David Anthony Murray (29 May 1950 – 26 November 2022) was a

West Indian A West Indian is a native or inhabitant of the West Indies (the Antilles and the Lucayan Archipelago). For more than 100 years the words ''West Indian'' specifically described natives of the West Indies, but by 1661 Europeans had begun to use it ...

and Barbadian cricketer who played in nineteen

Tests Test(s), testing, or TEST may refer to: * Test (assessment), an educational assessment intended to measure the respondents' knowledge or other abilities Arts and entertainment * ''Test'' (2013 film), an American film * ''Test'' (2014 film), ...

and ten ODIs from 1973 to 1982 as a

wicketkeeper The wicket-keeper in the sport of cricket is the player on the fielding side who stands behind the wicket or stumps being watchful of the batsman and ready to take a catch, stump the batsman out and run out a batsman when occasion arises. Th ...

. Murray, a son of the West Indian batsman Sir

Everton Weekes Sir Everton DeCourcy Weekes, KCMG, GCM, OBE (26 February 19251 July 2020) was a cricketer from Barbados. A right-handed batsman, he was known as one of the hardest hitters in world cricket. Weekes holds the record for consecutive Test hundre ...

, often courted controversy. A

marijuana Cannabis, also known as marijuana among other names, is a psychoactive drug from the cannabis plant. Native to Central or South Asia, the cannabis plant has been used as a drug for both recreational and entheogenic purposes and in various tra ...

user from a young age, he was almost thrown out of the 1975–76 tour to

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

, only saved by the intervention of the sympathetic senior player

Lance Gibbs Lancelot Richard Gibbs (born 29 September 1934) is a former West Indies cricketer, one of the most successful spin bowlers in Test cricket history. He took 309 Test wickets, only the second player (after Fred Trueman) to pass 300, the first spi ...

. His drug habit was reportedly fuelled by a tour of India where he found drugs easily available: "A waiter at the team hotel started the whole thing. There was a market there, near the

Gateway of India The Gateway of India is an arch-monument built in the early 20th century in the city of Mumbai (Bombay), India. It was erected to commemorate the landing of King-Emperor George V, the first British monarch to visit India, in December 1911 at ...

, where you used to get anything, good African marijuana, everything... it's a great place." By 1978, he had moved on to cocaine. Murray spent most of his international career as understudy to his

Trinidadian Trinidadians and Tobagonians, colloquially known as Trinis or Trinbagonians, are the people who are identified with the country of Trinidad and Tobago. The country is home to people of many different national, ethnic and religious origins. As a ...

counterpart

Deryck Murray Deryck Lance Murray (born 20 May 1943) is a former West Indies cricketer. A wicketkeeper and right-handed batsman, Murray kept wicket to the West Indian fast bowling attacks of the 1970s (including Andy Roberts, Michael Holding, Joel Garner an ...

, and was usurped in 1981 by

Jeff Dujon Peter Jeffrey Leroy Dujon (born 28 May 1956) is a retired West Indian cricketer and current commentator. He was the wicket-keeper for the West Indies cricket team of the 1980s, an athletic presence behind the stumps as well as a competent mid ...

of Jamaica. Frustrated at his lack of opportunities, he threw in his lot with the West Indian rebel tours to South Africa and received a lifetime ban in 1983. Murray lived in poverty at his childhood home in

Bridgetown Bridgetown (UN/LOCODE: BB BGI) is the capital and largest city of Barbados Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies, in the Caribbean region of the Americas, and the most easterly of the Caribbean Island ...

. On 26 November 2022, Murray collapsed and died near his home in Station Hill, St. Michael, at the age of 72. Murray's son,

Ricky Hoyte Ricky Hoyte (born 15 October 1969) is a former West Indian cricketer. He was a left-handed batsman and a wicket-keeper. He played first-class and List A cricket for Barbados in West Indian domestic cricket from 1990 to 1999. He didn't play Test c ...

, was also a wicketkeeper, playing for Barbados in the 1990s.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Murray, David 1950 births 2022 deaths West Indies Test cricketers West Indies One Day International cricketers Barbadian cricketers Barbados cricketers Doping cases in cricket Cricketers from Bridgetown Sportspeople banned for life Wicket-keepers