approximately 4 miles north of Tunbridge Wells, 12 miles south west of Maidstone and 29 miles south east of London...
and then The Skinners' School
The Skinners' School
The Skinners' School , is a British grammar school for boys located in the town of Royal Tunbridge Wells, Kent...
in Tunbridge Wells
Royal Tunbridge Wells
Royal Tunbridge Wells is a town in west Kent, England, about south-east of central London by road, by rail. The town is close to the border of the county of East Sussex...
. When he was 15, Colin Page, the coach and captain of the Kent second XI, converted him from an off-spinner to a medium pace bowler.
Woolmer's first job was as a sales representative for ICI
Imperial Chemical Industries
Imperial Chemical Industries was a British chemical company, taken over by AkzoNobel, a Dutch conglomerate, one of the largest chemical producers in the world. In its heyday, ICI was the largest manufacturing company in the British Empire, and commonly regarded as a "bellwether of the British...
, and his first senior cricket was with the Tunbridge Wells
Royal Tunbridge Wells
Royal Tunbridge Wells is a town in west Kent, England, about south-east of central London by road, by rail. The town is close to the border of the county of East Sussex...
club and with Kent's second XI. In 1967 he broke the Kentish Leagues' Bat and Trap record for most consecutive strikes between the white posts - 13 in one game. Then in 1968, at the age of 20, he joined the Kent cricket staff and made his championship debut against Essex. His ability to move the ball about at medium-pace was ideally suited to one-day cricket at which he became a specialist. He won his county cap in 1969. Woolmer began his coaching career in South Africa in 1970-71 at the age of 22 and by 1975, when he made his Test debut, he had become a teacher of physical education
Physical education
Physical education or gymnastics is a course taken during primary and secondary education that encourages psychomotor learning in a play or movement exploration setting....
at a prep school in Kent as well as running his own cricket school - at the time one of the youngest cricket school owners anywhere.
Playing career
Bob Woolmer played English county cricketCounty Championship
The County Championship is the domestic first-class cricket competition in England and Wales...
for 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...
, initially as an all-rounder
All-rounder
An all-rounder is a cricketer who regularly performs well at both batting and bowling. Although all bowlers must bat and quite a few batsmen do bowl occasionally, most players are skilled in only one of the two disciplines and are considered specialists...
. He graduated to Test cricket
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...
with England in 1975 again, at first, as an all-rounder, having taken a hat-trick for MCC
Marylebone Cricket Club
Marylebone Cricket Club is a cricket club in London founded in 1787. Its influence and longevity now witness it as a private members' club dedicated to the development of cricket. It owns, and is based at, Lord's Cricket Ground in St John's Wood, London NW8. MCC was formerly the governing body of...
against the touring Australian cricket team
Australian 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...
with his fast-medium bowling. But he was dropped after his first Test, only reappearing in the final match of the series at The Oval
The Oval
The Kia Oval, still commonly referred to by its original name of The Oval, is an international cricket ground in Kennington, in the London Borough of Lambeth. In the past it was also sometimes called the Kennington Oval...
where he scored 149, batting at number five, then the slowest Test century for England against Australia. Further batting success followed over the next two seasons, including two further centuries against Australia in 1977. Rarely for an Englishman since the Second World War, all his Test centuries were made against Australia.
Woolmer was also a regular in England ODI cricket from 1972 to 1976. But Woolmer's international career stalled after he joined the World Series
World Series Cricket
World Series Cricket was a break away professional cricket competition staged between 1977 and 1979 and organised by Kerry Packer for his Australian television network, Nine Network. The matches ran in opposition to established international cricket...
break-away group run by Kerry Packer
Kerry Packer
Kerry Francis Bullmore Packer, AC was an Australian media tycoon. The son of Sir Frank Packer and Gretel Bullmore, the Packer family company owned controlling interest in both the Nine television network and leading Australian publishing company Australian Consolidated Press, which were later...
