West Indies' ‘Three Ws' all score centuries in the same Test innings
March 20, 1954 - Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago

Think West Indian cricket, and you are sure to have a cavalcade of champions cross the crease in your mind.

The list of names, including the likes of Richards and Richardson; Ambrose and Walsh; Lara and Chanderpaul, is nigh-on endless.

However, each of these Caribbean champions could only grow after a trio of Barbadian kings hoed the row for them.

Known collectively as 'The Three Ws', Clyde Walcott, Everton Weekes and Frank Worrell shared numerous similarities.

Each was a right-handed batsman, born between August 1924 and January 1926 in Saint Michael, Barbados, and each would cap their sterling careers with knighthoods for their services to the game of cricket.

This resemblance would continue over to the stats sheet, too, with each averaging between 49.48 and 58.61 from their oft-complimentary middle-order slots in the order.

In all, the trio would combine for 39 Test centuries and more than 12,000 runs within an era in which the Windies announced themselves as a force to be reckoned with both then and well into the future.

Still, never once in their burgeoning careers had these stars shone simultaneously.

Until the 20th of March, 1954, that is.

After winning the toss and electing to bat in the fourth Test against England in Port Of Spain, the hosts set about posting a formidable target, with each of Weekes (206) and Worrell (167) bringing up their centuries before the end of the second day.

Walcott, however, resumed his stay at the crease on the third day with a score of 70 to his name.

And while the eldest member of the trifecta would be the only one to raise his bat on this day, Walcott's 124-run stand would see the Windies served with 497 of their 681 runs from their third, fourth and fifth slots - a total of 72.98 per cent of their score from just three blades.

While the Test would eventually wile away to a heavy-scoring draw, the collaborative efforts of the Three Ws would steer the Windies to a 2-1 series win, etching their names into the history books along the way.

These days, Australia and the West Indies compete for the Frank Worrell Trophy, named after the middle-order all-rounder who would eventually lead his side on a captivating tour of the Antipodes during the summer of 1960/61, one that would begin with the first-ever tied test.

But that's a story for another day.