This was a West Indian batsman for the West Indies. More than that, Lawrence Rowe was a hometown boy: at Sabina Park, four Tests brought him three centuries, including a unique double and single hundred on debut, and an average of 113.40. In the rest of the Caribbean he averaged 43, and less than 30 abroad. He was an enigmatic, elegant, composed right-hander, opening or high in the order. He thrived on sunshine, and the back-foot shots that were the staple on hard pitches and less comfortable on slower seaming surfaces. His hooking and pulling was instinctive and deadly. But his career was punctuated by problems with his eyesight, a variety of injuries and, perversely, an allergy to grass. If Lawrence sneezed, they said, put the opposition in. He might not have been one of the supreme batsmen, but he did manage one of the great innings. Against England at Bridgetown in 1974 he made 302 out of 596 for 8, in a little over ten hours of unruffled technical excellence.
Mike Selvey