Douglas Sang Hue
Encyclopedia
Douglas Sang Hue is a former West Indian cricket
umpire
. He was a small man, around 5'4" tall, of Chinese
descent.
Sang Hue umpired 31 Test matches
in the West Indies between 1962 and 1981, mostly in the 1970s. His first Test as umpire, the 5th Test against India at Sabina Park
, Kingston, Jamaica
, in March 1962, was also the first time he had officiated in a first-class match
. He stood in four further Test matches in the 1960s. Wisden
called him "Quite the most professional of the umpires" standing in the series against the touring MCC
team in 1967/8.
Sang Hue and Cortez Jordan
were the umpires in the drawn Test against the touring England team in February 1968 at Kingston, Jamaica
, the second Test of the series. West Indies were bowled out for 143 in their first innings, 233 runs behind England, and were asked to follow on. Crowd trouble started on the fourth day when Basil Butcher
was correctly given out by Sang Hue, the fifth wicket to fall in the second innings with West Indies still 28 runs behind. The police used tear gas to subdue the crowd. Unfortunately strong winds blew the gas back towards the police, into the commentators' stand and then into the main pavilion, where the Governor-General, Clifford Campbell
, and other dignitaries were watching the match. The match was extended by 70 minutes into a sixth day to make up for the lost time. A century by Gary Sobers set England a target of 159 to win, but the match ended with England on 68-8, still 90 runs behind.
He was the first umpire to stand in all five Tests a series in the West Indies, in the series against Australia in 1972/3. He repeated the feat in the five Tests against England in 1973/4. In 1973, Ian Chappell
called him "best umpire in the world".
He was involved in controversy on the second day of the first Test against England at Queen's Park Oval
, Port of Spain, Trinidad in February 1974. Alvin Kallicharran
was 142 not out, with West Indies having scored 274 for 6, well ahead of England's first innings score of 131. His partner, Bernard Julien
, was defending the last ball of the day, bowled by Derek Underwood
. Julien played a safe forward defensive stroke, and Kallicharran walked up the pitch towards the pavilion, assuming the day's play was over. However, Tony Greig
, fielding close to the bat at silly point, picked the ball up and, seeing Kallicharan out of his ground at the non-striker's end, threw down the stumps. Sang Hue hesitated, but he had not called "time", and adjudged Kallicharran run out
. Controversy raged, because Alan Knott
had whipped off the bails
and uprooted a stump at the striker's end before Greig threw the ball: some argued that play had therefore ended before Kallicharran was run out, even if "time" had not been called. The scoreboard, having been changed to show seven wicket
s down, reverted to showing six. Sang Hue stood by his decision, and police were called to control the volatile spectators. After a 2½ hour meeting between the captains, the umpires, and West Indies Cricket Board
representatives, the official decision was to reinstate Kallicharran, with Greig's appeal "withdrawn". After the rest day, Greig and Kallicharran shook hands in the middle of the pitch before play resumed on the third day.
In the second Test against Pakistan at Queen's Park Oval in 1976/7, he refused to adjudge Roy Fredericks
out when he clearly failed to make his ground, trying to make a single to complete a century.
He spent a summer in England in 1977, umpiring matches in the County Championship
, John Player League and Benson & Hedges Cup
. He became the only non-Australian umpire in Kerry Packer
's World Series Cricket
later in 1977. After standing in one more Test in the West Indies, the first Test against Australia at Queen's Park Oval in March 1978, but was then dropped by the West Indies Cricket Board (although Bobby Simpson
, the Australian captain, had also complained and thus prevented him standing in the fifth Test, after he no-balled
Bruce Yardley
for throwing
in a match against Jamaica
). He stood in four of the six WSC "Supertests" in Australia in 1977-8, and two of the five in 1978-9, including the Final, together with the five "Supertests" and three out of 12 ODIs in the WSC tour of the Caribbean in 1979.
He returned to stand in three Tests of the 1980/1 series against England.
He umpired only one ODI match, the first ODI between West Indies and Pakistan at Sabina Park in March 1988.
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
umpire
Umpire (cricket)
In cricket, an umpire is a person who has the authority to make judgements on the cricket field, according to the Laws of Cricket...
. He was a small man, around 5'4" tall, of Chinese
Chinese people
The term Chinese people may refer to any of the following:*People with Han Chinese ethnicity ....
descent.
Sang Hue umpired 31 Test matches
Test cricket
Test cricket is the longest form of the sport of cricket. Test matches are played between national representative teams with "Test status", as determined by the International Cricket Council , with four innings played between two teams of 11 players over a period of up to a maximum five days...
in the West Indies between 1962 and 1981, mostly in the 1970s. His first Test as umpire, the 5th Test against India at Sabina Park
Sabina Park
Sabina Park is the home of the Kingston Cricket Club, and is the only Test cricket ground in Kingston, Jamaica and is often referred to as "The Holiday Home of Cricket"....
