As terror hits all over, where are world leaders? asks Viv Richards

NEW YORK: Sir Isaac Vivian Alexander Richards is a worried man. Worried not just for his family and himself, but “fellow citizens of the world” as well. Worried because of the random terror strikes which don’t seem to spare anybody. Worried because of the alarming growth of ISIS (even though he labelled them as part of “certain forces”). “Tell me, brother, what has the world come to in 2016? Let me know what’s going on. I don’t understand what’s happening, don’t understand it at all,” a highly emotional Sir Viv told The Telegraph in Antigua.

The icon, who took the art of batting to quite another level and inspired the Sachin Tendulkars, is now 64. At the crease, Sir Viv’s bat did the talking  — with his swagger adding to the opposition’s discomfiture — but he has always had a voice off the field. It has never been taken lightly. Speaking on Monday evening, Sir Viv added: “This is not the world I grew up in. I’ve travelled the world over many times but now, if I have to head for New Delhi or Mumbai, I’d be scared... “Scared whether I’d reach my destination or some co-passenger on some flight will whip out a pistol and then... “I hate saying this, but it’s a risk each time you board a flight... “You don’t know what may happen... “Today, the innocents are paying for the guilty. There’s no better way to describe what is going on... “It’s about folks like you and me getting caught at the wrong place at the wrong time... “One’s life, it appears, depends on being at the right place at the right time... “Otherwise... “You’re not safe in an airport (Brussels), you can’t go to the French Riveria, you’re not safe in a restaurant (Dhaka), you can’t go to a mall in Munich... “Shot at an airport, mowed down on the Riviera, gunned down while having pasta... “What is this? I still can’t imagine how that insane person could run over even infants in strollers (in Nice)... “Inhuman, inhuman... “Can’t imagine that the shooter in Munich was a teenager. An 18-year-old killing people, when he should be playing soccer or cricket or basketball... “It’s mighty terrifying... “Look at what’s happening in parts of the US. Police officers shoot Blacks and, then, the vicious retaliation which follows... “It’s insane. This isn’t living in a civilised world... “I’m regular with the news, I’m aware of what’s happening around the world. I’m deeply saddened almost on a daily basis.” Gesturing with his hands, Sir Viv asked: “Where are the world’s leaders? What are they doing? I don’t know, that’s why I ask. I’d like to know.” Anguished as he is, does Sir Viv have a solution? “No, I don’t... I don’t because I just don’t understand what’s going on. I don’t see anybody taking an initiative to end this bloodshed, yet I do see the killers... “Everywhere... “See them in Brussels, see them in Dhaka, see them in Nice, see them in Munich... “Where next? Aren’t the world’s leaders asking themselves that? Don’t we, the citizens of this planet, deserve justice? Tell me, brother,” an even more emotional Sir Viv said. Sir Viv continued: “While I don’t have a solution, meet certain forces half-way, those forces which have no business being around, but still are a frightening reality... “Some discussion, some talks are needed... In the meantime, pray and don’t lose faith in God... We just don’t have a choice, no option...”