David ‘Pamba’ Odhiambo: Celebrated player, scorer and umpire

THE BIG INTERVIEW

Selling mangoes and roasted groundnuts around cricket pitches in Nairobi opened the door for David “Pamba” Odhiambo to join the gentleman’s game. He now eats, lives and dreams cricket!

Turning on his seat in his office on the first floor of the club house at Ruaraka Sports Club, where he works as a Development Manager for Cricket Kenya, the 40-year-old Odhiambo remembers how he made entry to cricket years ago as if it was only yesterday.

“It was a bright Sunday morning in 1988 when my father, the late Agostino Agutu, asked me to accompany him to an early morning mass at the St Peter’s Claver’s Church on Racecourse Road, Nairobi. At that time, I was a Standard Five pupil at St Pauls’ Primary School, Mbotela, where we were residing in Government Quarters, as my father was a civil servant.

“When we reached the church, my father left the sack he was carrying outside, next to the door, as we entered for the mass. It contained mangoes, curry powder, groundnuts and a kitchen knife.  After the church service, my father picked his sack and we headed to the bus stop to pick a matatu that took us to Murang’a Road.

“Nairobi Gymkhana was our destination. A major game was taking place there pitting the home team against Nairobi Jaffreys. It was a crowd-puller and my father was expecting to make good sales there as there were many spectators.

He needed someone to watch his sack as he moved around the ground carrying whatever items he could and that role fell on me.  On our way home at the end of the match, my father told me that Gymkhana had won the match by five wickets. Back then I did not understand what it meant. That was Greek to me.”

Odhiambo, who comes from a polygamous home, is the last born in a family of six. His step mother had the same number of children. He said that he lived with his step mother who treated him like her own child. His biological mother had relocated to their rural home in Nyakach, Kisumu County, when he was still a child and he does not remember living with her.

“My father was a subordinate staff in Treasury and with so many mouths to feed from a meagre salary of a civil servant, he had to supplement his income to make ends mate. That was how he ended up in sporting venues where he sold mangoes and groundnuts.

“I took over ‘guarding’ duties from my elder sister, the late Mary Akinyi, without any formal handing over,” Odhiambo says with a chuckle.

“I watched over my father’s sack for four years, after which I was allowed to follow in the footsteps of my father."

“My father went to Marikiti (Nairobi’s wholesale market) very early in the morning, around 4am to buy mangoes. He returned home before dawn to sort them out while I was deep asleep. When everything was ready, he work me up."

“He went to the grounds where the big boys were playing and he would send me along with my step siblings to other venues where there were less important games which were not expected to attract large crowds. My siblings and I always went home after the game, but our father moved to another ground whenever the game at his venue ended earlier. He always got someone to give him a lift. I did the selling for two years.”

But even as he sold njugu (groundnuts) and maembe (mangoes) Odhiambo kept looking with admiration at the combatants on the cricket field. He was fascinated with how the batsmen and bowlers got locked in a battle for numbers. He would try to count the runs made, or balls bowled and imagined himself involved in the action.

So, it was just natural that he joined the youngster at the club having go at batting and bowling.

Playing the game in school at St Theresa’s Secondary School also helped and soon he joined Nairobi Gymkhana B side in 1994.

“I played alongside Thomas Odoyo, Francis Otieno, John Mayeka and Elvis Auma among others.”
When asked how he got his nickname ‘Pamba’, he says: “My elder brother, the late Paul Okello was a light heavyweight boxer and a cricket player.

He turned up for Swamibapa and he used to tell Mayeka and other boys “mambo imepamba moto”. Mayeka started calling me ‘pamba moto’ and after a short while he dropped the word ‘moto’ and started calling me ‘pamba’. The name ‘pamba’ stuck and when someone calls me Odhiambo I take time to realise that he was referring to me.
So, how was he introduced to scoring?

“I just started doing it and when I got adept at it the club moved me to Nairobi Gymkhana A side as a 12th man, not to play for the team but to score. I was accurate and my hand writing was very neat. That pleased club officials who made me a scorer permanently and I bid farewell to my playing career.”

Scoring in cricket matches involves recording the number of runs scored by a batsman and wickets taken by a bowler and showing number of runs conceded by the bowler. 

Odhiambo become one of the top scorers in the country and was the first choice pick when a scorer was required in the media box during the 1996 Four Nations Tournament at the Nairobi Gymkhana, the first international cricket event to be hosted in Kenya.

It brought together the reigning world champions, Sri Lanka, former champions Pakistan, South Africa and hosts Kenya, who had made their World Cup debut early in the year in Asia.

Odhiambo excelled in his work and became a darling of international cricket writers. After his splendid job in the Four Nations Championship, Odhiambo was always present in the media box of all subsequent international events held in the country.

Two years earlier, Odhiambo had completed his secondary school education at St Teresa’s Boys in Nairobi and joined Nairobi Provincial Cricket Association Development Programme as a coach.