, Kingston, Jamaica
Kingston, Jamaica
Kingston is the capital and largest city of Jamaica, located on the southeastern coast of the island. It faces a natural harbour protected by the Palisadoes, a long sand spit which connects the town of Port Royal and the Norman Manley International Airport to the rest of the island...
, in March 1962, was also the first time he had officiated in a first-class match
First-class cricket
First-class cricket is a class of cricket that consists of matches of three or more days' scheduled duration, that are between two sides of eleven players and are officially adjudged first-class by virtue of the standard of the competing teams...
. He stood in four further Test matches in the 1960s. Wisden
Wisden
The Wisden Group was a group of companies formed by John Wisden & Co Ltd, publishers of Wisden Cricketers' Almanack. As well as John Wisden & Co, the group included the The Wisden Cricketer magazine, Cricinfo – the world's highest traffic cricket website – and the Hawk-Eye computerised...
called him "Quite the most professional of the umpires" standing in the series against the touring MCC
Marylebone Cricket Club
Marylebone Cricket Club is a cricket club in London founded in 1787. Its influence and longevity now witness it as a private members' club dedicated to the development of cricket. It owns, and is based at, Lord's Cricket Ground in St John's Wood, London NW8. MCC was formerly the governing body of...
team in 1967/8.
Sang Hue and Cortez Jordan
Cortez Jordan
Hugh Cortez Jordan was a Test cricket umpire between 1953 and 1974. In total, he oversaw 22 Test matches, all in the Caribbean and involving the West Indies team....
were the umpires in the drawn Test against the touring England team in February 1968 at Kingston, Jamaica
Kingston, Jamaica
Kingston is the capital and largest city of Jamaica, located on the southeastern coast of the island. It faces a natural harbour protected by the Palisadoes, a long sand spit which connects the town of Port Royal and the Norman Manley International Airport to the rest of the island...
, the second Test of the series. West Indies were bowled out for 143 in their first innings, 233 runs behind England, and were asked to follow on. Crowd trouble started on the fourth day when Basil Butcher
Basil Butcher
Basil Fitzherbert Butcher is a former West Indian cricketer who played in 44 Tests from 1958 to 1969. He was a Wisden Cricketer of the Year in 1970....
was correctly given out by Sang Hue, the fifth wicket to fall in the second innings with West Indies still 28 runs behind. The police used tear gas to subdue the crowd. Unfortunately strong winds blew the gas back towards the police, into the commentators' stand and then into the main pavilion, where the Governor-General, Clifford Campbell
Clifford Campbell
Sir Clifford Clarence Campbell ON, GCMG, GCVO, K.St.J was the first Jamaican-born Governor-General of Jamaica. He served in that position from December 1, 1962, until March 2, 1973....
, and other dignitaries were watching the match. The match was extended by 70 minutes into a sixth day to make up for the lost time. A century by Gary Sobers set England a target of 159 to win, but the match ended with England on 68-8, still 90 runs behind.
He was the first umpire to stand in all five Tests a series in the West Indies, in the series against Australia in 1972/3. He repeated the feat in the five Tests against England in 1973/4. In 1973, Ian Chappell
Ian Chappell
Ian Michael Chappell is a former cricketer who played for South Australia and Australia. He captained Australia between 1971 and 1975 before taking a central role in the breakaway World Series Cricket organisation...
called him "best umpire in the world".
He was involved in controversy on the second day of the first Test against England at Queen's Park Oval
Queen's Park Oval
Queen's Park Oval, in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago, is currently the largest capacity cricket ground in the West Indies and has hosted more Test matches than any other ground in the Caribbean. It also hosted a number of matches in the 2007 Cricket World Cup. It is privately owned by the...
, Port of Spain, Trinidad in February 1974. Alvin Kallicharran
Alvin Kallicharran
Alvin Isaac Kallicharran is a former West Indian batsman of Indo-Guyanese ethnicity who played from 1972 to 1981. His elegant, watchful batting style produced some substantial innings for a West Indian team very much in its formative years in the seventies...
was 142 not out, with West Indies having scored 274 for 6, well ahead of England's first innings score of 131. His partner, Bernard Julien
Bernard Julien
Bernard Denis Julien played 24 Tests and 12 One Day Internationals for the West Indies.He played in England for Kent and joined Packers World Series in 1977. He scored a century at Lords vs England in the 1973 test....
, was defending the last ball of the day, bowled by Derek Underwood
Derek Underwood
Derek Underwood MBE is an English former international cricketer, and a former President of the MCC....
. Julien played a safe forward defensive stroke, and Kallicharran walked up the pitch towards the pavilion, assuming the day's play was over. However, Tony Greig
Tony Greig
Anthony "Tony" William Greig is a former English Test cricketer and currently a commentator.Born in Queenstown, South Africa, Greig qualified to play for England by virtue of his Scottish father. He was a tall batting all-rounder who bowled both medium pace and off spin. He became captain of the...
