AB’s battle, Australia’s big Test

Pat Cummins & Co go into The Oval Test today seeking their first series win in England since 2001 while Allan Border, a highly successful captain, who turns 68 today, battles Parkinson’s disease

In all probability, the Australians will sport black armbands at The Oval today to mourn the recent death of ex-wicketkeeper Brian Taber.

The armbands will make spectators at The Oval and television viewers remember Taber, who was part of Australia’s 1972 Ashes squad, although the younger ’keeper Rod Marsh kept in all five Tests.

There is someone else whom they need to think about today as well—Allan Border, former Ashes-winning captain, who recently revealed he is battling Parkinson’s disease. 

Border, 68, is not there in person to egg them on, but Pat Cummins & Co won’t do themselves any harm by being aware of the grand moments Border provided to Australian cricket.

Let’s throw in some humour for starters. May they be reminded that Border was so caught up with the frustration of being dismissed LBW by Ian Botham for four at Perth in the 1979-80 series against England, that he entered the opposition dressing room by mistake.

He flung his bat on the ground and blurted out some expletives at the opposition (he thought umpire Max O’Connell should have given him the benefit of doubt), only to discover that he was in an empty England dressing room.

He made up for his poor show by scoring a hundred in the second innings and played a part in Australia’s 138-run win.

Border, one of the many rookie players Australia picked during Kerry Packer’s World Series Cricket, held his own when the big guns returned. He batted at No. 3 in that Greg Chappell-led side at Perth and had no easy time against Bob Willis, Graham Dilley and Botham angling balls away from him. The Gray-Nicolls double scoop bat fetched Border 115 runs. His century came after a three-innings sequence of 1, 7 and 4, but it was the 24-year-old’s third Test hundred for the year (1979) after his 105 against Pakistan at Melbourne and 162 at Chennai.

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Border was also part of the 1981 Ashes, which went England’s way. He scored consecutive centuries across the fifth and sixth Tests. 

By the time the next Ashes were played on English soil, Border had taken over the captaincy from Kim Hughes. The 196 at Lord’s in 1985 was a match-winning effort, but David Gower’s Englishmen, who had won a series in India earlier in the year, proved too good for Border’s developing side.

Another Ashes loss was endured in 1986-87, but in 1989, Australia had the ammunition to gun down a brittle England side and they did.

Border was buoyed by the fact that his side was a World Cup-winning outfit. And, by then, he had got over the temptation of quitting as captain. He also decided that he was not going to be matey with the opposition. “We were ruthless and the English guys didn’t like it,” Border wrote in Cricket As I See It, published in 2014. 

Australia’s dominance over the old enemy stayed till England reclaimed the urn in 2005 and Border, who ended his career in 1994, was proud of the fact that he led Australia to Ashes wins in 1989, 1990-91 and 1993. The last-mentioned series was Shane Warne’s first Ashes. And Test cricket changed when Border summoned Warne to bowl in the opening Test at Manchester, where Warne bowled his magic ball to Mike Gatting.

AB, as Border is known among colleagues and teammates, stayed a mentor of sorts to the spinning genius. Richie Benaud once revealed how Border and Warne chatted over an Italian meal after Warne hadn’t bowled well in the first Test of the 1997 Ashes. At the dinner table, Border emphasised that Warne had to get back to where he was and explained how he should do it, while Benaud, Lillee and Warne’s parents listened in. Warne did exactly that and ended up with another successful Ashes campaign.

Border’s tough-as-teak attitude was seen in his batting and captaincy. Ask the West Indians, who formed the best team of his era.

In 1983-84, nine months before he became captain, Border played two innings at Trinidad, which will live in memory. He batted for more than 10 hours for his unbeaten 98 and 100 not out in a rare drawn Test against the West Indies.

“Terry [Alderman] was on 21 when I hit a straight drive to the fence to bring up my 100 and take us to 9-299. At this stage there were 3.5 of the mandatory final 20 overs to go. Viv Richards strolled over, shook my hand and called the match off. There was no possibility of a result. Terry and I had grafted our way to an overall lead of 86, but Viv paid me the compliment of allowing me to complete the century before he acknowledged a draw. A very sporting gesture,” Border wrote in An Autobiography (1986).

That was on March 21, 1984 when Richards, as mentioned in Beyond Ten Thousand (1993), exclaimed: “Get your century, man, and let’s get out of here.”

It’s a pity that Border, who lifted Australian cricket from near-impossible situations, didn’t have the pleasure of beating the West Indies in Test cricket. That honour went to his successor Mark Taylor, who inherited a fine side that Border nurtured.

Indeed, Border gave Australian cricket, in writer Mike Coward’s words, “the kiss of life.”

Australian cricket is in a somewhat healthy state, but Border is battling like he was when his country needed more than just grit and determination. Like then, he knows what he is up against.

mid-day’s group sports editor Clayton Murzello is a purist with an open stance.
He tweets @ClaytonMurzello. end your feedback to mailbag@mid-day.com
The views expressed in this column are the individual’s and don’t represent those of the paper.

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