Just occasionally in the course of my cricket reporting I got to know the man yielding the bat, or swinging the ball, beyond his feats with either.
One such occasion was June 1st 2003 at the Grange Edinburgh where Scotland were suffering at the hands of Hampshire who were the visitors, among whom was Robin Smith, a former England player who sadly passed away this week at the very young age of 62.
Smith was at his polished best, stroking a peerless half century on a difficult, turning track, bringing back memories of his days in the 1990’s when he shored up England’s batting in the face of the best of the Aussie and West Indian attacks; sometimes supported by his fellow South African Allan Lamb, but more often on his own.
The Scottish bowling attack of the day was therefore easy meat for an accomplished batsman like Smith, and yet there was an application and intensity about his performance which was way above his normal professionalism.
When he came into the press box, he fielded the usual questions before heading for a well earned beer in the unique castle like Grange pavilion.
Just by chance I found myself face to face with him on the steep steps up to the bar, and found him happy to chat. When I suggested he had particularly enjoyed his knock, he acknowledged my observation and said:”It was for my mother who was born and still lives in Edinburgh.”
Apparently she was not fit enough to come to the game but was no doubt well aware of her son’s feat, even seeing it as present from her talented son.
Smith came across as a warm, friendly individual, happy to chat and not just about cricket. I felt privileged to have met him, and later discovered his father was born in Walsall, making his son eligible to play for England and Scotland. In my book, he was the one who got away and might well have graced the Grange on many more occasions had he opted to play for his mother’s country of birth.
For the record Smith scored 82 not out from 84 balls, earning him the man of the match award as Hants won by two wickets, overhauling Scotland’s 201 with two overs to spare. Rahul Dravid was in the Scottish team and scored 26.