Mark Taylor (cricketer)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Mark Taylor
Australia
Personal information
Full name	Mark Anthony Taylor
Nickname	Tubby, Tubs
Born	27 October 1964 (1964-10-27) (age 43)
	Leeton, New South Wales, Australia
Role	Batsman
Batting style	Left-handed batsman (LHB)
Bowling style	Right-arm medium (RM)
International information
Test debut (cap 346)	26 January 1989: v West Indies
Last Test	2 January 1999: v England
ODI debut (cap 107)	26 December 1989: v Sri Lanka
Last ODI	24 May 1997: v England
Domestic team information
Years	Team
1985–1999	New South Wales
Career statistics
	Tests	ODIs	FC	LA
Matches	104	113	253	178
Runs scored	7525	3514	17415	5463
Batting average	43.49	32.23	41.96	31.57
100s/50s	19/40	1/28	41/97	1/47
Top score	334*	105	334*	105
Overs	7	0	30	3
Wickets	1	0	2	0
Bowling average	26.00	-	38.50	-
5 wickets in innings	0	0	0	-
10 wickets in match	0	n/a	0	n/a
Best bowling	1/11	-	1/4	-
Catches/stumpings	157/0	56/0	350/0	98/0
As of 1 September 2007 Source: [1]

Mark Anthony Taylor, AO (born 27 October 1964 in Leeton, New South Wales; nicknamed "Tubby" or "Tubs") was an Australian cricket player and Test opening batsman from 1988–1999, as well as captain from 1994–1999, succeeding Allan Border. He was widely regarded as an instrumental component in Australia's rise to Test cricket dominance, and his captaincy was regarded as adventurous and highly effective. However, he was considered less than ideal for One-Day International cricket and was eventually dropped as one-day captain after a 0-3 drubbing at the hands of England in 1997.

He moved to Wagga Wagga in 1972 and played for Lake Albert Cricket Club.^[1] His debut was for New South Wales in 1985.

He retired from Test cricket on 2 February 1999. In 104 Test matches, he scored 7,525 runs with a batting average of 43.49, including 19 centuries and 40 fifties. He was also an excellent first slip - his 157 catches, at the time, a Test record (now held by Mark Waugh).

In contrast to his predecessor Allan Border, who acquired the nickname 'Captain Grumpy', Taylor won plaudits for his always cheerful and positive demeanour. His successor, Steve Waugh, further honed the Australian team built by Border and Taylor and went on to set numerous records for victories as captain. Many feel that the development of the side under Taylor was instrumental in Waugh's subsequent success.

He was named Australian of the Year in 1999.

Having originally trained as a surveyor, he is now a cricket commentator for the Nine Network, and also appears on The Cricket Show with Simon O'Donnell. He is also a spokesman for Fujitsu air-conditioners.

He obtained a degree in surveying from the University of New South Wales in 1987.^[2]

Contents 1 Early years 2 Test career 2.1 Record-breaking start 2.2 Inconsistent form 2.3 Taylor and Slater 2.4 Captaincy 2.5 Caribbean tour 1995 2.6 Controversy with Sri Lanka 2.7 Almost retired 2.8 Dual teams 2.9 Record equalled 2.10 Final season 2.11 Legacy 3 Retirement 4 Notes 5 References 6 External links

[edit] Early years

The second of three children born to bank manager Tony Taylor, and his wife Judy, Taylor's early years were spent at Wagga Wagga, where his family relocated when he was eight. His father had a sporting background, playing first grade rugby in Newcastle. The young Taylor preferred Australian rules football and cricket. He learned to bat in the family garage, with his father throwing cork balls to him. Taylor idolised Arthur Morris, the left handed opening batsmen from New South Wales who led the aggregates on the 1948 "Invincibles" tour of England.^[3]

Taylor played for his primary school as an opening batsman, and made his first century at the age of thirteen for the Lake Albert club at Bolton Park in Wagga.^[3] His family then moved to the north shore of Sydney, where he joined Northern District in Sydney Grade Cricket. Completing his secondary education at Chatswood High School,^[4] he later obtained a degree in surveying at the University of New South Wales.^[5] Along with the Waugh twins, Steve and Mark, Taylor played in under-19 youth internationals for Australia against Sri Lanka in 1982–83.^[3]

