Mark Ramprakash

A batsman of rare talent, combining a classically English technique with an un-English intensity, Mark Ramprakash is nonetheless in danger of ending up as unfulfilled as Graeme Hick, with whom he shared a Test debut. A star for Middlesex at 17, he captained England Under-19. But his international career became a monument to England selection policies of the period, with five distinct phases: adhesive beginner (1991), nervous wreck capable of shining only as a stand-in (1992-97), solid achiever lacking only a top gear (1997-99), blatant scapegoat (1999-2000) and seasoned spare part (2001-02). A better player abroad, he has been selected twice as often at home. Only David Lloyd, with his tender loving cheer, got the best out of him. Oddly, he always did well against Australia, averaging 42. His stylish 133 against them at the Oval in 2001, his first Test century in England, felt like a breakthrough, but turned out to be a swansong as Nasser Hussain and Duncan Fletcher lost patience after an indifferent tour of India and New Zealand. All along, he has been a fielder of world class at cover and bat-pad, and a county run-machine. When England gave up on him, he became even more prolific for Surrey: in 2006, his 20th county season, he was Bradmanesque, scoring 2,278 runs and averaging over 100. That remarkable form continued, and at county level he was head and shoulders above his peers. His only (relative) lean patch came in 2008 when he was marooned on 99 first-class hundreds, but when the 100th came - and he may well be the last man to reach that number - the floodgates again opened. In the winter of 2006-07 he astonished team-mates and fans by taking part in Strictly Come Dancing, the BBC TV reality show which had been won the previous year by the much more extrovert Darren Gough. Ramprakash finally did what he hadn't done for England: he conquered his nerves, came out of his shell and rose to the big occasion, scoring a perfect 40 (10/10 from all four judges) for his salsa in the final. And he did it in a range of slinky shirts with not many buttons done up.
Tim de Lisle January 2009