. Though he appeared intermittently in the Test team up to 1981, he never recaptured the form of the mid 1970s. He also took part in the South African rebel tours
South African rebel tours
The South African rebel tours were a series of seven cricket tours staged between 1982 and 1990. They were known as the rebel tours because South Africa was throughout this period banned from international cricket due to the apartheid regime...
of 1982, a move that effectively ended his international career.
In South Africa
After retiring from first-class cricket in 1984, he emigrated to South Africa, where he coached cricket and hockeyField hockey
Field Hockey, or Hockey, is a team sport in which a team of players attempts to score goals by hitting, pushing or flicking a ball into an opposing team's goal using sticks...
at high schools. He also became involved in the Avendale Cricket Club in Athlone, Cape Town. He preferred to join a 'coloured' club rather than a 'white' one in apartheid South Africa. He was an inspiration to Avendale and was instrumental in assisting the club to grow and be successful. Because of him, there is still an annual programme for a talented Avendale cricketer to spend a summer at Lord Wandsworth College in Hampshire.
In England
He returned to England in 1987 to coach the second eleven at Kent. He went on to coach the Warwickshire County Cricket ClubWarwickshire County Cricket Club
Warwickshire County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Warwickshire. Its limited overs team is called the Warwickshire Bears. Their kit colours are black and gold and the shirt sponsor...
in 1991, the side winning the Natwest Trophy in 1993, and three out of four trophies contested the next year. He continued his success by leading Warwickshire to Natwest and County Championship success in 1995, before taking on the Post of South African National Coach.
Woolmer is thought to be the only man to witness both Brian Lara's
Brian Lara
Brian Charles Lara, TC, OCC, AM is a former West Indian international cricket player. Lara is generally regarded as one of the greatest batsmen of all time...
innings of 501 not out against Durham
Durham County Cricket Club
Durham County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh national cricket structure, representing the historic county of Durham. Its limited overs team is called the Durham Dynamos. Their kit colours are blue with yellow trim and the shirt sponsor was...
in 1994 and Hanif Mohammed's 499 in Karachi
Karachi
Karachi is the largest city, main seaport and the main financial centre of Pakistan, as well as the capital of the province of Sindh. The city has an estimated population of 13 to 15 million, while the total metropolitan area has a population of over 18 million...
in 1958.
Coaching methods
Woolmer was known for his progressive coaching techniques. He is credited with making the reverse sweep a more popular shot for batsmen in the 1990s, as well as being one of the first to use computer analysis, and trying to adapt the knowledge of goalkeeperGoalkeeper
In many team sports which involve scoring goals, a goalkeeper is a designated player charged with directly preventing the opposing team from scoring by intercepting shots at goal...
s to wicketkeepers in cricket. He later attracted attention at the 1999 World Cup by communicating with his captain Hansie Cronje
Hansie Cronje
Wessel Johannes "Hansie" Cronje was a South African cricketer and captain of the South African national cricket team in the 1990s...
with an earpiece during matches. The practice was later banned.
South Africa
He was appointed coach of South AfricaSouth African cricket team
The South African national cricket team represent South Africa in international cricket. They are administrated by Cricket South Africa.South Africa is a full member of the International Cricket Council, also known as ICC, with Test and One Day International, or ODI, status...
in 1994. Initially his team performed poorly, losing all six matches on his first outing in Pakistan. However, in the next five years, South Africa won most of their 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...
(10 out of 15 series) and One Day International matches (73%). However, the side failed to win either the 1996 World Cup
1996 Cricket World Cup
The 1996 Cricket World Cup, also called the Wills World Cup after its official sponsors, was the sixth edition of the tournament organized by the International Cricket Council . It was the second World Cup to be hosted by Pakistan and India, and for the first time by Sri Lanka...
or the 1999 World Cup
1999 Cricket World Cup
-England:-Outside England:-Group A:-Results:-------------------------------------------------------------Group B:-Results:------------------------------------------------------------...
