10 Facts about David Murray: The forgotten rebel

David Murray had a long and illustrious cricketing career ahead of him. He was the son of Sir Everton Weekes and boasted of one of the best batting and wicket-keeping skills of all time. However, at the time, the Windies already had Deryck Murray. In blood, they weren’t related, but, in skill set, they were inseparable. In spite of being tied down by drugs in the later stage of his career, the talent was something that has been rarely seen and replicated in the West Indies. On his birthday, we take a look at some little-known facts about a lesser known cricketer.

1. Born in:

David Anthony Murray was born on the 29th of May 1950 at Murray’s Gap, Westbury Road, St Michael, Bridgetown, Barbados.

2. The drive of Sir Everton:

David Murray happens to be the son of Sir Everton Weekes, a prominent former West Indies batsman. A few flashes of elegance can be seen and comparable between David Murray and Sir Weekes, especially their cover drives.

3. Branded a Rebel:

If there is one thing David Murray will be remembered for, it will be the Rebel Tour of South Africa in 1982-83, shortly before the 1983 World Cup. Some of the prominent names in the squad included Lawrence Rowe, Collis King, Sylvester Clarke, Colin Croft, and Frankly Stephenson.

4. Fleeing the Caribbean:

The fact that a black West Indies side made its way to a rebel tour in South Africa was perceived as a win for the Apartheid regime. The players who went were banned from West Indies selection for life, in spite of the ban being lifted in 1989. However, the players were perceived as those who betrayed the island colonies of the West Indies and were subsequently shunned from the Caribbean.

5. Dabbling with drugs:

David Murray has been known to deal with drugs in the past. In the 1975-76 tour to Australia, Murray was sent back home after having found drugs in his kit bag. In an interview, Murray admitted, “Murray admits that drugs played a part in ruining his life, yet he doesn’t regret any of it. Has he got over the smoking problem? “What you mean smoking problem? I was doing it all along… since I was 11 or 12.” First cigarettes, than marijuana and finally, in 1978, cocaine.”

6. Deryck’s namesake:

In spite of being a stylish batsman and an excellent wicket-keeper, Murray was kept out of the team by his namesake, Deryck Murray. In spite of taking over from him temporarily in 1981, David Murray was always relegated to the bench on most occasions.

7. The Indian ‘stuff’:

Murray visited India in 1974-75 and 1977-78 and had a fine tour with the bat the second time around. Apart from two crucial fifties in the Tests, he managed his only first-class double-hundred in a tour game at Jamshedpur. He fondly recalls that innings, and even more so the attractions of Bombay. “It is very easy to get hashish in Bombay,” he reminisces. “A waiter at the team hotel started the whole thing. There was a market there, near the Gateway of India, where you used to get anything, good African marijuana, everything… it’s a great place.”

8. Another devilish curse:

Murray and his family moved to Australia shortly after the 1984 rebel tour. However, he had lost most of his respect and had become famous for hastening the stranglehold of apartheid in South Africa. He lived in Australia till 1991 before moving back to his childhood home in Bridgetown, Barbados.

9. The broken finger:

In Australia in 1979, he played back-to-back Tests with a broken finger but reacted angrily to being dropped for the one-dayers that followed and did not play for the West Indies again.

10. The braids tale:

The Rastafarian braids on David Murray tell a distinct story. Once a strong contender for fame and stardom, Murray now lives in poverty at his childhood home in Barbados. Although he doesn’t like to mention it an awful lot, Murray’s career, and current situation can be pinned down on the apartheid regime.