Taylor made his Sheffield Shield debut in 1985–86 when NSW was depleted by the defection of regular openers Steve Smith and John Dyson to a rebel tour of South Africa.^[4] Opening with fellow debutant Mark Waugh, he scored 12 and 56 not out against Tasmania.^[4] His first season was highlighted by home and away centuries against South Australia in a total of 937 runs at 49.31 average. He had a lean season in 1987–88, after which he spent the English summer with Greenmount,^[6] helping them to win their first Bolton League title by scoring more than 1,300 runs at an average of 70.^[3][5]

[edit] Test career

Solid form for NSW in 1988–89 resulted in Taylor's selection for his Test debut in the Fourth Test against the West Indies at the SCG,^[6] replacing middle-order batsman Graeme Wood. For three years, the opening combination of Geoff Marsh and David Boon had been successful for Australia.^[3] However, team coach Bob Simpson wanted a left and right-handed opening combination, and stability added to the middle order. Therefore, the left-handed Taylor partnered the right-handed Marsh, while Boon batted at number three.^[7][3] Taylor's safe catching at slip was also a factor in his selection. He made 25 and 3 in a winning team, then was run out twice in the Fifth Test.^[6] A first-class aggregate of 1,241 runs (at 49.64 average) for the season earned him a place on the 1989 Ashes tour. ^[3][5]

[edit] Record-breaking start

Beginning with a century at Headingley in his First Test against England, Taylor amassed 839 runs at 83.9 in the six Tests: the second best aggregate in an Ashes series in England, behind Don Bradman's 974 runs in 1930. He occupied the crease for a total of 38 hours, more than six full days of play. The highlight of his tour was the Fifth Test at Trent Bridge when he and Geoff Marsh became the first pair to bat throughout a day's play of Test cricket in England, amassing 301 runs. Taylor made 219 in a partnership of 329, an Ashes record. He finished with 71 and 48 in the Fifth Test to overtake Neil Harvey for the third-highest series aggregate in Test history and totalled 1,669 first-class runs for the tour. Australia won the series 4–0 to regain the Ashes.^[3][5][8]

Returning to Australia, Taylor made 1,403 first-class runs at 70.15 during the 1989–90 season, and ended 1989 with 1,219 Test runs, thus becoming the first player to better one thousand Test runs in his debut calendar year, something only matched once by England opener Alastair Cook over 15 years later.^{[citation needed]} In Taylor's first nine Tests, Australia passed 400 in the first innings. He scored centuries in successive Tests against Sri Lanka, and against Pakistan his scores were 52 and 101 at the MCG, 77 and 59 at the Adelaide Oval and an unbeaten 101 at Sydney. Australia won both series 1–0. In just over twelve months, he had amassed 1,618 runs at 70.35. This outstanding start to his career earned Taylor nomination as one of the five Wisden Cricketers of the Year in 1990.^[5][8] At the season's end, he demonstrated his leadership abilities for the first time. Standing in as NSW captain in place of the injured Geoff Lawson for the 1989–90 Sheffield Shield final in Sydney, Taylor scored 127 and 100. NSW won by 345 runs to secure its 40th title.^[5][9]

[edit] Inconsistent form

Taylor experienced a slump during the 1990–91 Ashes series. After making two-half centuries in the first two Tests, he failed to pass 20 in the last three and finished with 213 runs at 23.66 in a team that won 3–0. His moderate form continued during the 1991 tour of the West Indies until he played a rear-guard innings of 76 in the second innings of the Fourth Test at Barbados. Despite his effort, Australia lost and the West Indies took an unassailable lead of 2–0. In the Fifth Test St. Johns, Antigua, Australia gained a consolation victory due mainly to Taylor's scores of 59 and 144 (out of a total of 265). This late rush of form boosted his average for the series to 49.^[5][8]

During the 1991–92 Australian season, Taylor batted consistently in a 4–0 victory over India. He scored 94 at Brisbane and 100 in the second innings of the Fourth Test at Adelaide. His opening partner Marsh was dropped for the Fifth Test, so the selectors elevated Taylor to the vice-captaincy of the team. Over the next twelve months, a number of players were tried as Taylor's opening partner.^[5][8]

