WI legend Sir Clive Lloyd expected invitation to witness ODI WC final clash

Clive Lloyd at a hotel in Kolkata yesterday

Sir Clive Lloyd, the West Indies captain, who led his team to victory in the first two World Cups in 1975 and 1979, was expecting an invitation to witness the 2023 ODI World Cup final contested between India and Australia at Ahmedabad on November 19.

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"I was expecting an invitation, because there was some news in the air that captains, who had won the World Cup would be invited for the final. But it never came. I learnt later that even the great Kapil Dev [India's 1983 World Cup-winning skipper] was not invited despite being a son of the soil. I have some consolation. If Kapil was not invited, then who am I? The world is changing, we have to accept it," said Lloyd.

The great from Guyana is in Bengal to be part of the 75th year celebrations of Satgachia High School. The school will host a cricket tournament on Saturday when the former West Indies captain will be felicitated. Lloyd had been invited for all previous finals. On some occasions, he was one of the match referees for the World Cup. Lloyd made three Test trips to India and each of those series (1966-67, 1974-75 and 1983-84) featured a Test in Kolkata. In fact, the second Test of the 1966-67 series was the second of his career after his debut in the opening Test at Mumbai's Brabourne Stadium. Lloyd, 79, will have fond memories of the 1983-84 Test, where he led from the front with a match-impacting innings of 161 not out.