PARIS: Sonny Ramadhin, who died at the age of 92, was one of the best spin bowlers in the West Indies, he and Alf Valentine crafted a series win in England in 1950 that became legendary in calypso.

Tony Cozier, a late West Indian cricket writer, commentator, and historian, said “They complemented each other perfectly,”

“Ramadhin, cap on, sleeves buttoned down to the wrists, presented mysteries which no English batsman unravelled for the entire summer.”

Sonny Ramadhin, a Trinidadian cricketer who took 158 wickets in 43 Tests, was born on Mayday 1929 in St Charles.

On the strength of two matches for Trinidad against Jamaica in which he took 12 wickets, the 5 foot 4 inch (1.62m) off-spinner was selected for the 1950 tour at the age of 19.

It was his first journey outside of Trinidad and the first time he bowled on grass rather than matting when he went to England.

On the tour, Ramadhin and fellow spinner Valentine bowled almost 1,000 overs each, collecting 258 wickets. Valentine, a month older than his spin partner, got 33 wickets in Tests compared to Ramadhin’s 26.

The rest was taken care of by the formidable West Indies batting line-up, which comprised the three Ws – Frank Worrell, Everton Weekes, and Clyde Walcott.

Ramadhin, who had just recently turned 20, was mostly an off-spinner who could also bowl a leg-break with little variation in action.

During his Test career, he had a brisk pace and was impeccably accurate, conceding only 1.97 runs per over.

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