ST JOHN’S, Antigua (WICB) — When we asked West Indies international Dwayne Smith to tell us about players who had inspired him when he was getting into the game, he produced a veritable list of great players from around the world.
As an all-rounder, he chose to focus on batting and fielding, although with Sir Garry Sobers as one of his inspirations, he has the bowling covered as well.
“As a batsman, I have always liked Sir Vivian Richards,” he began, talking to us ahead of the Caribbean Premier League 2015.
“I guess it came from because my father loved him too.
“Desmond Haynes and Gordon Greenidge as openers because they are from Barbados as well.”
Having picked his batsmen, he then moved on to fielding inspirations.
“Then for me, as a fielder, I liked Jonty Rhodes, Ricky Ponting, Sir Viv as well and then we also had Clive Lloyd, who was very good in the field as well.”
And finally, few would argue with his choice of all-rounder to complete his list of players who inspired him as a youngster.
“To top it all, Sir Garry Sobers, who to this day I still have conversations with.
“They were the people that really stand out for me.”
Smith has played 10 Tests, 105 One-Day Internationals and 33 Twenty20 Internationals since making his West Indies debut in 2003.