Commentator and former Hampshire skipper, who nearly played for England, talks to mid-day about his love for the job and hopes for an India v England World Cup final
Mark Nicholas
South ampton: Mark Nicholas has no qualms of being known more for his commentary than his time as a first-class cricketer for Hampshire. "The thing about commentary is I always wanted to do it. I could imitate [Richie] Benaud, [Jim] Laker. I could have conversations in their voices. I adore the game. I read books about the game when I was a boy. I read Denis Compton's autobiography when I was just nine. I read Don Bradman's The Art of Cricket when I was 10. I always wanted to be a commentator. I wanted to play cricket for England and I wanted to commentate on cricket," said Nicholas during an interaction with mid-day.
While Nicholas, 61, did fulfil his ambition of being a commentator and has established himself as one of the finest in the world of cricket, his goal to play for England never rally materialised despite playing 377 first-class matches and scoring 18,262 runs. In a chat with mid-day, Nicholas opens up about leading Hampshire for 10 years from 1985, commentating with Benaud, and his dream of an India and England World Cup final.
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Excerpts:
On whether India have a weakness:
I think the two wrist spinners in the middle overs are crucial with Jasprit Bumrah's strike power. There has never been a question whether anybody can cash-in on the fifth bowler. How the batting goes if [Rohit] Sharma and [Virat] Kohli get out? The fielding has improved; it's tremendous.
You would probably share that title with England at the moment. Kohli wins a lot of games for India [while chasing]. So, if you get him out early, you can have a chance to win. As I said, the fifth bowler. Get after Hardik Pandya maybe. If the ball doesn't move around, you can attack Bhuvi's pace. Kohli is the greatest match-winner going around, but England have phenomenal ball strikers. India can be beaten but they are a damn good side.
Hampshire teammates Malcolm Marshall (left) & Mark Nicholas. Pics/Getty Images
On foreseeing an India-England World Cup final:
Yes, I do. They may avoid each other in the semi-final. But it would be disrespectful and a pity to say that for the other teams. But for an Englishman and an Indian, it is a dream final. It will be great on a sunny day at Lord's [on July 14]. India are a fabulous side.
On leading Hampshire:
We had a pretty mixed team. We were a good side for a period and then we dropped off quite dramatically. We had some talent and I was always keen to play a brand of cricket which was adventurous and positive. We had some match-winners too like Malcolm Marshall, Robin Smith. The problem was that we were a little short of some support for Marshall and we lacked in the spin department. That made us a bit inconsistent. We got close to the championships but we were probably just short of having a terrific bowling attack. Many people said having Malcolm Marshall we should have won the championship. I don't think it is enough for just one bowler to do everything. We always had some characters and it was a good side to watch. As a unit we lacked that — ruthlessness and to get your hands dirty to get the job done.
On captaining the late Malcolm Marshall:
He was my best friend in cricket, my biggest supporter. We could spend hours in our cricket conversations. If we went out in the evening, we would be on the cricket in no time. We would talk cricket and lay things out on the table. I miss him terribly. He and Joel Garner once sneaked me into Barbados without even me showing my passport to the customs department. I miss the former Hampshire captain Colin Ingleby-Mackenzie, who led Hampshire to a championship win in 1961. He was a great leader and a great giver of the power of positive thinking and a tremendously entertaining character.
Mark Nicholas (left) and Richie Benaud
On not playing for England:
People are very kind when they say that I should have played for England. There were two
occasions to pick me and it might have gone for me, but it didn't. And then, one or two times when I was in a bunch of people possibly. I reckon in 1989 against the Australians, I was unlucky not to play. I was batting really well in a difficult season. I had made a hundred against Australia at Southampton in a tour game as well. Much earlier, when England went to India in 1984-85, I was a decent player of spin and I think I had a chance to go on that tour. I was never consistent and it must be very hard for a selector. Fair enough, I played a lot of innings against touring sides… very pumped when India, Pakistan and Australia would come to play in Hampshire. I made hundreds against all of them, but I wasn't consistent enough. It was my fault and no one else's. I have got excuses for my career average (34.39). I have played a season in the aftermath of malaria. I often perished in pursuit of unreal ambition with the bat for the team. But in the end, my career average isn't good enough. So, there you go. There is no point dwelling on it. I don't particularly blame the selectors [for not picking for England].
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On commentating with Benaud:
He always kept an eye on you. We had the odd chat once a year on how am I going. He was a dear friend and mentor. He is another one I miss a lot. He certainly became a figure and an influence in my life. Commentating with The Man was nerve-wrecking. It was very daunting to commentate with him.
On whether he agreed with Benaud's Best XI team (DVD released in 2004):
I don't, but there is a very important point to remember here. Possibly, in the framing of the product, we didn't make it clear. This was Richie Benaud's favourite team. 'The team which I most want to represent me,' he said — not the greatest group of cricketers he has ever seen. So, he chose some people out of his enjoyment and the way they played their cricket and the way they conducted themselves in and around cricket. One example might be the fact that he didn't pick a West Indian fast bowler. I have often wondered whether the short pitched bowling he felt wasn't doing the game well.
On his Top 5 commentators:
Benaud and Tony Cozier are the standouts. (Takes a long pause) And in the group behind, there is Ravi Shastri, Tony Greg, Geoffrey Boycott, Michael Atherton and
Ian Chappell.
On his 'short of brains' comment that spurred West Indies to the World T20 title in 2016:
I made a mistake. Darren Sammy said a lot of things that inspired them and I was amongst those things. Now we talk and get along very well. I didn't properly research or think through a piece I had to write at short notice, under a bit of pressure. I learnt a huge lesson from it. When I said what I said about the West Indies, what I meant was having seen them in Australia under Jason Holder, some of the senior players were letting down him down badly. And the consequence was some brainless cricket. I did not mean Jason or West Indians at large were brainless. Had I properly researched that some of those guys weren't in the World T20 squad anyway, I wouldn't have made such an idiotic comment. I apologised publicly and profusely. I obviously regret it but I don't regret the fact what I pointed out. Jason is an exceptional man. I take huge exception to the charges of racism. It was such nonsense! It is not an issue now. I wrote to him [Sammy] and he read out the letter to the team in the bus. No West Indian player has a problem with me now.
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