, despite having the highest ODI success rate among international teams in that period.
At the 1996 tournament on the Indian subcontinent
Indian subcontinent
The Indian subcontinent, also Indian Subcontinent, Indo-Pak Subcontinent or South Asian Subcontinent is a region of the Asian continent on the Indian tectonic plate from the Hindu Kush or Hindu Koh, Himalayas and including the Kuen Lun and Karakoram ranges, forming a land mass which extends...
, his team won all their preliminary group matches before succumbing to the West Indies in the quarter finals.
At the 1999 tournament, South Africa faced Australia in the final match of the Super Six round; Australia needed to win to qualify for the semifinals, whereas South Africa had already done so. Australia boasted a superior recent record in must-win matches against South Africa. Media speculation was focused on Woolmer's team being less adept at handling high pressure situations. In the 1997/98 Australian international season, Australia had lost all four of their qualifying matches against South Africa in a triangular tournament and conceded a 1-0 finals series lead, before recovering to take the series 2-1. The Super Six match saw Australia win the match in the last over
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....
, after Herschelle Gibbs
Herschelle Gibbs
Herschelle Herman Gibbs is a South African cricketer, more specifically a batsman.Gibbs was schooled at St Joseph's Marist College and then Diocesan College in Rondebosch...
dropped Australian captain Steve Waugh
Steve Waugh
Stephen Rodger "Steve" Waugh, AO is a former Australian cricketer and fraternal twin of cricketer Mark Waugh. A right-handed batsman, he was also a successful medium-pace bowler...
in a premature celebration of a catch. Waugh went on to score an unbeaten century and score the winning runs. The semifinal rematch saw a late Australian comeback culminate in a tie, when with match scores level, South African batsmen Lance Klusener
Lance Klusener
Lance Klusener is a South African cricketer, more specifically an all-rounder. He is known for his aggressive batting and his fast-medium swing bowling. He is nicknamed "Zulu" because of his fluency in that language. Following his exploits at the 1999 World Cup, he topped the ICC ODI Batting...
and Allan Donald
Allan Donald
Allan Anthony Donald is a former South African cricketer and one of their most successful pace bowlers.In his prime, he was one of the best fast bowlers ever seen in Test cricket, reaching the top of the ICC Test rankings in 1998 and peaked with a top ICC ranking of 895 points the next year, the...
had a mix up, with Donald dropping his bat and being run out
Run out
Run out is a method of dismissal in the sport of cricket. It is governed by Law 38 of the Laws of cricket.-The rules:A batsman is out Run out if at any time while the ball is in play no part of his bat or person is grounded behind the popping crease and his wicket is fairly put down by the opposing...
. As a result South Africa were eliminated due to their inferior performance in the earlier matches. and Woolmer resigned.
Woolmer was a strong candidate to replace David Lloyd
David Lloyd (cricketer)
David Lloyd is a former English cricketer who played county cricket for Lancashire and Test and One Day International cricket for England. He also played semi-professional football for Accrington Stanley...
as coach of England in 1999 but wanted a break from cricket and was reluctant to lead England in a tour of South Africa
South African cricket team
The South African national cricket team represent South Africa in international cricket. They are administrated by Cricket South Africa.South Africa is a full member of the International Cricket Council, also known as ICC, with Test and One Day International, or ODI, status...
so soon after having relinquished the South Africa coach job.
Back to Warwickshire
He later returned to Warwickshire, and gained attention when he called for the removal of a life ban on South African captain Hansie CronjeHansie Cronje
Wessel Johannes "Hansie" Cronje was a South African cricketer and captain of the South African national cricket team in the 1990s...
for match-fixing. Woolmer spoke openly about Cronje and match fixing in an interview on the BBC TV programme "Panorama" in May 2001. He then worked for the International Cricket Council
International Cricket Council
The International Cricket Council is the international governing body of cricket. It was founded as the Imperial Cricket Conference in 1909 by representatives from England, Australia and South Africa, renamed the International Cricket Conference in 1965, and took up its current name in 1989.The...
in helping with cricket development in countries where the sport was not well established.
