Lives in Cricket No 30 - MJK Smith

110 Hotelier of Wootton Court roof, which made it difficult to keep the court warm in winter – the main squash season. Not only did this mean that the game was less enjoyable for experienced players, but beginners and children had great difficulty in warming the ball up to get a rally going. These deficiencies outweighed the benefits of a Banbury court and word passed round to be wary of choosing them. Despite pouring money into the Banbury Cup, a national competition for clubs, the company made little headway and would have foundered sooner had the overall business not been propped up by the traditional garages. As he entered his third year with Robins it was becoming clear to Mike that he might soon need to find other ways of earning his living. One option that remained open to him was a return to cricket. Mike had kept his hand in with some club cricket in his first year away from Warwickshire, and the following summer the new 40-over John Player League had given him the chance to return to the county game on Sundays. So, in September 1969, a deal was struck whereby Warwickshire would pay his salary from 1 April to the end of September with Robins picking up the responsibility in the winter. Misunderstandings arose. Mike had been clear that he hoped to return to cricket to end his career; but Robins had thought his intention was to play for just one summer. By the same token Mike had not expected to resume working for Banbury in the winter of 1970/71. He was nevertheless grateful for employment. To Robins, M.J.K. Smith was a useful name across the Banbury business and he saw value in enhancing Mike’s profile. Hence, so far from fearing that Mike would be diverted from his Banbury work, Robins saw benefits in him becoming a Test selector. Perhaps at Robins’ instigation, Mike’s name had been put forward by one of the counties. Mike himself had not been consulted, and made it clear that he had no wish to be considered: ‘I said no. I was working for Derrick Robins, and I knew if I was going to be a selector I’d never get home.’ This was not the response Robins had been seeking, and a letter to Mike in January 1971 expressed his dissatisfaction. The letter also alluded to Robins’ disappointment that Mike had shown no interest in allowing himself to become a candidate for the captaincy of the MCC side Ray Illingworth was leading in Australia. Mike had harboured no thoughts that he might have been a serious contender but he had, in any case, waved goodbye to whole winters away from his growing family. From further correspondence, it is clear that a sequence of events, including Mike’s reluctance to