Basil Lewis D'Oliveira
CBE
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations,
and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...
OIS (4 October 1931 – 19 November 2011)
was an
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
international cricketer of South African
Cape Coloured
Cape Coloureds () are a South African ethnic group consisted primarily of persons of mixed race and Khoisan descent. Although Coloureds form a minority group within South Africa, they are the predominant population group in the Western Cape ...
background, whose potential selection by England for the scheduled 1968–69 tour of
apartheid
Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...
-era South Africa caused the
D'Oliveira affair
The D'Oliveira affair was a prolonged political and sporting controversy relating to the scheduled 1968–69 tour of South Africa by the England cricket team, who were officially representing the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC). The point of cont ...
.
Nicknamed "Dolly", D'Oliveira played
county cricket for
Worcestershire
Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a county in the West Midlands of England. The area that is now Worcestershire was absorbed into the unified Kingdom of England in 927, at which time it was constituted as a county (see H ...
from 1964 to 1980, and appeared for England in 44
Test matches and four
One Day Internationals between 1966 and 1972.
Early life
D'Oliveira was born into a religious
Catholic
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
family in
Signal Hill, Cape Town
Signal Hill ( af, Seinheuwel), or Lion's Rump, is a landmark flat-topped hill located in Cape Town, next to Lion's Head and Table Mountain.
The hill was also known as "The Lion's Flank", a term now obsolete. Together with Lion's Head, Signal ...
; he believed that his family probably came from Madeira, not Malaya or Indonesia like most of his community and this explained his Portuguese surname. As a boy he visited the
Newlands Cricket Ground
Newlands Cricket Ground (known as Six Gun Grill Newlands for sponsorship reasons) in Cape Town is a South African cricket ground. It is the home of the Cape Cobras, who play in the Sunfoil Series, Momentum 1 Day Cup and RamSlam Pro20 compet ...
in Cape Town and climbed the trees outside to watch the games.
[
He captained South Africa's national non-white cricket team, and also played football for the non-white national side.]
Career
With the support of John Arlott
Leslie Thomas John Arlott, OBE (25 February 1914 – 14 December 1991) was an English journalist, author and cricket commentator for the BBC's ''Test Match Special''. He was also a poet and wine connoisseur. With his poetic phraseology, he be ...
, and the members and supporters of St Augustine's Cricket Club
ST, St, or St. may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* Stanza, in poetry
* Suicidal Tendencies, an American heavy metal/hardcore punk band
* Star Trek, a science-fiction media franchise
* Summa Theologica, a compendium of Catholic philosophy ...
in Cape Town
Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...
, he emigrated to England in 1960, where the journalist John Kay found him a place in the Central Lancashire League
The Central Lancashire Cricket League (CLCL) was a fifteen team cricket league, traditionally based in Lancashire and the West Riding of Yorkshire. It was then based in Greater Manchester and West Yorkshire. The league ran competitions at Fir ...
team of Middleton. D'Oliveira noted his surprise at seeing white people doing menial work, and waiting on him in restaurants. He joined the first-class county team Worcestershire County Cricket Club
Worcestershire County Cricket Club is one of eighteen first-class county clubs within the domestic cricket structure of England and Wales. It represents the historic county of Worcestershire. Its Vitality Blast T20 team has been rebrande ...
in 1964, and became a British citizen.
In 1966, he was selected for the England cricket team
The England cricket team represents England and Wales in international cricket. Since 1997, it has been governed by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), having been previously governed by Marylebone Cricket Club (the MCC) since 1903. Engl ...
as an all-rounder
An all-rounder is a cricketer who regularly performs well at both batting and bowling. Although all bowlers must bat and quite a handful of batsmen do bowl occasionally, most players are skilled in only one of the two disciplines and are consi ...
to face the West Indians in the second Test. He made a solid debut, scoring 27 before being run out, and returning bowling figures of 1 for 24 and 1 for 46 in 39 overs. In the third Test he scored 76 and 54, while capturing 2 wickets for 51 and 2 for 77 at Trent Bridge
Trent Bridge Cricket Ground is a cricket ground mostly used for Test, One-Day International and county cricket located in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, England, just across the River Trent from the city of Nottingham. Trent Bridge is also ...
; though the West Indies cantered to a 139-run victory. He contributed a fighting 88 in the fourth Test at Headingley
Headingley is a suburb of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, approximately two miles out of the city centre, to the north west along the A660 road. Headingley is the location of the Beckett Park campus of Leeds Beckett University and Headingley ...
