Allan Lamb
Allan Joseph Lamb is a South African-born former English cricketer, who played for the first-class teams of Western Province and Northamptonshire. Making his Test debut in 1982, he was a fixture in the Test and One-Day International team for the next decade. He represented England at three World Cups. He served as captain of Northamptonshire, and also captained England in three Test matches. He was a part of the English squads which finished as runners-up at the 1987 Cricket World Cup and as runners-up at the 1992 Cricket World Cup.
Personal life
Allan Lamb was born to British parents in Langebaanweg, Union of South Africa. His father Mickey was a journeyman club bowler. Lamb attended Wynberg Boys' High School and Abbots College. He has one son called Richard.Career
Domestic cricket in South Africa
In January 1973, Allan made his first team debut at the age of 18 when he played for the Western Province in the Currie Cup. He batted at number three and made 59 and 36 against the Eastern Province. He then had a two-year absence from the game and joined the National Service in the South African Air Force building airfields before returning to the club. Western Province then experimented with Lamb as an opener, at 5 and 6 but 4 was always his true and regular position in the batting order for Western Province. Lamb then had one year playing for Orange Free State, where he scored his highest first-class score of 294, before moving back to the Western Province for the rest of his South African domestic career.County cricket with Northamptonshire
Lamb came to England along with two young other cricketers, Peter Kirsten and Garth Le Roux, in search of fame and a county contract and it was Northamptonshire who signed Lamb as a relatively unknown overseas player in 1978.Lamb ended the 1980 season with 1,797 runs and first place in the national batting averages with 66.55. He also took the Gold Award for his match-winning 72 in the Benson and Hedges Cup final against Essex. He was also a member of the 1992 NatWest Trophy winning team. In his final season as captain in 1995 he very nearly took Northamptonshire to their first County Championship with 12 wins in their final 17 matches.
Lamb spent 18 seasons at the County Ground between 1978 and 1995, and scored more than 30,000 runs in 600 appearances for the club across first-class and limited overs cricket.
In 2001, Northamptonshire honoured him by naming a room in the club's Indoor Centre 'The Allan Lamb Room'.
In a 2020 poll he was named Northamptonshire's greatest player of all time.
Test Cricket
In 1970, South Africa were banned from international cricket indefinitely because of its government's policy of apartheid. The South-African born Lamb emigrated to England. Since his parents were born in England, Lamb qualified for the national team selection. Lamb was named a Wisden Cricketer of the Year in 1981 and was rewarded for some great consistency at the domestic level when he was picked into the England side in 1982 for the tour to India after having made his ODI debut a few days earlier.England vs India 1982
England hosted India for a 3 Test series. Lamb made his debut for the first Test at Lords. England won the match by 7 wickets and Lamb was not out when the winning runs were scored. He retained his place for the next two Tests, scoring his maiden Test century in the 3rd Test.England vs Pakistan 1982
Lamb played all three Tests of the series against Pakistan. England won the series 2-1 and would be their last series win against Pakistan for 18 years. Lamb scored 48 in 6 innings, beginning a low run of scores against them.Australia vs England 1982/83
Lamb's first overseas International tour was the 1982/83 Ashes. He played all 5 Tests scoring 414 at 41.England vs New Zealand 1983
Lamb scored 392 in the 4 Tests, the second most in the series with an unbeaten century in the first and last Tests.New Zealand vs England 1983/84
In the return 3-match series, Lamb could only manage 82 runs in 4 innings.Pakistan vs England 1983/84
Lamb’s poor run of form continued as he scored 78 runs in 5 innings.England vs West Indies 1984
Lamb’s first encounter with the West Indies and he began his streak of good form against them. While England lost 5-0 the first and only time England had suffered a home defeat like this, he was their leading scorer with 386 runs including a series-high three centuries.England vs Sri Lanka 1984
Sri Lanka’s first Test match in England and Lamb scored a century in a drawn match.India vs England 1984/85
A Five Test tour of India that England won 2-1 after losing the first Test. Lamb scored 241 at 40 with a highest score of 67.Lamb bowled one over and captured his only Test wicket when he had Manoj Prabhakar lbw in the Third Test.
