Chris Old

Chris Old
Personal information
Full name Christopher Middleton Old
Born 22 December 1948 (1948-12-22) (age 63)
Middlesbrough, Yorkshire, England
Nickname Chilly
Height 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Batting style Left-handed
Bowling style Right arm fast-medium
Role Bowler
International information
National side England
Test debut (cap 455) 30 December 1972 v India
Last Test 2 August 1981 v Australia
ODI debut (cap 23) 5 September 1973 v Australia
Last ODI 4 February 1981 v West Indies
Domestic team information
Years Team
1983–1985 Warwickshire
1981–1983 Northern Transvaal
1966–1982 Yorkshire
Career statistics
Competition Tests ODI FC LA
Matches 46 32 379 314
Runs scored 845 338 7,756 3,492
Batting average 14.82 18.77 20.84 19.72
100s/50s –/2 –/1 6/27 –/13
Top score 65 51* 116 82*
Balls bowled 8,858 1,755 57,822 15,604
Wickets 143 45 1,070 418
Bowling average 28.11 22.20 23.48 20.86
5 wickets in innings 4 – 39 3
10 wickets in match – n/a 2 n/a
Best bowling 7/50 4/8 7/20 5/19
Catches/stumpings 22/– 8/– 214/– 72/–
Source: Cricinfo, 17 November 2008

Chris Old (born Christopher Middleton Old, 22 December 1948, Middlesbrough, Yorkshire)[1] is an English former cricketer, who played in forty six Tests and thirty two ODIs from 1972 to 1981.

Old played first-class cricket for twenty years between 1966 and 1985, and was a regular member of the England side for a decade. A skillful and accurate right arm swing bowler and powerful late order left-handed hitter, he was once described by his England captain Mike Brearley as a talent to rival Ian Botham. He won his Yorkshire cap in 1969, and was named as the Cricket Writer's Club Young Cricketer of the Year in 1970. Despite being a fine natural athlete, standing 6 feet 3 inches and possessing a natural sideways on action, his career was hampered by regular injury problems, and had a tendency to fall prey to 'niggles' in his back and legs, to such an extent that the first bowling machine installed at Lord's was nicknamed Chris Old, due to a propensity for breaking down so often.[2]

Life and career

Old played county cricket for his native Yorkshire, making his debut at the age of seventeen,[1] and captained the county in 1981 and 1982, before moving on to Warwickshire towards the end of his illustrious career, when he also appeared for Northern Transvaal in South Africa.

In 1970 and 1971, in the days prior to Old gaining international honours, he had surgery on both of his knees. His departure from the field later in his career to the physiotherapist's table became part of cricket folklore.[1] He never completed any of the ten series that he played abroad, and his only ever-present home series was against India and Pakistan in 1974, when in six Tests he took twenty five wickets at twenty two apiece emphasising what might have been.[1]

Old hit the third fastest century of all time at Edgbaston in 1977, with 100 runs from 72 balls in 37 minutes, with the second 50 taking just nine minutes.[1] This feat won him the Walter Lawrence Trophy for the fastest century of the year. In 379 first-class matches he took 1,070 first class wickets at the average of 23.48 and scored 7,756 first class runs with six centuries.

He is noted for having taken four wickets in five balls on the opening day of the Test Match against Pakistan at Edgbaston in June 1978, the wicketless third ball being a no ball. Bowling at pace from the City End, the second ball of his nineteenth over was top edged by Wasim Raja to wicket-keeper Bob Taylor before his third ball nipped back though the gate to remove Wasim Bari's off stump. Old's fourth ball, the no-ball, was edged by Iqbal Qasim into the ground but Qasim nicked a late outswinger to the keeper off the next legitimate delivery, before Sikander Bakht found the safe hands of Graham Roope at second slip. Old thus equalled the record of four wickets in five balls set by Maurice Allom on his Test debut at Lancaster Park, Christchurch in 1929-30, a feat which has since been repeated by Pakistan's Wasim Akram.

Often remembered as one of Ian Botham's partners at the wicket during the Headingley Ashes game of 1981, he also took the key wicket of Allan Border for a duck in the Australian second innings. He was the only England cricketer to play in both Centenary Test Matches against Australia and was one of Wisden 's five cricketers of the year in 1979. Old turned down an invitation from Tony Greig to play in Kerry Packer's rebel World Series Cricket, fearing the withdrawal of the traditional benefit season offered by Yorkshire.

'Chilly' took the Yorkshire captaincy in 1981, but it was not a happy period. The next season, suffering from personal problems, he was ousted from the role to allow the, then 50 year old, Ray Illingworth, to take charge on the field.[1] By this point, Old had joined the first rebel tour to South Africa in 1982, thus incurring a three year ban from international matches. Realistically by then, his run in the England Test side had already finished.[1]

After struggling to cope with retirement for several years, Old now runs his 'Clipper Restaurant' in Praa Sands, Cornwall, with his second wife, Letitia. In addition to his successful business, he coaches a local cricket club in Falmouth, tutors cricket coaching courses and took charge of Cornwall U-17s in 2001.

His brother, Alan Old, is a former England rugby union international, who briefly played alongside Chris Old for Warwickshire CCC.[1]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h Bateman, Colin (1993). If The Cap Fits. Tony Williams Publications. pp. 126–127. ISBN 1-869833-21-X. 
  2. ^ Williamson, Martin (February, 2007). "You're not going to believe this, but...". CricInfo. http://www.cricinfo.com/magazine/content/story/280403.html. Retrieved 2009-09-11. 

External links

England squad – 1975 Cricket World Cup
England squad – 1979 Cricket World Cup (Runners-up)