Chris Read
Encyclopedia
Christopher Mark Wells Read (born 10 August 1978) is an English
cricketer
, a wicket-keeper
who is the captain of Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club
. He has been the first-choice England wicket-keeper on numerous occasions during his career, but has never been able to hold onto the role long term.
appearance for Gloucestershire
, claiming an NBC Denis Compton Award
that year. After an England A tour to Kenya
and Sri Lanka
in the winter - making his first-class
debut in Nairobi
- Read was picked up by Nottinghamshire
for the 1998 season. By June he had established himself in the side and he claimed 42 dismissals that summer as well as making 401 runs.
He toured Zimbabwe
and South Africa with the A team the following winter, and in 1999 his maiden first-class century, a well-timed 160 against Warwickshire
, brought him selection for the first Test
against New Zealand
at Edgbaston
. Still not 21, Read made a good impression: although he failed with the bat, he claimed eight dismissals, six in the second innings alone. He was retained for Lord's, but suffered a very public embarrassment when he was bowled for zero, ducking what he thought was a beamer from Chris Cairns but was in fact a well-disguised slower ball. 37 in the second innings was followed by another duck at Old Trafford
, and he was dropped, though he did play in the 1999/2000 One Day International series in South Africa.
and then James Foster
as keeper-in-waiting in preparation for the retirement of Alec Stewart
. Left to concentrate on his county cricket
career, Read claimed 68 dismissals in 2002 and worked at his batting, that year averaging
nearly 35 with another hundred coming against Northamptonshire
. He made a one-day
century against the same opponents early in 2003 and with Stewart's retirement from international one-day cricket, he was recalled by England
that year, playing in all ten ODIs.
, Sri Lanka
and West Indies
. However, for the final Test of the West Indies series, in Antigua
, he was replaced by Kent
wicket-keeper Geraint Jones
. This would be the game in which Brian Lara
made his world-record score of 400 not out.
Read was retained for the one-day squad however, winning man-of-the match in the first game of that series, for a quickfire unbeaten 27 in a rain-affected run chase.
and West Indies in both Tests and One-Day Internationals, having made a century in the second Test of the New Zealand series. Read returned to Nottinghamshire and had by far his best season with the bat: he scored 807 first-class runs including two centuries, and averaged over 50. The selectors stuck with Jones, however, and by the summer of 2005 Read was not even second-choice keeper for England in ODIs, Matt Prior
of Sussex
being preferred for the role. Read was again overlooked in the squad for the winter tour of Pakistan
, instead being selected for the second-tier ECB National Academy
squad. As first choice wicket-keeper in the Academy squad, Read got several opportunities to play, and had a successful tour, scoring 254 runs at an average of 66.25 in the West Indies before he had to prematurely return home to attend to a family emergency.
, who had remained first choice for England despite a slump in batting form, broke a finger in the second Test match against Pakistan in 2006; the next day Read scored a rapid 72 against Northamptonshire
in a Natwest Pro 40 League game. On 31 July Read was recalled to the England squad as a replacement for Jones. Chairman of Selectors David Graveney
stressed that this was down to Jones' poor form with the bat rather than his injury. Read took advantage of the opportunity with 38 in the first innings of the 3rd Test against Pakistan, and then completing his first Test half-century, shepherding the tail in the second innings whilst making 55, to add to a sharp performance (four catches and a stumping) behind the wickets. Despite finishing the summer as first choice, Read was passed over for a 12 month central contract for 2007 - the England selectors deciding to keep their options open by not contracting any wicket-keeper.
Prior to the first Test in the 2006-2007 England Ashes tour of Australia, Read was dropped in favour of Geraint Jones
. England coach Duncan Fletcher said that Jones would be "a better prospect for batting at number seven".
Notts Director of Cricket, Mick Newell, responded to Fletcher's decision by calling his selection "bizarre".
Read was selected to play for two tour matches for England between the Second and Third Tests. In the first, against Australia Chairman's XI, Read was dismissed for a duck. In the two-day match against Western Australia, Read scored 59 not out while Jones, playing as a batsman, went for a first ball duck. Under increased pressure, Jones retained his place for the third Test but failed to score in either innings - the first and second ducks of his Test career - leading to Read being selected for the fourth Test.
Though he struggled with the bat in the final two Tests, he took 6 catches in the first innings of the fourth Test, becoming only the 3rd player in Test history to take 6 dismissals in an innings twice.
Read repeated that performance with another 6 dismissals in the first innings of the 5th Test in Sydney, making him the first, and so far only, keeper in Test history to achieve the feat in successive Tests. For the subsequent one-day tournament, and the following World Cup
, Read was overlooked for selection, with Paul Nixon
taking over the wicketkeeper position. The following summer, the Test wicketkeeping position was given to Matt Prior, who scored a century on his Test debut and retained his place for the subsequent one-day matches.
On 4 November 2007 Read ran the New York City Marathon the raise money for Bowel Cancer UK in honour of his first cricket coach, Trevor Ward, who died of the disease. Read finished 4358th out of over 90,000 runners, placing him in the top 5%.
