Geoffrey Boycott
The Enigma
By Tushar Bhaduri

We know of teachers who possessed so much knowledge that they had difficulty expressing it to their students. Due to a lack of communication skills, they could not get their point across to their intended target audience. We can thus deduce that a great practitioner in a specialized skill may not necessarily be a great communicator.

Geoffrey Boycott has this problem when it comes to his personal image. He has been often described as a loner and one who is more popular in the opposition’s dressing room than his own.

But then, greatness does not come so easily. One has to pay a price for it. Greats are not ordinary mortals. The usual rules do not apply to them.

Born in the mining village of Fitzwilliam in the English County of Yorkshire, he was a determined character from his childhood. When most youngsters from his background saw themselves as miners, Boycott was a rebel. He did not fit into the mining or the village’s scheme of things.

When it came to choosing a career, he carefully compared conventional employment to his interest in sports (cricket and football) before making his decision.

It is a tribute to his determination and quest for perfection that when his eyesight was detected to be weak he practiced hours and hours, session after session to be comfortable batting with glasses (not contact lenses). Nothing could be left to luck.

As a player, Boycott’s record for Yorkshire and England speak for itself. In 108 Tests, he has amassed 8114 runs at an average of 47.72 with 22 Hundreds and 42 Fifties. And when you consider that he was an opening batsman having to face the great fast men of these days, on tracks which encouraged the seamers and fast bowlers in no small measure, such a record is one to be cherished.

The Boycott technique has become a yardstick for batsman and at one point of time it became well nigh impossible to breach his defense. His only shortcoming was that often he became obsessed with defense. This made him a terrier – like character who sold his wicket dearly. This quality came from his introverted self, his self made cocoon.  He felt that the world was against him and he had to stand firm. Often he ignored rotating the strike in this obsession.

He took his defensive batting to such a length that when he made his career high Test score of 246 not out at Headingley against India in 1967, he was dropped for the next Test because the selectors thought that he scored his runs too slowly.

Inspite of not seeing eye to eye on many issues with the Yorkshire committee he has loyally served the county throughout his carrier. That’s the reason why he was able to create a special bond with the Yorkshire supporters. And often he received a quite different response from the supporters of his opponents, who saw in him a snob who looked down upon other players. This perception is partly true too.

His insight and knowledge of the game cannot be faulted, though. As a commentator, his comments are most incisive. He says what he sees and is not afraid to speak his mind. He calls a spade a spade. For this reason, most mortals would not find much praise out of Geoffrey Boycott’s mouth. If he praises someone, that fellow has to be something special. He does not sugarcoat his criticisms either. But then tact never was one of his strengths.

It has to be said that there is not one person around Boycott  who  he can call his true friend and in whose presence, he can unburden himself. This has been more evident since the death of his mother to whom he was very close. No wife has been able to make any lasting impression on his character. The legal case that he lost against one of his girlfriends in which she alleged him of assaulting her and beating her badly has also had an adverse impact. BBC relieved him from their commentary team as  a result.

These days, Geoffrey Boycott can be seen in places as varied as South Africa, the Caribbean and the Indian sub-continent giving vital inputs and insights into the game through his knowledgeable commentary

Most people love him for his style and his typical accent. Others are repelled by him. He could not care less. At the end of the day, it’s not what he does, but what he is, that is important.