West Indies, New Zealand meet in Sobers' country to celebrate him

(Cricinfo) – The statue of Sir Garry Sobers at Kensington Oval stands 12 feet tall. His memory casts a much longer shadow, especially now that he is gone. Tributes have flown in from all over the world. “He inspired all of us as kids,” Rihanna, now Barbados’ only living National Hero, said on Instagram. “Even me, playing cricket in the cemetery trying to keep up with my brother and busting all my shins.”

Sobers’ imprint lives on in many of the players in the West Indies team today. Some of them received their first caps from him. Some of them have benefited from his coaching. A few have even managed to sweep him off his feet. The first time Sobers saw Shai Hope bat, he said “‘pfft, this is class! This is class’.” The current West Indies captain has already done a great many things and could go on to do a great many more but he will never win higher praise.

Sobers’ first tour as a professional was to New Zealand, a place where he averaged 15.1 and a team against whom he scored only one century. Somehow they resisted his charms but on Saturday they will be caught up in the moment too.