On a series of "green" wickets on the 1992 tour of Sri Lanka, Taylor struggled in scoring 148 runs at 24.67. Against the West Indies in 1992–93, he was ineffective and failed to pass fifty in the first four Tests. After Australia failed by one run to win the Fourth Test and thus the series,^{[citation needed]} Taylor was dropped for the deciding Test at Perth.^[10] In his absence, Australia lost by an innings in three days and conceded the series 1–2.^[5][8]

[edit] Taylor and Slater

As a result, Taylor was immediately recalled for the tour of New Zealand, where he scored 82 at Christchurch and 50 at Wellington.^[8] The problem of finding him a long-term partner was solved on the tour of England that followed. NSW batsman Michael Slater, who also grew up in Wagga Wagga, made his debut in the First Test of the 1993 Ashes series. This change revived Taylor's fortunes.^{[citation needed]} In their first Test outing at Old Trafford, Taylor made 124 in a partnership of 128. This was followed by a stand of 260 at Lord's in the second Test, with Taylor making 111. His scoring was more sedate in the remaining Tests as Australia won 4–1, and he finished with 428 runs at 42.80.^[5][8]

Against New Zealand in 1993–94, Taylor made 64 and 142 not out in the First Test at Perth; he scored 286 runs at 95.33 in three Tests as Australia won 2–0.^[8] In the rain-affected Boxing Day Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, Taylor scored 170 against South Africa, the first Test between the two countries since 1970.^{[citation needed]} This made him the first batsman to score centuries on Test debut against four countries.^[5][8] On the reciprocal tour of South Africa at the end of the season, Taylor missed a Test because of injury for the only time in his career. On his return, for the second Test at Cape Town, he scored 70. Both series were drawn 1–1.^[5][8][11]

[edit] Captaincy

After the retirement of Allan Border, Taylor was appointed captain. Frequently omitted from the ODI team due to slow scoring, Taylor missed the finals of the ODI series in Australia against South Africa. On the tour of South Africa, he missed three consecutive ODIs when tour selectors Ian Healy and Steve Waugh voted him off the team.^[12] Taylor requested an extended trial as opener for the ODI side to help consolidate his captaincy of both teams.^[13]

His first task was a tour of Pakistan in 1994, where Australia had not won a Test since the 1959.^[14] The First Test at Karachi was a personal disaster for Taylor as he scored a pair, the first player in Test history to do so on his captaincy debut.^[15] Australia lost by one wicket after Ian Healy missed a stumping opportunity that eluded him and went for the winning runs.^[15] Recovering to score 69 in the Second Test at Rawalpindi,^[8] Taylor dropped Pakistan batsman Salim Malik when he was on 20. Malik went on to make 237 as Pakistan saved the Test after being forced to follow-on^[16]. Australia had the upper hand in the last two Tests with first innings leads,^[17] but could not force a result.^[5][8]

Beginning the 1994–95 season with 150 for NSW in a tour match against the England,^[18] Taylor followed up with 59 and 58 in the first Ashes Test at Brisbane. Australia amassed a 259-run first innings lead, but Taylor, mindful of the Test match at Rawalpindi, became the first Australian captain since 1977–78 to not enforce the follow-on. Although heavily criticised as a conservative decision, Australia still won the match.^[19] Taylor played his best cricket of the summer in the Third Test at Sydney. Last man out for 49 in a total of 116 in the first innings,^{[citation needed]} he defied a "seaming" pitch. In the second innings, he made a bold attempt at chasing a target of 449 by scoring 113, but Australia played for a draw after his dismissal.^[20] In the final two Tests, he scored half-centuries as Australia won 3–1. His partnership with Slater yielded three century opening stands at an average of 76.60 for the series and Taylor's individual return was 471 runs at 47.10.^[5][8]

