Sir Garfield St Aubryn Sobers is generally regarded as the greatest all round cricketer in the history of the game.

In 93 Test matches, he scored 8,032 runs and made 26 centuries, often batting as low as number six, and took 235 wickets through three varieties of bowling: left arm swing bowled at a nippy pace off a relatively short run, orthodox left arm spin, and Chinamen and googlies out of the back of the hand.

In addition, he was a high-class fielder close to the bat. He was the first cricketer to hit six sixes in an over, in 1968 when he was playing county cricket for Nottinghamshire against Glamorgan, and for many years held the record for the highest Test score, 365 not out against Pakistan at Kingston, Jamaica, in 1957-8.

Born into a poor Bajan family, Sobers lost his father at a young age during World War II. The ship on which his father, a merchant seaman, was returning home, was torpedoed. Sobers made his Test debut as a bowler at the age of 17 and only retired after, as he put it in the title of his autobiography, Twenty Years at the Top, following a troublesome knee injury.

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He became captain of West Indies and was knighted by The Queen in 1975 at the Garrison Savannah race course on Barbados.

Sobers subsequently has worked for Kerry Packer when the mogul founded his World Series Cricket in 1977 and thereafter as an ambassador for the Barbados Tourism Authority. He has been declared a National Hero of Barbados and the pavilion at the revamped Kensington Oval in Bridgetown is named after him.

He has written several autobiographies and is separated from his Australian wife, Prue, with whom he had two sons. Until recently he was employed by Sir Allen Stanford as one of his cricketing ‘Legends.’ Sobers defends the financier, who is accused of fraud on a huge scale, saying that he is innocent until proven guilty.

Now 72 and still working for the BTA, Sir Garry will be present throughout the Test match between West Indies and England that begins at Kensington Oval today.

1 Kensington Oval, Bridgetown
I always liked to bat on its fast pitches with bounce in them. After the first two hours of play the next two days were a batsman’s paradise. Then the pitch would take spin and so this all made for a very good cricket wicket, one of the best around. Although the outfield was not as good as it is today, people took pride in producing good pitches. The ‘three W’s ground – named after Frank Worrell, Everton Weekes and Clyde Walcott – and the Windward ground are also favourites of mine.

2 Grand Barbados beach
When I was a boy, this beach on the south west coast was known as ‘Gravesend,’ like the town in Kent, and it was the most popular one on the island. We played beach cricket every Sunday and at holiday time. Unfortunately I do not go there much now – my life consists of travelling from my home to golf clubs and functions.

3 Sandy Lane golf course
I have played a great deal of golf at the Royal Westmoreland course and others on the island, but this has to be my favourite. It is one of the most beautiful courses in the Caribbean, in beautiful condition and so well manicured. I am an honorary member and play off a handicap of nine – which in reality is 14.

4 Sandy Lane Hotel
People who stay there tell me it is one of the best hotels they have ever been in. The owners do a great deal for Barbados and for handicapped kids on the island. I have stayed in many hotels around the world throughout my life and these cannot compare. I am also particularly fond of Bajan Blue, the downstairs restaurant and have come to know Grant McPherson, the chef.

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