Birthday special: Carl Hooper – Gritty all-rounder and level-headed captain

A middle-order batsman and off-spinner known for his elegance with both bat and ball, Carl Hooper was one of the most gifted under-performers. Hooper, born on 15th December 1966, made his Test debut for the West Indies against India in Mumbai on December 11, 1987. He announced his arrival in style as he slammed a century in his very second match in the same series at the iconic Eden Gardens.

All-round achievements

Hooper was the first cricketer in the world to have scored 5,000 runs, taken 100 wickets, held 100 catches, and received 100 caps in both ODIs and Tests, a feat emulated since him only by South African legend Jacques Kallis, arguably one of the world’s best all-rounders. Steve Waugh and Shane Warne rated Hooper quite highly during his playing days. The latter even admitted that he found Hooper’s footwork quite challenging for a spinner and, in 2008, Warne named him among the top 100 cricketers of his time.

Happy Birthday Carl Hooper, a fine all rounder

102 Tests, 5762 Runs, 114 Wickets, 115 Catches
227 ODIs, 5761 Runs, 193 Wickets, 120 Catches pic.twitter.com/dlu7ztAH3o

— Cricketopia (@CricketopiaCom) December 15, 2020

Despite his skill-set, he emerged as a very inconsistent player who, quite regularly, failed to exploit his full potential. In an up-and-down career, Hooper faced many personal and professional issues. For instance, he withdrew from the West Indies squad for the 1996 World Cup during which the Windies were knocked-out in a close semi-final clash against Australia. In November 1998, the West Indies were supposed to tour South Africa for their first official tour. Although, the then-captain Brian Lara and vice-captain Hooper refused to accompany the team for they were unsatisfied about the contractual payments to the players.

Retirement and comeback

In 1999, he opted out of the World Cup squad again and announced retirement from international cricket. He did so only three weeks before the 1999 Cricket World Cup. But much to the surprise of many, he made a comeback from retirement two years later and went on to lead his national side. Coming out of retirement and donning the skipper’s hat brought out the best in him as he averaged over 50 as captain, but a disappointing show at the 2003 World Cup saw him losing his place to Brian Lara.

Post the World Cup, Hooper was retained in the squad as a player for the Test series against Australia. But he withdrew yet again, and this time because he wanted a younger player to get an opportunity instead of him. In his career spanning over 15 years, he featured in as many as 102 Tests and 227 ODIs for his nation, recording a near-identical figure of runs in both formats – 5762 in Tests and 5761 in ODIs. After retirement, Hooper, who turns 54 today, went on to coach local clubs in Adelaide, Australia, where he lived since the late 1990s.