[edit] Caribbean tour 1995

This victory was followed by the 1995 tour of the West Indies, where Australia had not won a Test series for 22 years.^[21] The difficulty of Australia's task was increased when fast bowlers Craig McDermott and Damien Fleming went home injured at the start of the tour. Australia fielded a pace attack of Glenn McGrath, Brendon Julian and Paul Reiffel who had played 23 Tests between them.^[21] Despite this, Australia won by ten wickets in the first Test at Barbados, with Taylor contributing a half-century.^[22] After the Second Test was a rained-out draw, the West Indies beat Australia inside three days on a "green" Trinidad pitch in the Third Test.^[23] Australia regained the Frank Worrell Trophy with an innings victory in the Fourth Test at Jamaica, with Taylor taking the winning catch from the bowling of Shane Warne.^[24] Although he only managed 153 runs (at 25.50 average) for the series, Taylor held nine catches and his leadership was cited as a key factor in the result.^[5][8][25]

[edit] Controversy with Sri Lanka

This was followed by a two three-Test series against Pakistan and Sri Lanka respectively in the 1995–96 Australian season.^[26] The Pakistan series began among a media circus when Salim Malik arrived with publicity focused on the bribery allegations which had surfaced year earlier.^[27] Australia won the First Test in Brisbane by an inningsin three and a half days, with Taylor contributing 69.^[28] In the Second Test at Bellerive Oval, Taylor scored 123 in the second innings to set up a winning total. In the Third Test in Sydney, he made 59 as Australia collapsed for 172 in the second innings and conceded the match.^[29] He ended the series with a healthy 338 runs at 67.60.^[8]

The subsequent Test and ODI series involving Sri Lanka were overshadowed by a series of spiteful clashes.^[30] The Tests were won 3–0 by the Australians with heavy margins of an innings, ten wickets and 148 runs respectively.^[31] Taylor's highlight being a 96 in the First Test at Perth as he compiled 159 runs at 39.75.^[8] He also made his 100th Test catch during the series.^[32] After accusations of ball tampering were levelled against the tourists in the First Test,^[33] leading spinner Muttiah Muralitharan was no-balled seven times in the Second Test,^[33] and during the ODI series, the Sri Lankans accused Taylor's men of cheating.^[33] The season hit a low point with the Sri Lankans which saw the teams refuse to shake hands at the end of the second final of the triangular series which Australia won.^[33] The match had included a physical jostling between McGrath and Sanath Jayasuriya mid pitch, with the latter accusing McGrath of making racist attacks.^[34] Later in the match, stump microphones showed Australian wicketkeeper Ian Healy allege that portly Sri Lankan Arjuna Ranatunga was feigning injury and calling for a runner because of his lack of physical fitness.^[34] On the field, the season also saw Mark Waugh elevated to be Taylor's ODI opening partner after the axing of Slater.^[35][36]

After the spiteful summer, a Tamil Tiger bombing in Colombo coupled with death threats to some members of the team forced Taylor to forfeit his team's schedule match with Sri Lanka during the 1996 Cricket World Cup.^[37] Australia managed to reach the final, where they met Sri Lanka.^[38] Taylor scored 74,^{[citation needed]} but Sri Lanka comfortably triumphed on this occasion by seven wickets to claim the trophy.^[38] In another spiteful encounter, some players refused to shake hands after the match. Ranatunga, having declared before the match that Australian leg spinner Shane Warne was overrated,^{[citation needed]} struck a six from a misexecuted flipper which turned into a full toss and promptly stuck out his tongue at the spinner.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Almost retired

After the World Cup, Bob Simpson was replaced as Australia's coach by Geoff Marsh, Taylor's former opening partner.^[39] On a short tour to India, Taylor made his first ODI century at Bangalore, in his 98th match.^{[citation needed]} It was a disappointing tour for the team; the solitary Test in Delhi was lost, as were all five ODIs played during the Titan Cup.^[40] In 1996–97, Australia confirmed its ascendancy over the West Indies with a 3–2 series win,^[41] but Taylor endured a poor season with the bat and failed to pass 50 in nine innings.^[8] His partnership with Slater was terminated when the latter was dropped, replaced by Matthew Elliott. Following an injury to Elliott, Matthew Hayden became Taylor's partner for three Tests. Unable to recover form in the ODI series, Taylor's scratchy batting led to many poor starts for Australia and the team missed the finals of the tournament for the first time in 17 years.

