Cricket: The jewel with a cutting edge

Henry Blofeld says despite its beauty the Queen's Park Oval always offers a stern Test

ALTHOUGH it is a daunting prospect for England to play two Tests in two weeks on the ground where they were skittled for 46 by Curtly Ambrose four years ago, they can at least enjoy the scenery, for Queen's Park Oval is the loveliest of the main grounds in the Caribbean.

Looking out from the pavilion, it has the most lovely backdrop of the glorious but unromantically named North-Eastern mountains, although sadly cricket is at the wrong time of year to catch the vivid scarlet flowers of the "flamboyant" trees in full bloom. It was the first of the West Indian venues to hold more than 20,000 spectators and, until Antigua was deemed to be fit for Test cricket, usually staged two Tests in a five- match series.

In the past the pitch demanded that a touring side brought a couple of adequate spinners and even in the years when West Indian fast bowling was at its best, this was the one ground on which they paid more than lip service to spin.

Like most of the Caribbean Test venues, it has witnessed its share of drama. In 1959-60 the spectators could not bear the thought of Peter May's side winning and when Charan Singh was run out reducing the West Indies to 98 for 8 in their first innings, the bottles flew. The situation was defused by Fred Trueman, fielding near the boundary. He picked up an empty rum bottle, put it to his lips and staggered about as if comprehensively drunk.

England played two heart-stopping matches there in 1967-68. In the first Test of a series which showed that Wes Hall and Charlie Griffith were really past it, England narrowly failed to win after splendid fast bowling by David Brown and Jeff Jones had been backed up by hundreds from Ken Barrington and Tom Graveney, the latter the most peerless hundred I have seen.

After tea on the last day, the West Indies were saved from defeat by Gary Sobers and Hall. One of that year's Carnival hits was Calypso Rose's "Fire In Your Wire", and the crowd chanted it all through the last session as the two West Indians fought it out.

After drawing the next two Tests, England returned for the Fourth Test late in March. On the last day, the West Indies were going along comfortably at 92 for 2. Suddenly Sobers - egged on by his team manager, Everton Weekes who told him: "It only needs 10 balls to win this match" - stood up and declared, even though Griffith was unfit to bowl and the off-spinner Lance Gibbs had to take the new ball.

He set England 215 to win in 165 minutes. Colin Cowdrey, the captain, was happy to settle for a draw but Barrington and John Edrich persuaded him to change his mind. Geoff Boycott and the captain himself batted brilliantly and in a thrilling finish England won by seven wickets with three minutes to spare. Sobers had to have a police guard when the teams arrived in Georgetown the following day.

The drama continued in the two Tests Mike Denness's side played here in 1973-74. In the first, England were bowled out on the first day by Keith Boyce and in spite of a magnificent 174 by Dennis Amiss in the second innings, lost by seven wickets.

This was still the difference between the two sides when they returned for theFifth Test. With Boycott being out for 99, England made 267 and then did wonderfully well to bowl out the West Indies for 305. The architect was Tony Greig who had begun to bowl quick-ish off-breaks, and took 8 for 86. After Boycott had made 112 in the second innings, the West Indies needed 226 to win. Again Greig demoralised them and they were bowled out for 199. Greig's 5 for 70 gave him 13 for 156 in the match.

In 1970-71, it was victory here inspired by the spinners, Prasanna, Venkataraghavan and Bedi, which gave India a series win. They also had the better of the drawn Fifth Test when Sunny Gavaskar, who was 22, made 124 and 220 in the match and 774 in the four Tests he played.

India won another historic match here in 1975-76. Their 406 for 4 remains the highest score ever made by a side in the fourth innings to win a Test Match. Inevitably, Gavaskar made a century. Queen's Park Oval has acquired a taste for the unexpected down the years, and has a twist or two left yet.