Former England allrounder Martin Horton dies

Martin Horton, who played two Tests for England in 1959 as an allrounder, has died after a long illness at the age of 76.

Horton made his debut for Worcestershire in 1952 and for a decade-and-a-half was a regular in the side. He was a key member of the team which won back-to-back Championships in 1964 and 1965.

He was primarily a batsman, with a short backlift he was strong on the off and particularly good at cutting. His offspin wasn't bad either, and he achieved the double in 1955 and 1961 (he passed 1000 runs 11 times, and in 1959 scored 2468 runs). His finest hour with the ball was against the 1955 South African side when he took 9 for 56.

In 1959 he was chosen for the first Test against India, scoring 58 in an innings victory and registering bowling figures of 19-11-20-0 in India's second innings. At Lord's, in another easy win, he took 2 for 24, and although he failed with the bat he was unlucky to be dropped.

At the end of the 1966 season he moved to New Zealand where he played four seasons for Northern Districts and was also New Zealand's coach for almost 17 years. In 1983 he returned to the UK to coach at the Royal Grammar School and also resumed his association with Worcestershire as their chairman.