Full name Ian James Ward
Born September 30, 1972, Plymouth, Devon
Current age 48 years 156 days
Major teams England, Surrey, Sussex
Nickname Stumpy, The Chimp, The Gnome, Cocker
Batting style Left-hand bat
Bowling style Right-arm medium
Other Commentator
Height 5 ft 8 in
Education Millfield School
Mat | Inns | NO | Runs | HS | Ave | BF | SR | 100 | 50 | 4s | 6s | Ct | St | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Tests | 5 | 9 | 1 | 129 | 39 | 16.12 | 316 | 40.82 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
First-class | 138 | 230 | 17 | 8575 | 168* | 40.25 | 23 | 43 | 72 | 0 | ||||
List A | 160 | 153 | 13 | 4059 | 136 | 28.99 | 2 | 27 | 34 | 0 | ||||
T20s | 18 | 15 | 0 | 351 | 50 | 23.40 | 279 | 125.80 | 0 | 2 | 45 | 7 | 4 | 0 |
Mat | Inns | Balls | Runs | Wkts | BBI | BBM | Ave | Econ | SR | 4w | 5w | 10 | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Tests | 5 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
First-class | 138 | 319 | 197 | 3 | 1/1 | 65.66 | 3.70 | 106.3 | 0 | 0 | |||
List A | 160 | 149 | 181 | 2 | 2/27 | 2/27 | 90.50 | 7.28 | 74.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
T20s | 18 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
Test debut | England v Pakistan at Lord's, May 17-20, 2001 scorecard |
Last Test | England v Australia at Nottingham, Aug 2-4, 2001 scorecard |
Test statistics | |
First-class debut | 1992 |
Last First-class | Sussex v Glamorgan at Hove, Sep 7-8, 2005 scorecard |
List A debut | 1996 |
Last List A | Surrey v Sussex at Guildford, Jul 24, 2005 scorecard |
T20s debut | Surrey v Middlesex at The Oval, Jun 13, 2003 scorecard |
Last T20s | Surrey v Sussex at The Oval, Jul 6, 2005 scorecard |
Proof that club cricketers can play for England, Ian Ward was given a second chance by Surrey in 1997, five years after his first. This time he made the most of it. At first he was the bricks and mortar among a penthouse of international stars, but he slowly became an indispensable part of the furniture, combining a solid opener's technique with a calm temperament that underpinned Surrey's quest for three Championship titles in four seasons from 1999 to 2002. And when England A took him to the Caribbean in 2000-01, he batted for over 42 hours on the less-than-friendly pitches to earn himself a slot in England's middle-order against Pakistan and Australia that summer. Unsurprisingly, he was soon found out by Glenn McGrath, but he returned to the county game a stronger player for the experience. Ward is strong off his pads and almost elegant through the covers, where he also fields with the enthusiasm of a new-born lamb. He still harbours hopes of an England recall, and with that in mind, he moved south to Sussex at the end of 2003. He retired from first-class cricket in 2005 to pursue a career as a full-time cricket presenter and commentator.
Lawrence Booth