John Morris, a stylish middle-order batsman, certainly had the talent to forge a successful international career, but he never quite made it. After impressing on the county scene with Derbyshire, he made his Test debut against India at Lord's in 1990. England won handsomely, but Morris played little part in a match which will always be remembered for Graham Gooch's 333. In another high-scoring affair in the second Test, at Old Trafford, Morris was forced to retire hurt in the second innings. Although he made a reasonable 32 in the third Test at The Oval, he had failed to make an impression in the series. However, he made the squad for England's 1990-91 Ashes tour, and managed to grab some of the limelight - but for the wrong reasons. During a warm-up match against Queensland in Carrara, Morris and David Gower flew a Tiger Moth plane over the ground. The England management failed to see the funny side and Morris was not picked for any of the Tests, and indeed no more after that. He did, however, have more success in the one-day leg of the tour, the World Series, playing all eight games and scoring a best of 63 not out against New Zealand. He moved from Derbyshire after 11 years to Durham in 1993, and then closed an arguably unfulfilled career at Nottinghamshire in 2001. He now works as a commentator for Sky TV. Freddie Auld