, although England once again lost, by an innings and 55 runs. D'Oliveira was quietly efficient in the final Test as England turned the tables on the West Indies, winning by an innings and 34 runs to lose the series 3–1. Against India he hit 109 in the first Test where England won by six wickets and went on to win the series 3–0. Facing Pakistan he hit fifties in both innings of the first Test, in a series that England won 2–0. He was one of the Wisden Cricketers of the Year
The ''Wisden'' Cricketers of the Year are cricketers selected for the honour by the annual publication ''Wisden Cricketers' Almanack'', based primarily on their "influence on the previous English season". The award began in 1889 with the naming ...
for 1967.
Next up was an away series against the West Indies, early in 1968. D'Oliveira did not turn in his best showing in the five matches, scoring only 137 runs at an average of 27.4. He did a lot of bowling, but picked up only three wickets, even though he was economical. Once back in England, it was time for a five-Test Ashes series. The Aussies crushed England by 159 runs in the first Test as England crumbled in their second innings, despite D'Oliveira's top scoring effort of 87 not out. He was then dropped for the subsequent three Tests. He was recalled by the selectors for the final Test at the Oval, and 158 runs in the first innings against Australia seemed to have guaranteed his place in the side to play the 1968–69 Test series in South Africa. He was left out of the touring party under the pretext that his bowling would not be effective in his native country. However, he was later called up as a replacement and the tour was cancelled.
He was selected in June 1969 to face the West Indies, this time in a three-Test series. He followed that with a three-match series against New Zealand and then a seven-Test Ashes series in Australia, in which he scored 369 runs at an average of 36.9, including 117 in the fifth Test at the MCG.
England then went to New Zealand for two Tests, with D'Oliveira scoring 100 in the first one and 58 and five in the second. Pakistan next visited England in 1971, and D'Oliveira enjoyed a fine series with the bat, making 241 runs at an average of 60.25. He was below par in the three-Test series against India that followed, but was in better form for the visit of Australia in June 1972.
D'Oliveira completed his playing career having played 41 Tests. He scored 2484 runs at an average of 40.06, with five centuries and 15 fifties. He also captured 47 wickets at 39.55. After his retirement from first-class cricket D’Oliveira was the Worcestershire coach from 1980 to 1990.
Playing style and personality
D'Oliveira was a successful batsman with a low backlift and powerful strokes. He was also a tough competitor. When he toured Australia in 1970–71 on the night after they won the series 2–0 he pushed his forefinger into the chest of every Australian he met, saying "We stuffed you."
Wanting to play international cricket, D'Oliveira was somewhat cagey about his date of birth. After his death, journalist Pat Murphy with whom he collaborated on his autobiography stated:[
]
The D'Oliveira Affair
South African cricket officials in 1968 realised that the inclusion of D'Oliveira in the England squad would lead to the cancellation of the tour, and probable exclusion of South Africa from Test cricket. This exerted pressure on the Marylebone Cricket Club
Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) is a cricket club founded in 1787 and based since 1814 at Lord's Cricket Ground, which it owns, in St John's Wood, London. The club was formerly the governing body of cricket retaining considerable global influence ...
(MCC) hierarchy leading to the decision not to pick him, which was felt by opponents of apartheid to be a way of keeping cricket links with South Africa open. There was dissent in the press to this course of events and when Warwickshire's Tom Cartwright
Thomas William Cartwright (22 July 1935 – 30 April 2007) was an English cricketer. Playing largely for Somerset and Warwickshire, he took over 1,600 wickets as a medium-pace bowler, though he began his career as a top-order batsman, and was ...
was ruled out because of injury, D'Oliveira was called up into the squad. Prime Minister of South Africa B. J. Vorster had already made it clear that D'Oliveira's inclusion was not acceptable, and despite many negotiations the tour was cancelled; South Africa was excluded from Test cricket for 22 years. This was seen as a watershed in the sporting boycott of apartheid South Africa.
The D'Oliveira Affair had a massive impact in turning international opinion against the apartheid regime in South Africa. It prompted changes in South African sport and eventually in society. The events of 1968 were dramatized on BBC Radio 4
BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC that replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. It broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history from the BBC' ...
in April 2009 in a play by Christopher Douglas entitled ''Dolly''.
Legacy
In 2000, he was nominated as one of 10 South African cricketers of the century, despite not having played for South Africa. In 2004, a perpetual trophy was struck for the Test series between England and South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...
