Historical Figures Codexery

Joel Garner

Tallest fast bowler of his era, ICC Hall of Famer, and World Cup winner.

Joel Garner, a former West Indian cricketer, entered the world on 16 December 1952 in Enterprise, Christ Church, Barbados.[1][2] The ICC's all-time best bowling ratings place Garner as the top-ranked One Day International bowler.[1]

Quick Facts

Country
West Indies
Born
16 December 1952
Birthplace
Christ Church, Barbados
Nickname
Big Bird
Batting
Right-handed
Bowling
Right arm fast

Facts from the source article.

Life and work

In 98 One Day Internationals he took 146 wickets, and as of January 2020 he is one of only two players with more than 100 ODI wickets at an average of under 20 runs per wicket.[3] The elder of two sons, Garner and his brother were raised by their grandparents after their parents moved to Canada and the United States when the boys were quite small.[2] His early education began at St Christopher's boys primary school, which met in the local Anglican Church, and continued at Foundation Boys secondary school, where he played cricket as an all-rounder.[2] Nurse dedicated time to instructing Garner on leveraging his height to its fullest potential while bowling.[2]

Garner participated in coaching clinics run by Charlie Griffith and Gary Sobers; Griffith showed him how to deliver a swinging yorker and employ a bouncer effectively.[2] At the beginning of the 1977 season, Garner became a Somerset player.[4] From 1977 through 1987, Garner played in 58 Test matches for the West Indies, claiming 259 wickets with an average just over 20.[5] In Test cricket, Garner achieved seven five-wicket hauls but never managed to take ten wickets in a single match.[6]

What the cited sources add

The same interview states that Garner's record in Lord's finals for Somerset includes 6-29 in 1979, 5-14 in 1981, 3-13 in 1982 and 2-15 in 1983.[7] He recalled, "I played my first game for Somerset against Australia at Bath in 1977 and I always enjoyed going back there"[7] Garner commented, "We had one of the best teams in cricket but we never got a chance in the Championship".[7] According to a 2019 interview in the Somerset County Gazette, Garner captured 338 First-Class wickets for Somerset at an average of 18.10 and is still considered the county's finest fast bowler.[7]

References

  1. Wikipedia, "Joel Garner" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: ICC Highest-Ever ODI Ratings, Reliance ICC rankings, accessed 21-Jan-2020; ICC Highest-Ever Test Ratings, Reliance ICC rankings, accessed 21-Jan-2020 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  2. Wikipedia, "Joel Garner" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Garner, "Big Bird. Flying High. The autobiography of Joel Garner", Arthur Barker, 1988, p. 20–35 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  3. Wikipedia, "Joel Garner" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: RECORDS / ONE-DAY INTERNATIONALS / BOWLING RECORDS / BEST CAREER BOWLING AVERAGE, ESPNcricinfo, 20 January 2020. The other is Rashid Khan.; RECORDS / ONE-DAY INTERNATIONALS / BOWLING RECORDS / BEST CAREER ECONOMY RATE, ESPNcricinfo, 20 January 2020; ICC Highest-Ever ODI Ratings, Reliance ICC rankings, accessed 21-Jan-2020 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  4. Wikipedia, "Joel Garner" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Joel GARNER - Test Profile 1977 - 1987 - West Indies", Sporting Heroes; "Joel Garner interview: "Somerset is still one of the better places in the world to live"", Somerset County Gazette, 20 June 2019 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
  5. Wikipedia, "Joel Garner" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Has there ever been a more underrated bowler than Joel Garner?", The Roar (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  6. Wikipedia, "Joel Garner" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Joel Garner: 16 facts you should know about the Big Bird", Cricket Country, 2014-12-16 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
  7. "Joel Garner interview: "Somerset is still one of the better places in the world to live"", Somerset County Gazette, 20 June 2019. facts only, no text reused. somersetcountygazette.co.uk

Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Joel Garner (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.

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