The early 1997 tour to South Africa brought no upturn in Taylor's batting despite Australia's 2–1 victory in the series: he scored 80 runs at 16.00.^[8] His form was such that it influenced the selection of the team. For the Second Test at Port Elizabeth, played on a green pitch, Australia played Michael Bevan as a second spinner batting at number seven to reinforce the batting, instead of a third seamer to exploit the conditions.^[42] Midway through the ODI series, Taylor dropped himself from the team.^[43]

The 1997 Ashes tour started poorly amid rumours that Taylor was on the verge of losing his place in the side.^[44] He batted ineffectively as Australia lost the one day series 0–3, dropping himself for the final match.^[43] In the First Test, Australia were dismissed for 118 in the first innings, with Taylor contributing seven: he had not managed to pass 50 in his last 21 Test innings.^[8] England amassed a big lead of 360 runs. With Australia facing a heavy defeat, media criticism of his position intensified. The Melbourne Age ran a competition for its readers to forecast how many runs he would make. Most respondents guessed less than 10 runs.^[45] The team's erstwhile coach, Bob Simpson, said that Taylor's retention in the team in spite of his poor form was fostering resentment among the players and destabilising the team.^[46]

Taylor started nervously in the second innings, but went on to score of 129, which saved his career, but not the match. His performance prompted personal congratulations from Prime Minister John Howard and the team's management allowed the media a rare opportunity to enter the dressing room and interview Taylor. During the period he refused offers by the manager to handle the media on his behalf.^[47] Australia went on to win the Third, Fourth and Fifth Tests and retain the Ashes 3–2.^[48] Although Taylor made single figures in the three Tests following his century, he contributed 76 and 45 in the series-clinching Test at Nottingham. Taylor ended the series with 317 runs at 31.7.^[8]

[edit] Dual teams

However, Taylor's ODI form was not to the satisfaction of the selectors. At the start of the 1997–98 season, a new selection policy was announced: the Test and ODI teams became separate entities, with specialists in each form of the game selected accordingly. Taylor was dropped from the ODI team,^[49] in favour of the aggressive Michael di Venuto. Tactically, ODI cricket was transformed by Sri Lanka's World Cup success, when it employed the highly aggressive opening pair of Sanath Jayasuriya and Romesh Kaluwitharana.

At this time, Taylor was a central figure in a pay dispute between the players and the ACB, with a strike action threatened by the players.^[50] Taylor continued as Test captain and led the team to a 2–0 win over New Zealand. He scored a century (112 on the first day of the First Test,^[51] and an unbeaten 66 in the Third Test, compiling 214 runs at 53.50 for the series.^[52] This was followed by three Tests against South Africa. After Australia took a 1–0 lead in the New Year's Test at Sydney, Taylor carried his bat for 169 in the Third Test at Adelaide which helped Australia to draw the match and clinch the series.^[8][53]

On the 1998 tour of India, Elliott was dropped^{[citation needed]} and Taylor reunited with Slater as the opening pair.^[54] Australia started well by taking a 71-run first innings lead in the First Test at Chennai,^[55] but Sachin Tendulkar's unbeaten 155 put Australia under pressure to save the match on the final day. They were unable to resist and lost by 179 runs.^[56] Australia was crushed by an innings and 219 runs in the Second Test at Calcutta, Australia first series loss in four years and the worst defeat of Taylor's period as captain.^[57] Thus, a series victory in India, which Australia had not achieved since 1969–70, remained elusive. Australia won the Third Test in Bangalore by eight wickets, with Taylor scoring an unbeaten 102 in a second innings run chase.^[8][58]

[edit] Record equalled

Later in 1998, Taylor led his team to Pakistan, where a win in the First Test at Rawalpindi was Australia's first Test victory in the country for 39 years.^[59] Taylor then attended a court hearing investigating the claims of match-fixing made during the 1994 tour.^[60] In the Second Test at Peshawar, Taylor played the longest innings of his career. He batted two days to amass 334 not out, equalling Don Bradman's Australian record set in 1930. In temperatures above 32^oC, Taylor survived two dropped catches before he had reached 25 and scored slowly on the first day.^[61] He shared a 206-run partnership with Justin Langer. The next day, he added 103 runs in a morning session extended from two to three hours. After the tea interval, he discarded his helmet in favour of a white sun hat, to deal with the extreme heat. He passed 311, eclipsing Bob Simpson's record score by an Australian captain. In the final over, Taylor equalled Bradman's record when a shot to midwicket was barely stopped by Ijaz Ahmed, which reduced the scoring opportunity to a single run.^[62]

