Famous Cricketers No 52 - Malcolm Marshall

Malcolm Marshall in One-Day Cricket MalcolmMarshall’s Test match and first-class record stands comparison with any bowler in cricket’s history. At first glance his limited overs record is less impressive. In 408 first-class matches he took 1651 wickets with five or more wickets in an innings on 85 occasions. He played slightly more limited-overs matches and took just 496 wickets. He never took more than five wickets in an innings and only did that on five occasions. The reality is more complex. For much of his county career, Marshall carried a fairly weak Hampshire attack and on many occasions, opposition batsmen were content to ‘see him off’ and take their runs from the other end. For example, in a remarkable NatWest semi-final performance in 1983 Marshall took 4-15 in 12 overs against Kent and still finished on a (well-beaten) losing side. In international cricket the opposite was true as bowlers like Roberts, Holding, Garner and Ambrose would tend to share the wickets with Marshall. It is also reasonable to assume that his incisive mind and naturally attacking approach were less excited by the demands of limited overs cricket which is so often the batsman’s game. In his autobiography Marshall wrote of playing 17 limited overs internationals in the 1984/5 season which he “found a real bore”. Nonetheless he did sometimes care enormously about success in the shorter form of the game. In 1979 he was a member of the West Indies squad which won the World Cup although he did not play in any matches. Four years later, he took 10 wickets in five matches as West Indies reached another Lord’s final. He then took 2-24 in 11 overs as India were dismissed for 183 but was required to bat when Greenidge, Haynes, Lloyd, Richards, Gomes and Bacchus were dismissed for 76. He and Dujon added 43 for the seventh wicket but it was insufficient. The favourites were beaten and Marshall recorded how he and his team-mates went from “disbelief to fury”. Two years later Marshall had some consolation as Hampshire won the Sunday League in a close match at The Oval but he was away touring with West Indies as his county side won Lord’s finals in 1988 and 1991. The strength of his commitment to Hampshire’s limited overs campaigns was clear after a one run defeat against Northamptonshire in the NatWest semi-final of 1990. In the quarter final he had figures of 4-17 against Yorkshire and he was clearly determined to win a final with his county. In the semi-final, Northamptonshire batted first and Marshall conceded least runs as they reached 284 in their 60 overs. Hampshire lost Terry and the Smith brothers for 55 before Marshall and Gower added 141 for the fifth wicket and Marshall and Nicholas 50 for the fifth. It was not enough as Hampshire failed on the last ball to reach Lord’s. Marshall was named Man-of-the-Match for the first time in this competition but was too upset to accept the award. Two years later his performances were central to Hampshire’s third triumph at Lord’s. During the Benson & Hedges Cup, runs came at under three an over from Marshall’s bowling and there was a wicket every 30 balls. In the final he contributed 29* and 3-33 as Hampshire beat Kent by 41 runs and although Robin Smith was named Man-of-the Match, Marshall was the popular hero. Marshall’s innings in that match was his first above 20 in 24 innings in the shorter form of the game and he was somewhat inconsistent as a batsman despite his ability to hit the ball very hard. Nonetheless there were eight half-centuries in his career which is not insignificant for a man who often batted in the lower half of the innings. Perhaps his innings against Northamptonshire suggested what might have been had he batted in a higher position. His first limited overs half century in Adelaide in 1984 took West Indies to the narrowest possible victory over Pakistan. His score of 56 followed 3-28 in nine overs. He seemed to enjoy these 75