Pakistan
He was appointed coach of the PakistanPakistani cricket team
The Pakistan cricket team is the national cricket team of Pakistan. Pakistan, represented by the Pakistan Cricket Board , is a full member of the International Cricket Council, and thus participates in , and cricket matches....
team in 2004. This came after Javed Miandad
Javed Miandad
Mohammad Javed Miandad Khan , popularly known as Javed Miandad , is a former Pakistani cricketer who played between 1975 and 1996. He is Pakistan's leading run scorer in Test cricket. He has served as a captain of the Pakistan national cricket team...
was sacked when the Pakistanis conceded a 2-1 Test and 3-2 ODI series loss on home soil to arch rivals 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....
, their first series win there in two decades. He was feted when his team reversed the result in early 2005 on their return tour to India, drawing the Tests 1-1 and winning the ODI series 4-2. In 2005 Pakistan beat England in a home series immediately after England had beaten the Australian team in England to secure the Ashes. In the home series against India that followed, Woolmer's side were victorious in the Test series, winning it 1-0; however, the side lost the ODI series that followed 4-1. Woolmer's side then beat Sri Lanka 2-0 in a 3 ODI series and achieved a 3rd consecutive Test series win with a 1-0 win in a 2 test series with Sri Lanka.
2006 ball-tampering row
In August 2006, on the eve of PakistanPakistani cricket team
The Pakistan cricket team is the national cricket team of Pakistan. Pakistan, represented by the Pakistan Cricket Board , is a full member of the International Cricket Council, and thus participates in , and cricket matches....
's Twenty20
Twenty20
Twenty20 is a form of cricket, originally introduced in England for professional inter-county competition by the England and Wales Cricket Board , in 2003. A Twenty20 game involves two teams, each has a single innings, batting for a maximum of 20 overs. Twenty20 cricket is also known as T20 cricket...
international against England in Bristol
Bristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
, Bob Woolmer was forced to defend his reputation when it was claimed Pakistani players lifted the seam of the ball when he was in charge of the team. Former International Cricket Council
International Cricket Council
The International Cricket Council is the international governing body of cricket. It was founded as the Imperial Cricket Conference in 1909 by representatives from England, Australia and South Africa, renamed the International Cricket Conference in 1965, and took up its current name in 1989.The...
match referee Barry Jarman
Barry Jarman
Barrington Noel Jarman OAM is a former Australian Test cricketer and International Cricket Council Match Referee....
alleged that during the 1997 triangular one-day tournament involving South Africa
South African cricket team
The South African national cricket team represent South Africa in international cricket. They are administrated by Cricket South Africa.South Africa is a full member of the International Cricket Council, also known as ICC, with Test and One Day International, or ODI, status...
, Zimbabwe
Zimbabwean cricket team
The Zimbabwean cricket team is a national cricket team representing Zimbabwe. It is administrated by Zimbabwe Cricket...
and 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....
, a match ball, still in Jarman’s possession, that was confiscated after just 16 overs showed evidence of tampering by Woolmer’s team. Woolmer could not recall any such incident and he denied advocating ball-tampering. He also indicated that he contacted the match officials from that game who also could not recall any such incident.
Woolmer stated in 2006 that he believed that ball-tampering should be allowed in cricket and that a modification to existing laws should be made.
Death during 2007 World Cup
On 18 March 2007, Woolmer was found dead in his hotel room at the Jamaica Pegasus Hotel 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...
. The initial report was that Woolmer had died of a heart attack. On 22 March, Jamaican police confirmed that a murder
Murder
Murder is the unlawful killing, with malice aforethought, of another human being, and generally this state of mind distinguishes murder from other forms of unlawful homicide...
investigation had been launched due to the circumstances of Woolmer's death, based on a report by pathologist Ere Seshaiah that Woolmer had died of asphyxia
Asphyxia
Asphyxia or asphyxiation is a condition of severely deficient supply of oxygen to the body that arises from being unable to breathe normally. An example of asphyxia is choking. Asphyxia causes generalized hypoxia, which primarily affects the tissues and organs...
via manual strangulation. Police suspected that the murderer might have been a Pakistani upset over Pakistan's recent defeat by Ireland in the World Cup.
