The Bird who soared

Players come and go but Dickie Bird still has the cricketing world wrapped around his index fingerrdquo These words appeared in a feature carried by this newspaperrsquos Sunday edition way back in 1994Now after the demise of Harold lsquoDickiersquo Bird we can well say ldquoUmpires come and go but his verdictgiving index finger is not the only thing the cricketing world will remember gamersquos most popular umpire forrdquo Bird was one of the great characters of the game mdash funny but firm eccentric but sharp and to top it all one that served the game long after his best onfield yearsYorkshire County Cricket Club YCCC which he represented in firstclass cricket before donning the umpirersquos coat availed of his involvement that went beyond mere visits Birdrsquos death triggered tributes galore from the cricketing world but there was one which was particularly endearing It came from Maroof Khan a Mumbaibred cricketer who now lives in YorkshireldquoI was fortunate to spend time with him in Yorkshire and what always stood out was his consistency of character He was always the first to arrive at the ground always ready for a chat and always offering confidence and encouragement to those around him That generosity and kindness left a mark on everyone he met Dickie was far more than one of the finest umpires the game has ever known ndash he was an icon of cricket whose humour passion and integrity embodied the very spirit of the sport He connected with people whether they were players supporters or youngsters just beginning their cricket journeyrdquo wrote Maroof on Facebook on Wednesday morning after which he told me how when he was Yorkshire County Cricket Clubrsquos business development director clients would often request to meet Bird more than the playersEccentrics are often misunderstood but they are generous as well Bird was and the quality subtly comes through in this anecdote featuring him As Bird and Tom Spencer ran to the pavilion after the last Australian wicket was claimed by the West Indies at 855 pm in the 1975 World Cup final at Lordrsquos a spectator nicked Birdrsquos cap The following year Bird was in London to officiate in the 1976 County Championship match between Middlesex and Surrey While travelling in a bus he noticed a West Indian conductor wearing the same cap ldquoExcuse me but where did you get that white caprdquo Bird asked ldquoMan havenrsquot you heard of Mr Dickie Bird the great Test match umpire This is one of his famous white caps and I am so proud of it I took it off his head in the 1975 World Cup final when we West Indies beat the Australians at Lordrsquos We all ran on to the field and I won the race for Dickie Birdrsquos caprdquo the conductor remarked Now Bird was well within his rights to demand his cap back but he chose not to permitting the man to enjoy his treasure Thatrsquos generosity too apart from the fact that he often donated his white caps to be auctioned for various charitiesBirdrsquos popularity couldnrsquot have grown in the 1970s had it not been for the fact that he was rated a good umpire by visiting teams We have read about sides having a problem with his contemporary David Constant but not Bird In our 1995 conversation he proudly told me how the West Indies of 1973 requested the England cricket board then known as the Test and County Cricket Board to appoint him for another Test featuring them after he did duty in the second Test at Birmingham This was after his debut Test in the same year against the New Zealanders ldquoUmpiring is application dedication concentration and common sense But gaining respect from the players is most important If you have got that then you have won threefourths of the battlerdquo he saidHad Bird been officiating today he would have been seen often in different parts of the world but he was grateful for whatever assignments came his way I wonder how many of the umpires doing duty in the ongoing Asia Cup know that Bird officiated in the 1984 edition which India won Bird just couldnrsquot believe that he umpired in a tournament that was held in the desertHe didnrsquot have any qualms in admitting that he had made umpiring mistakes ldquoEveryone makes them and so have I All I can say is the man who makes the least number of mistakes goes to the toprdquo said BirdImran Khan who was one of the first players to campaign for neutral umpires thought the world of Bird ldquoI wish all umpires approached the standard of Dickie Bird who is the best Irsquove ever known because hersquos consistent Hersquos known to be a lsquonot outerrsquo among umpires and thatrsquos fair enough because he remains that wayrdquo wrote the Pakistan cricket legend in his 1983 autobiographyBird appeared upset when I asked what he thought of neutral umpires ldquoAll umpires are neutralrdquo he insisted He also had the development of local umpires at heart ldquoBy having neutral umpires officiating you will kill umpires at the grassroots level because it is every umpirersquos dream to stand in a Test on his home soil You will leave umpires with no goal to accomplishrdquo Bird knew what he was talking about and we know what a great umpire we have lostmiddayrsquos Deputy Editor Clayton Murzellois a purist with an open stanceHe tweets ClaytonMurzello Send your feedback to mailbagmiddaycomThe views expressed in this column are the individualrsquos and donrsquot represent those of the paper