Randall delighted to hand record to Broad

By Dave Bracegirdle

Derek Randall’s last match for England was played in 1984. It was his 47th Test, making him the most-capped Nottinghamshire cricketer, but time has caught up with '‘Rags’ and his record has just been broken, with Stuart Broad making his 48th appearance in the first Test of the current series against South Africa.

“I’m pleased to see it,“ said Randall, now 61. “I think he’ll go on and play 148 times if he stays fit. I think he’s marvellous and he’s done a fantastic job for England I remember his dad (Chris Broad) asking me to play in a President's match at Oakham once. Stuart was 16 then and opening the bowling for Oakham School.
 
“I thought 'this bloke’s a bit lively'. He got me out hooking - a little bit of a snick and caught behind. Well, I didn’t walk off – I stayed on – I thought I’ve come a long way and I’ll have a bit of a bat – but he was very lively and didn’t give me any runs, even at 16, so I’m not surprised to see him doing so well for England.”

One of cricket’s great entertainers, Randall accepts it’s a different game nowadays, as between international commitments he would not have to go back and play continuous county cricket.

“They get a bit of a rest, it’s true - but we’ve always said, all along, that it’s about quality not quantity and eventually they’ve got it right. It took a few years but eventually they’ve got it right. It’s good to see and I’m sure the England team, with the central contracts in place, have got it right.”

Once one of the most recognisable faces in the country, Randall has become cricket’s answer to Kate Bush – huge in the Seventies and Eighties but rarely seen since.

“I still enjoy a bit of coaching with the young boys at Bedford School. You spend your life playing cricket and on cricket fields so when you get a bit of leisure time it’s nice to do other things. I spend a lot of time golfing nowadays and a bit of gardening and quite enjoy that really.”

The former international admits he doesn’t watch too much cricket but would have loved to have played Twenty20, if only for the hours involved!

“Would I have liked to play it? Not half – imagine trying to earn a living and all you had to do was play twenty-over cricket – crikey. It’s amazing isn’t it? Instead of being out there for six and a half hours, for 110 overs, four days a week, you know – just twenty overs each, yes please.”

Randall scored more than 23,000 first-class runs for Notts, averaging 38.32 and notched up almost 11,000 more in one-day matches. He played in four one-day finals for his county and the 1979 ICC World Cup final with England. Above all else though, and besides being a brilliant fielder, he always played the game with a smile on his face. “That’s where you win the games – in the field – so you’ve got to be on your mettle all of the time.”

Hopes that the former club stalwart might play a more prominent role at Trent Bridge were quickly dashed when he dismissed thoughts that he might emulate one of his former team-mates, Mike Smedley, who served as a club president. “Oh, no, I enjoy my golf and gardening too much - maybe sometime in the future but I think it’s unpaid and you have to earn a living, you know!”

Randall may have been overtaken by Broad as the county’s most-capped international but he remains one of the most popular of all Nottinghamshire cricketers and is still guaranteed to receive the warmest of welcomes whenever he returns to his old stomping ground. 

 

Date: 31/07/2012 14:40:45 by Dave Bracegirdle
In: Today | Nottinghamshire | England |