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Witness History: Windies Make England Grovel

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Windies Make England Grovel

22/08/2012 GMT

BBC World Service - Witness History, Windies Make England Grovel

The year the England cricket captain said he was going to make the West Indies "grovel".

In the summer of 1976 the England cricket captain, Tony Greig, said he was going to make the West Indies "grovel" in the upcoming series of Test matches. It was a remark he came to regret.

It's the summer of 1976 and the England cricket team is preparing for a series against the West Indies.

The England captain, the South African-born Tony Greig, says in a pre-series interview that he intends to make his opponents "grovel".

This was a highly provocative remark, made about a team of mainly black cricketers from the Caribbean in the era of apartheid; and a remark that Greig was made to regret once the teams took the field. 

(Image: Man of the match Michael Holding acknowledging the crowd after the fifth test for the Wisden Trophy at the Oval in 1976. Credit: Getty Images)

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