Curtly Ambrose

Sir Curtly Elconn Lynwall Ambrose KCN (born 21 September 1963) is a former Antiguan cricketer who played 98 Test matches for the West Indies. Widely recognized as one of the greatest fast bowlers of all time, he took 405 test wickets at an average of 20.99 and topped the ICC player rankings for much of his career to be rated the best fast bowler in bowling in the world His great height (he is 6 feet 7 inches (2.01 m)) allowed him to make the ball bounce unusually high after throwing it; Allied to his pace and accuracy, he made him a very difficult bowler for batsmen to face. A man of few words during his career, he was notoriously reluctant to talk to reporters. He was voted one of the Wisden Cricketers of the Year in 1992; after retiring, he was inducted into the International Cricket Council Hall of Fame and selected as one of the West Indies’ all-time XI by a panel of experts.

Born in Swetes, Antigua, Ambrose came to cricket at a relatively late age, having preferred basketball in his youth, but quickly impressed as a fast bowler. Progressing through regional and national teams, he was first picked for the West Indies in 1988. He was almost immediately successful and remained with the team until his retirement in 2000. On many occasions, his bowling spells were responsible for winning matches for the West Indies that seemed lost, in association with Courtney Walsh. Against Australia in 1993, he cast one of the best bowling spells of all time, when he took seven wickets and conceded only one run, for which he posted figures of 7/1 for the first spell of the match. Similarly, in 1994 he was largely responsible for eliminating England with 46 runs, taking six wickets for 24 runs. He is rightly considered one of the greatest winning bowlers of all time.

Ambrose’s method of bowling was based on accuracy and conceding few runs; Several of his best performances came when he took wickets in quick succession to devastate the opposition. He was particularly successful against leading hitters. Beginning in 1995, Ambrose became increasingly plagued by injuries, with critics repeatedly claiming that he was no longer effective. However, he continued to take wickets regularly until his retirement, although at times he was less effective in the early games of a series. In its later years, the West Indies team was in decline, often relying heavily on Ambrose and Walsh; both men often bowled with little support from the other bowlers. After his retirement, Ambrose pursued a career in music as a bass player in a reggae band.