Former Jamaica fast bowler William Haye shot dead at his residence

Twelve years ago, in the same month of March, renowned cricket coach Bob Woolmer was found dead in his hotel room in Kingston, Jamaica, during the World Cup. He was the coach of the Pakistan cricket team then and his death occurred a day after Pakistan were knocked out of the tournament. The death remained shrouded in mystery although it was said that the cause was natural.

Over a decade since that tragedy that saw cricket losing one of its most intelligent students, Jamaica was in for another shock. On Wednesday, a former local cricketer William Haye was found lifeless at his residence in Four Paths area of Clarendon after he was shot by an unidentified gunman.

According to a report in the Jamaican Observer, the assassin also set Haye’s house on fire after killing him. Local residents reportedly heard an explosion following gunshots and when they reached the spot, they saw the house of the former 70-year-old cricketer set ablaze. Haye’s body was recovered later from the house and bore gunshot wounds in its upper part.

Haye played seven FC & two List A games

William Haye had played seven first-class and two List ‘A’ games between 1970-77 and scored 198 runs respectively. He had a fifty in first-class cricket besides six wickets. The former right-arm pacer was also known to be a pioneer of fast bowling in Jamaican cricket in the 1970s and early ’80s.

The Jamaica Cricket Association (JCA) mourned the veteran’s death saying it was “tremendously saddened”. “This is shocking news; our thoughts and prayers are with his family, close friends and associates in this their period of grief. The circumstances around his death as reported in the media are beyond unfortunate. We encourage anyone with information which may be useful to the police in their investigations to come forward,” JCA said in a statement.

The cricket body also said that it will honour Haye in the next round of the 2019 Senior Cup, a local tournament. The West Indies Players’ Association (WIPA) also expressed condolences over Haye’s tragic death. “We would like to extend condolences to the family and friends of former cricketer William Haye. Haye was a right-arm fast bowler who played a handful of matches for Jamaica from 1970-1977,” a statement issued by WIPA said.

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