On 12 June 2007, Lucius Thomas, the commissioner of the Jamaica Constabulary Force
Jamaica Constabulary Force
The Jamaica Constabulary Force is the police force of the island nation of Jamaica. The official JCF staff numbers 9,930 plus 55 auxiliary positions, making a total of 9,985; its current strength is 8,441. Its commissioner is Owen Ellington, M.Sc, B.Sc, CD...
, announced that the investigation had concluded that Bob Woolmer died of natural causes, and was not murdered as indicated by the earlier pathologist's report. Three independent pathologists' reports commissioned by the police had found that the initial conclusion of manual strangulation was incorrect, and toxicology tests found no evidence of poisoning. The findings of the pathologists, and of Scotland Yard
Scotland Yard
Scotland Yard is a metonym for the headquarters of the Metropolitan Police Service of London, UK. It derives from the location of the original Metropolitan Police headquarters at 4 Whitehall Place, which had a rear entrance on a street called Great Scotland Yard. The Scotland Yard entrance became...
detectives who had visited Jamaica to assist with the investigation, were reported in the weeks leading up to the announcement, which was widely expected by the time it was made. Reports suggested that Woolmer suffered from health problems including an enlarged heart and diabetes, which may have contributed to his death.
On 6 November, coroner Patrick Murphy asked for further tests to be carried out on samples taken from Woolmer's body following discrepancies in the toxicology reports by forensic scientists from the Caribbean and the UK.
After hearing twenty-six days of evidence, the jury at the inquest returned an open verdict
Open verdict
The Open verdict is an option open to a Coroner's jury at an Inquest in the legal system of England and Wales. The verdict strictly means that the jury confirms that the death is suspicious but is unable to reach any of the other verdicts open to them...
, refusing to rule out the controversial strangulation theory put forward by Ere Seshaiah.
In an interview with Fox News, former South African cricketer Clive Rice
Clive Rice
Clive Edward Butler Rice is a former South African international cricketer. An all-rounder, Rice ended his first class cricket career with a batting average of 40.95 and a bowling average of 22.49....
claimed that Woolmer was murdered by organized crime groups, saying “These mafia betting syndicates do not stop at anything and they do not care who gets in their way.”
Awards and honours
- One of five Wisden Cricketers of the Year in 1976
- Posthumously honoured with the Sitara-e-Imtiaz (Star of Excellence), a high ranking civil award of PakistanCivil decorations of PakistanThe Pakistan Civil Awards were established on March 19, 1957, following the proclamation of Pakistan as an independent Republic on March 23, 1956. The announcement of civil awards is generally made once a year on Independence Day, August 14, and their investiture takes place on the following...
, for his contribution to Pakistan cricket
External links
- Website on the Art and Science of Cricket, Bob Woolmer's coaching manual released in 2008
- Cricinfo page on Bob Woolmer
- CricInfo: Full coverage of Bob Woolmer's passing
- Obituary, The Daily TelegraphThe Daily TelegraphThe Daily Telegraph is a daily morning broadsheet newspaper distributed throughout the United Kingdom and internationally. The newspaper was founded by Arthur B...
, 19 March 2007 - Obituary, The TimesThe TimesThe Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
, 19 March 2007 - Obituary, The GuardianThe GuardianThe Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
, 20 March 2007 - Obituary, The IndependentThe IndependentThe Independent is a British national morning newspaper published in London by Independent Print Limited, owned by Alexander Lebedev since 2010. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition, The Independent on Sunday, is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily...
, 20 March 2007 - Woolmer century vs Australia on Veoh