John Crawley - England - Batsman

An attractive batsman, who was an expert in caressing the ball onto the leg-side, John Crawley played 37 Tests for England with considerable success though his ODI abilities were always under scrutiny. Having been a prolific run-getter in Under-19'S and then for Lancashire, Crawley made his Test debut for England against South Africa at Lord's in 1994. He looked like a fish out of water on his maiden Test appearance, managing just 9 and 7.

He then tightened his technique to become a regular in the side until poor form in 1996. Crawley, who was often caught on a fishing expedition outside the off-stump, found himself in and out of the side before being shown the door. However, his bat continued to do the talking in the county circuit.

His finest Test performance came against Sri Lanka, where he handled Muttiah Muralitharan with calmness and assurance en-route to an unbeaten 156. He announced his retirement from all forms of cricket at the end of 2009.

By Cricbuzz Staff