Cricinfo - Players and Officials

Full name Mark Ravin Ramprakash
Born September 5, 1969, Bushey, Hertfordshire
Current age 38 years 324 days
Major teams England, Middlesex, Surrey
Nickname Ramps, Bloodaxe
Batting style Right-hand bat
Bowling style Right-arm offbreak
Height 5 ft 10 in
Education Gayton High School, Harrow Weald 6th Form College

Batting and fielding averages

Mat

Inns

Runs

Ave

100

Tests

2350

154

27.32

6495

36.18

251

ODIs

376

26.85

544

69.11

First-class

409

674

31147

301*

52.88

134

237

List A

386

374

12383

147*

39.31

128

Twenty20

1163

85*

31.43

926

125.59

Bowling averages

Mat

Inns

Balls

Runs

Wkts

BBI

BBM

Ave

Econ

Tests

895

477

1/2

119.25

3.19

223.7

ODIs

132

108

3/28

27.00

4.90

33.0

First-class

409

4171

2196

3/32

64.58

3.15

122.6

List A

386

1734

1354

5/38

29.43

4.68

37.6

Twenty20

Career statistics

Test debut

England v West Indies at Leeds, Jun 6-10, 1991 scorecard

Last Test

New Zealand v England at Auckland, Mar 30-Apr 3, 2002 scorecard

Test statistics

ODI debut

England v West Indies at Manchester, May 25, 1991 scorecard

Last ODI

Zimbabwe v England at Bulawayo, Oct 13, 2001 scorecard

ODI statistics

First-class debut

1987

Last First-class

Nottinghamshire v Surrey at Nottingham, Jul 11-14, 2008 scorecard

List A debut

1987

Last List A

Glamorgan v Surrey at Cardiff, Jul 24, 2008 scorecard

Twenty20 debut

Surrey v Middlesex at The Oval, Jun 13, 2003 scorecard

Last Twenty20

Surrey v Middlesex at The Oval, Jun 27, 2008 scorecard

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. At the end of the season, 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 2007

Jul 12, 2008

Mark Ramprakash hooks but was dismissed for 42 © Getty Images

Jul 1, 2008

Mark Ramprakash was out first ball to Martin van Jaarsveld © Getty Images

Jun 1, 2008

Those dancing shoes: Mark Ramprakash can't quite reach a catch © Getty Images

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