Tall and strapping, Sylvester Clarke was a right-arm fast bowler with a strange, in swinger’s action in which his arm came over rapidly and very high. Despite the fact that the batsman saw the chest instead of the left shoulder in the delivery stride. Genial off the field, Sylvester Clarke was the man to have on your side. Very fast and hostile when fit and firing. He played a prominent part in Surrey’s first success in a county competition for many years in the Benson and Hedges Cup 1982.
Sylvester Clarke was born in Christ Church, Barbados, on Dec 11, 1954. Clarke first played for Barbados in 1977-78 and against Trinidad that season his 6 for 39 in an innings included a hat trick. in his first Test, against Australia in 1977-78 he took 3 for 58 and 3 for 83. The only injury to which, despite his powerful physique, he was prone and prevented him from playing farther games in the series.
In India, in 1978-79 he headed the Test bowling average with 21 wickets average 33.85. And he made the tours of Pakistan in 1980-81 and Australia in 1981-82. Although he did well on the tour of Pakistan taking 14 wickets average of 17.28 in four tests and hitting an important 35 not out in 30 balls with three consecutive sixes at Faisalabad.
But he seriously blotted his copybook when furious at being pelted by oranges and other missiles. When fielding on the boundary during the last Test in Multan. He picked up a brick being used as a boundary marker and hurled it into the stands and a spectator, hit by it. He was taken to the hospital. Who was seriously injured? Fortunately for Clarke, he recovered and the bowler, normally a genial man, escaped with a short suspension by the West Indies Cricket Board.
An unashamed hitter as a batsman he made a rapid 100 not out for Surrey against Glamorgan in 1981. In the 1982 season, he took 85 wickets average of 19.95! But the following winter he burnt the boats of his career for West Indies signing to play for Transvaal and for the unofficial West Indian team in South Africa.