His job along with that of others ended abruptly in 2004, when wrangles between Kenya Cricket Association and their affiliates, NPCA and Coast Cricket Association, culminated in the formation of Cricket Kenya. He got a job with CK five years later as a development manager.

He qualified as a cricket umpire on November 3, 1997 and become a member of Kenya Umpires and Scorers Association (Kusa).

As with any officials, there are always controversial moments where competence is questioned.

“Two years after becoming an umpire, I officiated a game between arch-rivals, Swamibapa and Aga Khan Sports Club at Impala Club. I found myself in trouble when I lifted my right hand, pointing finger up to send Maurice Odumbe back to the pavilion as he had been trapped leg before wicket (lbw) by Peter Ong’ondo’s delivery. Both Aga Khan Sports Club players and officials were up in arms complaining that I was incompetent, therefore, I was the wrong choice to handle such a game. 

“As umpires we reported Odumbe’s misbehaviour in our match report. Odumbe was called by the disciplinary committee for his unsporting behaviour and was suspended for six games.”

Odhiambo smiles, as if saying his competence is above reproach.

“Odhiambo is one of the best umpires not only in Kenya but also in the ICC associate and affiliate countries,” former Kenya captain, Jimmy Kamande said.

“He is very keen in his work and is somebody who is always ready to accept his mistakes. He knows laws of cricket like the back of his hands.”

Isaac Oyieko, one of Kenya’s top umpires said this of Odhiambo: “After the retirement of Subash Modi, Odhiambo became our senior umpire. One feels confident standing in the field with him. If you umpire with a good colleague you are relieved 50 per cent of the pressure. Odhiambo makes you feel comfortable and that raises your rating.”

Odhiambo’s work as an umpire has taken him to many countries and he feels obliged to share his culinary experience.

“I do not mind Uganda’s ‘matoke’ or Tanzania’s ‘wali’ but I could not stand South Africa’s ‘lusagne’ - a mixer of minced meat, spaghetti, pasta with vegetable mixed with yogurt. I ate it but my system did not cope with it too well. I stayed in South Africa for five days before we moved to Namibia where I had no problem with their food, which was mainly steak and potatoes, chapati and curry.

“Whenever I visited Asia, I would not experience diet problems as it would mainly be chicken, rice, potatoes and chapati. The only problem I have there is with their sea fish as I am used to fresh water fish.”

Odhiambo accompanied his mentor, Subhash Modi, to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, in 2005, where ICC Cricket League Division eight matches were taking place.

Odhiambo said: “We officiated two games and were reserves in same number of matches. We also attended a seminar conducted by Chris Kelly (England) and Darrel Hair (Australia) who were both in the ICC panel of umpires.” It was after that seminar Modi’s status as an umpire was elevated to the newly formed body of umpires, ICC Associate and Affiliate International Umpire Panel. It was a promotion of a kind. He remained there until 2010 when he retired.
Odhiambo replaced Modi in the ICC Associate and Affiliate International Umpire Panel the following year.

There were only two umpires from Africa in it up to 2015. These were Kenya’s Odhiambo and Wynand Louw of Namibia. The panel was expanded in 2016 and two more Kenyan umpires were brought in, Rocky D’Mello and Isaac Ayeko. 

After promotion, Odhiambo got his first assignment in February 2012, at the four-day ICC Intercontinental Cup between Kenya and Ireland held at Mombasa Sports Club.

After the Irish tour, the ICC black listed Kenya from hosting international matches due to security concerns until November last year when Hong Kong toured the country to take part in the ICC Word Cricket Championship.
Odhiambo was one of the umpires at the tournament.

In 2014, Odhiambo became the first Kenyan umpire to officiate county cricket in England.

“I was on a 21-day exchange programme through the ICC and England and Wales Cricket Board. I officiated in County Second XI matches and games where English Test players, Jonathan Trott, Ben Stoke and Monty Panesar were taking part.

“I was officiating a match between Warwickshire and Durham and was overjoyed when my decision of dismissing Trott, who was turning out for Durham, trapped leg before wicket (lbw) was confirmed by his batting partner to be correct. Trott was doubtful when I raised my finger and gestured to his partner who nodded his head. Trott walked out with no hard feelings. It was my most memorable game during my stay in England. I returned to Europe in 2015 to officiate in the ICC World Twenty20 qualifiers.

Odhiambo, married with a four-year-old son said that he would not like to have a large family like his father, who had to work seven days a week to feed and educate his children.

“My father did not have any time to rest. If cricket season was off he had to move to hockey, rugby, and football. His best market for mangos was in cricket and hockey and that was where he made better returns, otherwise in the other areas he only sold groundnuts.

“My father had no time to socialise with his agemates and whenever someone wanted to see him, he had to look for me in sport grounds.

“I want to have time to be with my family, my son. I never had that time with my father.”