Sir Garfield Sobers, the legendary West Indies cricketer who died in his native Barbados on Friday, had a strong personal relationship with Jamaica that started in the late 1950s. He was a budding star then, and his mentor was Collie Smith, the Jamaican all-rounder.

Sobers, who was 89, scored five of his 26 Test centuries at Sabina Park in Kingston. His maiden ton was an epic 365 against Pakistan at that ground in February 1958. That was the highest Test score until Brian Lara broke it with an unbeaten 375 against England in Antigua in April 1994.

One year after the match against Pakistan — which the West Indies won by an innings and 174 runs — Smith, who made his Test debut in 1955, died from injuries sustained in an auto crash in England. Sobers was driver of the car which also had fellow Jamaica and West Indies fastbowler Tom Dewdney as a passenger.