, and named the Basil D'Oliveira Trophy
The Basil D'Oliveira Trophy is a trophy played for by England and South Africa in the sport of cricket. The trophy is awarded to the team that wins a Test series between the two nations. If the series is a draw, the holder keeps the trophy. It wa ...
. In 2005, he was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations,
and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...
(CBE) in the 2005 Queen's Birthday Honours. In the same year, a stand at New Road, Worcester, was named in his honour.
In 1980, after the end of his playing career, he wrote an autobiography with the BBC's Pat Murphy, titled ''Time to Declare''. In it, he stated for the first time that he was glad that the proposed South African cricket tour to England in 1970 was called off, for fear of public disturbances. In 2004, journalist Peter Oborne
Peter Alan Oborne (; born 11 July 1957) is a British journalist and broadcaster. He is the former chief political commentator of ''The Daily Telegraph'', from which he resigned in early 2015. He is author of ''The Rise of Political Lying'', ''Th ...
wrote a biography entitled ''Basil D'Oliveira: Cricket and Conspiracy'' (), which was awarded the William Hill Sports Book of the Year
The William Hill Sports Book of the Year is an annual British sports literary award sponsored by bookmaker William Hill. The award is dedicated to rewarding excellence in sports writing. It was first awarded in 1989, and was devised by Graham ...
and was accompanied by Paul Yule's RTS award-winning documentary ''Not Cricket—The Basil D'Oliveira Conspiracy.''
Personal life
He was married to Naomi, and their son Damian D'Oliveira
Damian Basil D'Oliveira (19 October 1960 – 29 June 2014) was a South African-born English cricketer who played first-class cricket for Worcestershire, and was the Academy Director of Worcestershire County Cricket Club.
Playing for Worcestersh ...
also played first-class cricket for Worcestershire CCC and joined the coaching staff after his retirement from playing. His grandson, Brett D'Oliveira, is currently captain of Worcestershire CCC, having made his debut for the county in 2011. There has been a D'Oliveira on the staff at Worcestershire CCC, as either player or coach, ever since Basil first joined the County in 1964.
Death
D'Oliveira had Parkinson's disease
Parkinson's disease (PD), or simply Parkinson's, is a long-term degenerative disorder of the central nervous system that mainly affects the motor system. The symptoms usually emerge slowly, and as the disease worsens, non-motor symptoms becom ...
in later life. He died aged 80 (or possibly 83) in England, on 19 November 2011.
A farewell for D'Oliveira was written on the last 2011 issue of ''Time
Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, ...
'' magazine by Trevor Manuel
Trevor Andrew Manuel (born 31 January 1956) is a South African politician who served in the government of South Africa as Minister of Finance from 1996 to 2009, during the presidencies of Nelson Mandela, Thabo Mbeki and Kgalema Motlanthe, an ...
, South Africa's Minister in the Presidency for National Planning. It highlights the personal successes of the cricket player, together with the impact he had on South African sport and society. A memorial service was held in Worcester Cathedral on 27 January 2012; Sir Michael Parkinson
Sir Michael Parkinson (born 28 March 1935) is an English broadcaster, journalist and author. He presented his television talk show '' Parkinson'' from 1971 to 1982 and from 1998 to 2007, as well as other talk shows and programmes both in the U ...
gave one of the eulogies.
In September 2018, he was posthumously awarded the Freedom of the City of Worcester in recognition of his contribution to the city. The award was accepted by his son Shaun at a ceremony in the Guildhall in Worcester on 14 September 2018.
References
External links
The official Basil D’Oliveira website
*
''Not Cricket: The Basil d'Oliveira Conspiracy''
(2004) on Veoh
Veoh () is an American video-sharing website, launched in March 2006. It was originally launched as a virtual television network application, and then became a video-sharing website in March 2006. During the mid-2000s, it was one of the largest ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:D'Oliveira, Basil
1931 births
2011 deaths
England One Day International cricketers
England Test cricketers
English cricketers
Worcestershire cricketers
Marylebone Cricket Club cricketers
Commonwealth XI cricketers
Wisden Cricketers of the Year
South African Commanders of the Order of the British Empire
Cape Coloureds
Deaths from Parkinson's disease
South African people of Indian descent
South African people of Portuguese descent
Neurological disease deaths in England
Cricketers from Cape Town
South African emigrants to the United Kingdom
Recipients of the Order of Ikhamanga
A. E. R. Gilligan's XI cricketers
British sportspeople of Indian descent
British Asian cricketers