At the end of the day's play, Taylor was ecouraged by the media, the public and his teammates to attempt to break Brian Lara's world record score of 375.^[63] An unusually large crowd turned out the following day. However, Taylor declared the innings closed, opting to share the record with Bradman, and making the team's chances of winning the game paramount. He was widely praised for this decision.^[63] He made 92 in the second innings, giving him the second highest Test match aggregate after Graham Gooch. His fifteen hours batting in one Test was second only to Hanif Mohammed.^[64] The match ended in a draw, as did the Third Test, so Australia won the series and Taylor ended with 513 runs at 128.25 average.^[8]

[edit] Final season

Taylor's swansong was the 1998–99 Ashes series against England, which began with his 100th Test in the First Test in Brisbane. He scored 46 and a duck—his first in Australia—as England were saved when thunderstorms forced the abandonment of play on the final afternoon.^[65] Two half centuries in the next two Test in Perth and Adelaide saw Australia retain the series 2–0.^[66] After losing the Fourth Test by 12 runs after a dramatic final day collapse,^[67] Taylor headed to his home ground, the Sydney Cricket Ground for what would be his final Test. Australia went on to win the Test and take the series 3–1. Taylor only scored two in both innings, but he broke Border's world record for the most Test catches. His catch in the first innings equalled Border's 156 and another in the second made him the sole owner of the record.^[8][68]

[edit] Legacy

The improvement of the Australian team, begun during Border's tenure, continued under the captaincy of Taylor. After the defeat of the West Indies in 1995, Taylor's teams won home and away series against every Test team they played, with the exception of winning a series in India. Wisden wrote:

Taylor talked so well that he raised the standard of debate in Australia–and perhaps of cricket itself–in a way which was an example to all professional cricketers ... Border stopped Australia losing. Taylor made them into winners, the acknowledged if not official world champions of Test cricket.^[69]

Taylor made a concerted effort to decrease the amount of sledging committed by his team, a trait that brought criticism of Australian teams during other eras. In total, he captained the side in 50 Tests, winning 26 and losing 13, a success rate unmatched in the previous fifty years except for Don Bradman and Viv Richards.^[5][8]

[edit] Retirement

Taylor retired from professional cricket in early 1999 after the Ashes series. On Australia Day, he was named the Australian of the Year.^[70] He is now a commentator for Channel Nine and mainly commentates on One Day International and test matches in Australia, as to spend more time with his family.

[edit] Notes

[edit] References

• Piesse, Ken (1999). The Taylor Years: Australian cricket 1994–99. Penguin Books Australia. ISBN 0-670-88829-X. 

[edit] External links

• Cricinfo profile

Sporting positions
Preceded by Allan Border	Australian Test cricket captains 1994/95-1998/99	Succeeded by Steve Waugh
Preceded by Allan Border	Australian One-Day International cricket captains 1994/95-1997/98	Succeeded by Steve Waugh
Honorary titles
Preceded by Cathy Freeman	Australian of the Year 1999	Succeeded by Sir Gustav Nossal

v • d • e Australia squad - 1992 Cricket World Cup 1 Border (c) • 2 Boon • 3 Healy (wk) • 4 Hughes • 5 Jones • 6 Marsh • 7 McDermott • 8 Moody • 9 Reid • 10 MA Taylor • 11 PL Taylor • 12 ME Waugh • 13 SR Waugh • 14 Whitney

v • d • e Australia squad - 1996 Cricket World Cup (runners-up) 1 Taylor (c) • 2 Bevan • 3 Fleming • 4 Healy (wk) • 5 Law • 6 Lee • 7 McDermott • 8 McGrath • 9 Ponting • 10 Reiffel • 11 Slater • 12 Warne • 13 ME Waugh • 14 SR Waugh

Persondata
NAME	Taylor, Mark Anthony
ALTERNATIVE NAMES
SHORT DESCRIPTION	Cricketer
DATE OF BIRTH	27 October 1964
PLACE OF BIRTH	Leeton, New South Wales
DATE OF DEATH
PLACE OF DEATH