The cricketing world today mourns the passing of Basil D'Oliveira who has died at the age of 80. His plight as a Cape Coloured man in the then white supremacist state of South Africa led to John Arlott bringing him to England so he could follow a professional career path in the sport at which he excelled rather than be a second class citizen in his native land.
From the Central Lancashire League, he attracted the attention first of Worcestershire and then, in 1966, of England. By then he was already 35, or possibly 38 if some reports are correct, but he earned his place at Lord's against the West Indies alongside such greats as Boycott, Barrington, Cowdrey and Graveney. 'Dolly' was a big-hitting batting all-rounder who also bowled mean medium-pacers. He would have been a great one-day player but he left the international stage as ODIs were just beginning. However, he did participate in the very first ODI in Melbourne 40 years ago, the subject of a previous blog of mine, scoring 17 in 16 balls and taking Doug Walters' wicket.
His name will be synonymous with the anti-apartheid struggle not because he was an activist (he wasn't) but because South Africa pressured England into not picking him for a tour. The MCC at first shamefully bowed to their request but when they selected him in 1968 as a replacement the tour was cancelled and the apartheid regime found itself on the road towards international pariah status and, in 1970, sent into the sporting wilderness.
However, D'Oliveira should be remembered as an excellent cricketer, playing 44 Tests, scoring five centuries and almost 2,500 runs. He enjoyed a long association with Worcestershire, both on the pitch until almost 50, then as coach. He retired with almost 20,000 first-class runs and 551 wickets to his name, with many more in the one-day game. If he had come to England a decade earlier, his record would have been even more impressive. However, thanks indirectly to Basil D'Oliveira, many non-white cricketers like Ntini, Gibbs and Amla have been able to enjoy professional careers for South Africa.
