Bob Willis dead at 70: Kim Hughes remembers England great
At his fearsome best, England great Bob Willis was a truly mesmerising package. But he’s remembered by a long-time rival as an on-field rock star and a delight away from the game.
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It’s almost four decades since Bob Willis up-ended Australia at Headingley yet Kim Hughes swears he can still see the pumping limbs and stony-eyed stare from a planet far, far away.
English fast bowler Willis, who died on Thursday aged 70 after a long and very private battle with cancer, was, in full cry, a truly mesmerising package.
The zany vibe generated by his 1960s-style mop of bouncing hair – perhaps a tribute to his idol Bob Dylan – was at odds with an intense, super serious facial expression and deep set eyes which always seemed to be guarding dark intentions he wanted no-one else to see.
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And they were dark for the Australian cricket team who visited England in 1981 and were bowled out for 111 with Willis taking a stunning 8-43 for an 18-run Headingley win that sent the entire nation into celebration mode.
Kim Hughes, Australian captain of that team, fell to Willis 11 times in Tests and well remembers the irresistible force the giant fast man was on that day.
“He was just in the zone,’’ Hughes said.
“I think the second wicket fell at 50 and he just kept screaming in down the hill. He had one of those days.
“When I first saw him I thought he won’t last long with an action like that. You could say he looked like an ugly duckling but it worked. He was a captain’s dream. Once he got the ball in his hand off he would go.
“He was pumping the arms and the this and that. You would not recommend it to kids but it worked for him. I cannot remember him ever having a back problem.
“He was fantastic on the field but a great bloke off the field. A real good bloke. I saw him in commentary years after we played and he was always interested in what you were doing.
“It is a sad day for cricket worldwide. He was just the consummate durable pro.
“Courtney Walsh captained the West Indies but apart from Bob leading England there were not many bowling captains around.
“I cannot recall him being injured. He was just unbelievable. He was awkward bowler to face not just because of his height but he got out wide, bowl into you and straighten it up and hit the top of off-stump.’’
Willis’ athletic prowess was restricted to cricket alone for he had a librarians biceps, spindly legs and both knees operated on by age 25.
But he but surged through the pain barrier to play 90 Tests and finish with 325 wickets at 25, regarded as perhaps the fastest bowler England had seen since Frank Tyson.
Willis was a strident television critic with well-expressed, occasionally controversial views and was at his best after he retired from mainstream commentary in 2005 and moved to a panel show called The Verdict where his dark humour could be seen at its best, prompting Joe Root to work on an impersonation of Willis’ funereal demeanour.
Willis had an infatuation with Dylan to the point where he changed his named to Robert George Dylan Willis, once claiming the high point of his life was not his eight-wicket haul against Australia but being allowed to sit on stage and watch Dylan perform at Newcastle in England
I once asked him about meeting Dylan and he said “I’m not sure I want to ... the thing about meeting your heroes is that so often they disappoint you.’’
That could not be said of Willis, an on field star and a unique off field character who was never less than good company.
Originally published as Bob Willis dead at 70: Kim Hughes remembers England great