Some of the finest fast bowlers the game has produced have come to Sri Lanka and left an indelible mark. Wasim Akram was the absolute genius while Sir Richard Hadlee humbled us in 1980s.
Kapil Dev and Imran Khan had their moments and so did Allan Donald and Dale Steyn. Two years ago, Mitchell Starc took 24 wickets here in a three-match series. But despite all their efforts, Brett Schultz remains special for Sri Lankans. He came out of obscurity, destroyed a strong Sri Lankan side and hardly made an impact thereafter due to injuries. With the Proteas in town, let’s recall Schultz’s efforts from 25 years ago.
There was political turmoil in the country in 1993. President Premadasa had been assassinated and a few days prior to that Lalith Athulathmudali had also been gunned down. South Africa were getting ready to tour Sri Lanka after readmission to cricket following the end of apartheid. There was a bit of doubt about the tour taking place given the political unrest in the country, but eventually Kepler Wessels’ side came.
The Sri Lankans were aware that the South Africans had raw pace, having seen some of their bowlers during the World Cup in Australia and New Zealand a year ago. But Wessels’ side brought a secret weapon to Colombo. Brett Schultz is his name. He was one of the pioneer exponents of reverse swing. And Arjuna Ranatunga’s side had no clue against his raw pace. Lethal with the new ball and equally effective with the older ball, Schultz was a captain’s dream. The Sri Lankans knew that Allan Donald was the opposition’s trump card, but never did they think that the little known left-arm quick Schultz would have a such a huge impact.
Schultz’s first passion was rugby. He could have gone onto play for the Springboks had Wessels not urged him to focus on cricket. Rugby’s loss was cricket’s gain. And it was at the expense of Sri Lanka.
The Sri Lankan trip was his maiden tour with the Proteas. He finished with 20 wickets in the series and ended a few Sri Lankan careers.
South Africa won the SSC Test by an innings and 208 runs to clinch the three-match series 1-0. Schultz was Man of the Match claiming nine wickets. He was well complemented by Donald and Richard Snell, who finished with six and five wickets respectively at SSC.
“Brett Schultz was quite intimidating for a small man like me,” Aravinda de Silva, who treated the best fast bowlers in the world with disdain, told The Papare.com.
Schultz was raw and wasn’t too familiar with the tricks of the trade. There was this funny incident with Roshan Mahanama batting. Having observed the opener shuffling across the wicket, Wessels from first slip passed on a message to bowl on the leg-stump. The message was passed onto the gully fielder, who then conveyed it to the covers. From covers to mid-off and then to the bowler. To keep the message a secret to the batsman, Wessels had expressed himself in Afrikaans, the language spoken by South Africans of Dutch origin. But Schultz spoke little Afrikaans and shouted back at the captain in English saying, “If you want me to bowl leg-stump, tell the fine-leg fielder to get finer.’ Mahanama was bemused, turned around to the slip cordon and queried, ‘Why is he giving that away?
Schultz was a fierce competitor on the field, but a friendly bloke off the field. If you get the opportunity to meet him, you would realize what an amiable person he is.
His unusual action meant that his knees and ankles were operated on several times. Eventually injuries put an end to his career after less than a handful of Test matches. The unusual delivery stride took a huge toll on his body. Would he have been better off with a remodeled, smoother action? He would have played a lot more with a refined action, but whether he would have been as effective remains a question. Schultz was one of the heaviest fast bowlers to play the game, weighing over 100 kilos at his prime. The delivery stride was his strong point and eventually his Achilles heel.
After retirement, he suffered another devastating blow.
Schultz was getting ready to go on a business trip and climbed up a chair to get a suitcase from a cupboard. He fell down and ended up shattering his elbow. He nearly lost his right arm. Surgery was okay, but then he ended up with a hospital bug and the doctors couldn’t get rid of it. His elbow was operated on 16 times! The elbow was eventually saved but he doesn’t have an elbow joint as a result.
Schutz’s feat has never been matched in Sri Lanka by any other fast bowler before or after. He was a one series wonder, but what a series that was. One man decided Sri Lanka’s fate.
