Sir Clive Lloyd may have left his playing days almost four decades ago but the winner of two World Cups and one of the greatest batters of all time is still a rage among people.
That is what the “Supercat” and the former West Indies captain discovered after arriving on an invitation from a school situated in the rural hinterland that was celebrating 75 years of its establishment. Lloyd received a gala reception from the Cricket Association of Bengal.
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“It is special to return here at Eden Gardens. I played my first series in India here as captain and I have so many good memories. The West Indians love to come to Kolkata for the love showered on them. I am overwhelmed,” Lloyd said as he was accorded a guard-of-honour by young cricketers of the state.
When asked about his feelings on how cricket is played nowadays, Lloyd said Test cricket is the real test of a player’s calibre.
“T20 is an exhibition, while Test cricket is an examination. I can only find out how good you are only when you are playing the longer format of the game. If you have to bowl four overs or bat 20 overs, I cannot assess how good you are,” said Lloyd as he was accorded a warm felicitation by the teachers and students of Satgachia High School in Kalna.
“If you want to become a footballer or cricketer you need to have the basic knowledge of the game and science of the sport. Education will help you acquire that. So, make a roadmap and choose your dream,” Lloyd advised the students.
Making his assessment about the long and short forms of the sport, Lloyd said that too much of the short format may hamper its future.
“T20 is good entertainment but too much of it might hamper some of your players. Unfortunately, some of the young players think that they need to have the flair to get into the big-money event. Too much of the one-day stuff will hamper cricket all over the world like the way it hampered us in the West Indies,” he said.
“I have nothing against the shorter forms of the game, but the longer format helps one do well in the shorter format of the game.”
