They would have paid more money than Cummins, Stokes put together to get Richards: Ian Smith
Richards was part of the world beating Caribbean team that lifted the 1975 and 1979 World Cup trophies. Richards had in fact scored a century in the 1979 final.
Whenever there is a discussion about former greats who would have been a sure shot hit in T20 cricket, one name that everyone agrees on is that of West Indies legend Sir Vivian Richards. Known for his ability to destroy bowling attacks, Richards was in a league of his own at a time, when attacking batting wasn’t really a fashionable trait among batsmen.
Richards was part of the world beating Caribbean team that lifted the 1975 and 1979 World Cup trophies. Richards had in fact scored a century in the 1979 final. He retired from cricket with a strike-rate of 86.07 in Tests and above 90 in ODIs, something that was unheard of in the times he played in.
Former New Zealand cricketer and commentator Ian Smith said that Richards would have been a much sought after player in these days of T20 leagues.
“I believe Viv Richards would have made a go at cricket in any format in any decade. That’s why, I mean you look at his strike rate which was superior to anyone else’s at that time that is a T20 strike rate without even having that game in his mind,” Ian Smith said on ICC’s Cricket Inside Out.
“He would have been an absolute legend in T20 cricket. They would have paid more money than Pat Cummins, Ben Stokes and all other guys put together, to get Viv Richards in their line-up, because it would put more bums on the seats. He would have been an absolute crowd-pleaser and television rights would have gone through the roof,” Smith added.
Richards remains one of the greatest batsmen that have played the game of cricket. He in fact set the template for batsmen of the next generation who would take attacking batting to the next level.