English people
The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
cricketer
Cricketer
A cricketer is a person who plays the sport of cricket. Official and long-established cricket publications prefer the traditional word "cricketer" over the rarely used term "cricket player"....
, a wicket-keeper
Wicket-keeper
The wicket-keeper in the sport of cricket is the player on the fielding side who stands behind the wicket or stumps being guarded by the batsman currently on strike...
who is the captain of Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club
Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club
Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Nottinghamshire, and the current county champions. Its limited overs team is called the Nottinghamshire Outlaws...
. He has been the first-choice England wicket-keeper on numerous occasions during his career, but has never been able to hold onto the role long term.
Debuts
Read played for Devon in a NatWest Trophy match at the age of 16, and in 1997 made a single AXA Life LeagueNational League (cricket)
The NatWest Pro40 League was a one-day cricket league for first-class cricket counties in England and Wales. It was inaugurated in 1999, but was essentially the old Sunday League retitled to reflect the fact that large numbers of matches were played on days other than Sunday.-Sunday League:The...
appearance for Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire County Cricket Club
Gloucestershire County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh national cricket structure, representing the historic county of Gloucestershire. Its limited overs team is called the Gloucestershire Gladiators....
, claiming an NBC Denis Compton Award
NBC Denis Compton Award
The NBC Denis Compton Award is an annual award given to 'The Most Promising Young Player' at each of the 18 English first-class counties. A player may receive the award more than once.-History:...
that year. After an England A tour to Kenya
Kenya
Kenya , officially known as the Republic of Kenya, is a country in East Africa that lies on the equator, with the Indian Ocean to its south-east...
and Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...
in the winter - making his first-class
First-class cricket
First-class cricket is a class of cricket that consists of matches of three or more days' scheduled duration, that are between two sides of eleven players and are officially adjudged first-class by virtue of the standard of the competing teams...
debut in Nairobi
Nairobi
Nairobi is the capital and largest city of Kenya. The city and its surrounding area also forms the Nairobi County. The name "Nairobi" comes from the Maasai phrase Enkare Nyirobi, which translates to "the place of cool waters". However, it is popularly known as the "Green City in the Sun" and is...
- Read was picked up by Nottinghamshire
Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club
Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Nottinghamshire, and the current county champions. Its limited overs team is called the Nottinghamshire Outlaws...
for the 1998 season. By June he had established himself in the side and he claimed 42 dismissals that summer as well as making 401 runs.
He toured Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe is a landlocked country located in the southern part of the African continent, between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers. It is bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia and a tip of Namibia to the northwest and Mozambique to the east. Zimbabwe has three...
and South Africa with the A team the following winter, and in 1999 his maiden first-class century, a well-timed 160 against Warwickshire
Warwickshire County Cricket Club
Warwickshire County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Warwickshire. Its limited overs team is called the Warwickshire Bears. Their kit colours are black and gold and the shirt sponsor...
, brought him selection for the first Test
Test cricket
Test cricket is the longest form of the sport of cricket. Test matches are played between national representative teams with "Test status", as determined by the International Cricket Council , with four innings played between two teams of 11 players over a period of up to a maximum five days...
against New Zealand
New Zealand cricket team
The New Zealand cricket team, nicknamed the Black Caps, are the national cricket team representing New Zealand. They played their first in 1930 against England in Christchurch, New Zealand, becoming the fifth country to play Test cricket. It took the team until 1955–56 to win a Test, against the...
at Edgbaston
Edgbaston Cricket Ground
Edgbaston Cricket Ground, also known as the County Ground or Edgbaston Stadium, is a cricket ground in the Edgbaston area of Birmingham, England...
. Still not 21, Read made a good impression: although he failed with the bat, he claimed eight dismissals, six in the second innings alone. He was retained for Lord's, but suffered a very public embarrassment when he was bowled for zero, ducking what he thought was a beamer from Chris Cairns but was in fact a well-disguised slower ball. 37 in the second innings was followed by another duck at Old Trafford
Old Trafford (cricket)
Old Trafford is a cricket ground situated on Talbot Road in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester. It has been the home of Lancashire County Cricket Club since its foundation in 1864, having been the ground of Manchester Cricket Club from 1857...
, and he was dropped, though he did play in the 1999/2000 One Day International series in South Africa.
County years
Several years in the international wilderness followed, Read being overlooked in favour of first Paul NixonPaul Nixon
Paul Andrew Nixon is an English cricket player who has played for Leicestershire, England, England A, MCC and Kent. He is a wicket-keeper and left-handed batsman...
and then James Foster
James Foster (cricketer)
James Savin Foster is an English cricketer: a wicket-keeper who played seven Tests and 11 One Day Internationals in 2001/02 and 2002/03. Foster played his club cricket at Ilford Cricket Club and then Wanstead & Snaresbrook Cricket Club...
as keeper-in-waiting in preparation for the retirement of Alec Stewart
Alec Stewart
Alec James Stewart OBE is a retired English cricketer, a right-handed batsman-wicketkeeper and former captain of the England cricket team...