, fielding close to the bat at silly point, picked the ball up and, seeing Kallicharan out of his ground at the non-striker's end, threw down the stumps. Sang Hue hesitated, but he had not called "time", and adjudged Kallicharran run out
Run out
Run out is a method of dismissal in the sport of cricket. It is governed by Law 38 of the Laws of cricket.-The rules:A batsman is out Run out if at any time while the ball is in play no part of his bat or person is grounded behind the popping crease and his wicket is fairly put down by the opposing...
. Controversy raged, because Alan Knott
Alan Knott
Alan Philip Eric Knott is a former Kent County Cricket Club and English cricketer, as a wicket-keeper-batsman....
had whipped off the bails
Bail (cricket)
In the sport of cricket, a bail is one of the two smaller sticks placed on top of the three stumps to form a wicket. The bails are used to determine when the wicket is broken, which in turn is one of the critical factors in determining whether a batsman is out bowled, stumped, run out or hit wicket...
and uprooted a stump at the striker's end before Greig threw the ball: some argued that play had therefore ended before Kallicharran was run out, even if "time" had not been called. The scoreboard, having been changed to show seven wicket
Wicket
In the sport of cricket the word wicket has several distinct meanings:-Definitions of wicket:Most of the time, the wicket is one of the two sets of three stumps and two bails at either end of the pitch...
s down, reverted to showing six. Sang Hue stood by his decision, and police were called to control the volatile spectators. After a 2½ hour meeting between the captains, the umpires, and West Indies Cricket Board
West Indies Cricket Board
The West Indies Cricket Board is the governing body for professional and amateur cricket in the West Indies...
representatives, the official decision was to reinstate Kallicharran, with Greig's appeal "withdrawn". After the rest day, Greig and Kallicharran shook hands in the middle of the pitch before play resumed on the third day.
In the second Test against Pakistan at Queen's Park Oval in 1976/7, he refused to adjudge Roy Fredericks
Roy Fredericks
Roy Clifton Fredericks was a West Indian cricketer who played from 1968 to 1977....
out when he clearly failed to make his ground, trying to make a single to complete a century.
He spent a summer in England in 1977, umpiring matches in the County Championship
County Championship
The County Championship is the domestic first-class cricket competition in England and Wales...
, John Player League and Benson & Hedges Cup
Benson & Hedges Cup
The Benson & Hedges Cup was a one-day cricket competition for first-class counties in England and Wales that was held from 1972 to 2002, one of cricket's longest sponsorship deals....
. He became the only non-Australian umpire in Kerry Packer
Kerry Packer
Kerry Francis Bullmore Packer, AC was an Australian media tycoon. The son of Sir Frank Packer and Gretel Bullmore, the Packer family company owned controlling interest in both the Nine television network and leading Australian publishing company Australian Consolidated Press, which were later...
's World Series Cricket
World Series Cricket
World Series Cricket was a break away professional cricket competition staged between 1977 and 1979 and organised by Kerry Packer for his Australian television network, Nine Network. The matches ran in opposition to established international cricket...
later in 1977. After standing in one more Test in the West Indies, the first Test against Australia at Queen's Park Oval in March 1978, but was then dropped by the West Indies Cricket Board (although Bobby Simpson
Bobby Simpson
Roberta "Bobby" Marshall is a fictional character from the Australian Channel Seven soap opera Home and Away, played by Nicolle Dickson. She was introduced in the pilot episode by executive producer Alan Bateman. Nearly four hundred actresses auditioned to play Bobby, with Dickson taking the role...
, the Australian captain, had also complained and thus prevented him standing in the fifth Test, after he no-balled
No ball
In the sport of cricket a no ball is a penalty against the fielding team, usually as a result of an illegal delivery by the bowler. The delivery of a no ball results in one run to be added to the batting team's score, and an additional ball must be bowled...
Bruce Yardley
Bruce Yardley
Bruce Yardley is a former Australian cricketer who played in 33 Tests and 7 ODIs from 1978 to 1983...
for throwing
Throwing (cricket)
In the sport of cricket, throwing, commonly referred to as chucking, is an illegal bowling action which occurs when a bowler straightens their arm when delivering the ball. The Laws of Cricket specify that a bowler's arm must be fully extended and rotated about the shoulder to impart velocity to...
in a match against Jamaica
Jamaica national cricket team
The Jamaica national cricket team is the representative first-class cricket team of Jamaica.-History:The team's history lasts back to 1895, when they played three matches against a touring side from England led by Slade Lucas, but because of the distance to the other cricketing countries, Jamaica...
). He stood in four of the six WSC "Supertests" in Australia in 1977-8, and two of the five in 1978-9, including the Final, together with the five "Supertests" and three out of 12 ODIs in the WSC tour of the Caribbean in 1979.
He returned to stand in three Tests of the 1980/1 series against England.
He umpired only one ODI match, the first ODI between West Indies and Pakistan at Sabina Park in March 1988.