Charlie Lock was a right-arm pace bowler who relied primarily on seam and swing, and who will probably go down in history as a man who had one golden season in international cricket at the age of 33, and then disappeared from the scene as quickly as he had arrived. After six years playing club cricket in England (where he was based for work), he returned to Zimbabwe in 1995 and made an immediate impact with Ruzawi, and he was drafted into the Test side against South Africa after twice taking six wickets for Mashonaland Country Districts. He took five wickets in what was to prove his only Test match. He had broken his forefinger badly in the nets a week before, breaking the main tendon, but he could still use it for bowling, if not for batting. He did scored a valuable innings of eight not out in the first innings, in partnership with Heath Streak, the runs coming from two boundaries - "but those were more from fear of getting my hand hit!" However the injury put him out of cricket for three months after that, before returning and doing enough to book his passage to New Zealand and the World Cup. He did not play in the Tests but was selected for the last two one-day internationals in the series of three. In the second, at Napier, he took 5 for 5 in 11 balls to turn the match on its head and gain a 21-run victory for Zimbabwe. He played in all Zimbabwe's matches in the World Cup, but returned home injured and never regained his place in the national side.
John Ward