England vs Australia 1985
Lamb’s first Ashes series at home and his first Ashes win. The series stood at 1-1 after four Tests, before England won the final two Tests. Lamb scored 256 at 36 with a highest score of 67. His most significant if fortuitous intervention in the series however came in the field during the fifth Test in a tense climax when a shot from Australian wicketkeeper Wayne Phillips hit Lamb's boot and bounced to David Gower who claimed a catch. Controversially Phillips was given out, a decision which arguably changed the course of the series.West Indies vs England 1985/86
A 5 Test series against the West Indies resulted in another 5–0 defeat. Lamb was just one of 5 tourists to play all 5 Tests. He scored 224 at 22.4 with a highest score of 62.England vs India 1986
Lamb only played the first two Tests of the series scoring 65 at 16 as England lost the Test series 2–0.Australia vs England 1986/87
Despite England retaining the Ashes in Australia, it wasn't the best of series for Lamb who could only manage 144 runs at 18.England vs West Indies 1988
Back in the side after a year’s absence, Lamb returned to face the might of the West Indies. It was a difficult summer for England using four Captains across the five Tests. Lamb was the second highest English run scorer with 254 at 42. He scored a century in the Second Test at Lords. Injured in the fourth Test, Lamb couldn't play in the final match of the series. This would actually be the end of a West Indian period of domination stretching back as far as the 1960s and was the last West Indian series win in England.England vs Sri Lanka 1988
Lamb returned for the one-off Test against Sri Lanka and scored 63 in the win.England vs Australia 1989
Now 35, Lamb was very much an elder statesman of the team. In the opening Test at Headingley, Lamb scored his only Ashes century. Injured, he was unable to take any further part in the series.West Indies vs England 1989–90
This tour was a signature moments of Lamb’s career. He scored 132 in the opening Test, which England won by 9 wickets. This was the first win of Lamb’s career against the West Indies and the only time he was Man of the Match in a Test. It was England’s first Test Victory over the West Indies since 1974.The second Test was abandoned and the third was a draw. Chasing 151 to win, England could only manage 5/120 from 33 overs.
Lamb was captain for the Fourth Test and scored 119 as England lost by 164 runs. He was also captain for the Fifth and final Test which the West Indies won by an innings and 32 runs.
England vs New Zealand 1990
England hosted New Zealand for a Three Test series. Lamb played in all 3 Tests scoring 129 at 32.35England vs India 1990
India then toured for 3 Tests and Lamb scored 2 centuries. With 364 at 60, he was the third highest English run scorer of the series.Australia vs England 1990/91
Lamb captained England for the First Test which England lost by 10 wickets. Lamb missed the next 2 Tests with injury but came back for the final 2 where his 91 in Perth was his highest Test score in Australia. In the final 2 Tests, Craig McDermott dismissed him all four times.England vs West Indies 1991
Lamb’s final Test series against the West Indies. Ironically Lamb would have his worst series against West Indies only averaging 12.57 with a high score of 29, but it was his best series team wise as England would draw the series 2-2. England won the opening Test by 115 runs, just the second win and one and only in England that Lamb would experience against the West Indies. Lamb was dropped for the Fifth Test which England won.New Zealand vs England 1991/92
Recalled for the Tour of New Zealand, this was Lamb’s final overseas tour. He began the series with 93 and finished it with 142 his highest Test score. Lamb was the leading run scorer of the series with 338 at 67.60.England vs Pakistan 1992
Lamb’s final Test series. Played with the wounds of England’s World Cup Final loss to Pakistan still fresh there was a lot of bad blood in the series. It was the end of an era with it and the final Test series for stalwarts such as Ian Botham, David Gower and Derek Pringle. Lamb’s final Test was at Lord’s, a match England narrowly lost by 2 wickets.One Day International Cricket
Lamb’s style of play was well suited to the limited over game and he was a staple of the English side for 10 years. He quickly enjoyed success in the format, making 99 in his second match, making him only the second man to be dismissed for 99 in a one-day international. In his third one-day international he made the first of his four centuries, 118, which remained his highest score in the format. As of May 2022, he is still has the 10th most runs for England with 4010 runs.Lamb played in two World Cup finals and one semi final. On the 1986/87 Tour of Australia, Lamb was a member of the side that was the World Series Cup and America’s Cup Challenge.