Lives in Cricket No 30 - MJK Smith

6 circles, has become history. That there has been no book devoted to the life and accomplishments of this exceptional man, either from his own pen or from a professional scribe, has been for many years a matter of regret and disappointment. Approaches from writers inestimably better qualified than I have been politely declined, not least because Mike Smith has no appetite for trumped-up sensationalism or the settling of scores (if there happened to be many to settle, which I rather doubt). I taxed Mike on this sad omission when he came to stay a night at my home, with no expectation that I was going to change a mind long set and with no thought of having a role to play myself. Next day, as we motored to a speaking engagement for which I had twisted his ever-willing arm, he surprised me by saying that he would be happy if I would do a book – within the Lives in Cricket series, where he could be confident that there would be no gratuitous mischief. I had not expected to embark on another book in the series, but this was too good an opportunity, too much of a privilege, to turn down. As soon as I began to speak with those who had known Mike from his days at Oxford I quickly learnt that this was a man with a wide circle of long-standing friends. Among them is Roy Allaway, the South African captain of the 1955 Oxford rugby team and the man who must take the credit for bringing together the half- back partnership of David Onllwyn Brace and M.J.K. Smith. From Australia, where he now lives, I received an email that encapsulated the qualities so many in the world of sport have come to recognize and value: ‘The initials MJK for people who know Mike well stand for modesty, jolliness and kindness. Modesty because he was self- effacing notwithstanding all his outstanding accomplishments which include being the only man to score centuries in three successive Varsity cricket matches and probably the only man who has captained Oxford at cricket, captained England at cricket and also represented England at rugby. Jolliness because of his consistent cheerful and convivial disposition. Kindness because he had this quality in abundance. As an illustration, apart from being Peter Robbins’ good friend, he was Peter’s mentor and at times, particularly after rugby social events, his minder who saw to it that Peter got safely home and stayed home till dawn.’ The name Mike Smith is, of course, hopeless for search engines – and, though at least four generations of his family have enjoyed, as a second or third baptismal appendage, the name of Knight, Mike would not countenance promoting it to double-barrelled Introduction