. Left to concentrate on his county cricket
County cricket
County cricket is the highest level of domestic cricket in England and Wales. For the 2010 season, see 2010 English cricket season.-First-class counties:...
career, Read claimed 68 dismissals in 2002 and worked at his batting, that year averaging
Batting average
Batting average is a statistic in both cricket and baseball that measures the performance of cricket batsmen and baseball hitters. The two statistics are related in that baseball averages are directly descended from the concept of cricket averages.- Cricket :...
nearly 35 with another hundred coming against Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire County Cricket Club
Northamptonshire County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Northamptonshire. Its limited overs team is called the Northants Steelbacks. The traditional club colour is Maroon. During the...
. He made a one-day
One-day cricket
Limited overs cricket, also known as one-day cricket and in a slightly different context as List A cricket, is a version of the sport of cricket in which a match is generally completed in one day, whereas Test and first-class matches can take up to five days to complete...
century against the same opponents early in 2003 and with Stewart's retirement from international one-day cricket, he was recalled by England
English cricket team
The England and Wales cricket team is a cricket team which represents England and Wales. Until 1992 it also represented Scotland. Since 1 January 1997 it has been governed by the England and Wales Cricket Board , having been previously governed by Marylebone Cricket Club from 1903 until the end...
that year, playing in all ten ODIs.
Return for Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and the West Indies
Read was first-choice keeper for the 2003/04 tours and played in eight of the nine Tests that winter, against BangladeshBangladeshi cricket team
The Bangladesh national cricket team is a national cricket team representing Bangladesh. The team is administered by the Bangladesh Cricket Board . Bangladesh is a full member of the International Cricket Council with Test and One Day International status...
, Sri Lanka
Sri Lankan cricket team
The Sri Lankan cricket team is the national cricket team of Sri Lanka. The team first played international cricket in 1926–27, and were later awarded Test status in 1981, which made Sri Lanka the eighth Test cricket playing nation...
and West Indies
West Indian cricket team
The West Indian cricket team, also known colloquially as the West Indies or the Windies, is a multi-national cricket team representing a sporting confederation of 15 mainly English-speaking Caribbean countries, British dependencies and non-British dependencies.From the mid 1970s to the early 1990s,...
. However, for the final Test of the West Indies series, in Antigua
Antigua
Antigua , also known as Waladli, is an island in the West Indies, in the Leeward Islands in the Caribbean region, the main island of the country of Antigua and Barbuda. Antigua means "ancient" in Spanish and was named by Christopher Columbus after an icon in Seville Cathedral, Santa Maria de la...
, he was replaced by Kent
Kent County Cricket Club
Kent County Cricket Club is one of the 18 first class county county cricket clubs which make up the English and Welsh national cricket structure, representing the county of Kent...
wicket-keeper Geraint Jones
Geraint Jones
Geraint Owen Jones MBE is an England cricketer of Welsh extraction but raised in Australia. Until August 2006 he was the first-choice wicketkeeper for England in both Test and One-day cricket, but fell behind Chris Read, Paul Nixon, Matt Prior and Tim Ambrose...
. This would be the game in which Brian Lara
Brian Lara
Brian Charles Lara, TC, OCC, AM is a former West Indian international cricket player. Lara is generally regarded as one of the greatest batsmen of all time...
made his world-record score of 400 not out.
Read was retained for the one-day squad however, winning man-of-the match in the first game of that series, for a quickfire unbeaten 27 in a rain-affected run chase.
Return to county cricket
In the 2004 English season, Jones was preferred for the series against New ZealandNew Zealand cricket team
The New Zealand cricket team, nicknamed the Black Caps, are the national cricket team representing New Zealand. They played their first in 1930 against England in Christchurch, New Zealand, becoming the fifth country to play Test cricket. It took the team until 1955–56 to win a Test, against the...
and West Indies in both Tests and One-Day Internationals, having made a century in the second Test of the New Zealand series. Read returned to Nottinghamshire and had by far his best season with the bat: he scored 807 first-class runs including two centuries, and averaged over 50. The selectors stuck with Jones, however, and by the summer of 2005 Read was not even second-choice keeper for England in ODIs, Matt Prior
Matthew Prior (cricketer)
Matthew James Prior is an English One Day International and Test cricketer who plays domestic cricket for Sussex. He is a wicket-keeper, and his aggressive right-handed batting enables him to open the innings in ODI matches...
of Sussex
Sussex County Cricket Club
Sussex County Cricket Club is the oldest of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Sussex. The club was founded as a successor to Brighton Cricket Club which was a representative of the county of Sussex as a...
being preferred for the role. Read was again overlooked in the squad for the winter tour of Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
, instead being selected for the second-tier ECB National Academy
ECB National Academy
The National Cricket Performance Centre first came into existence in the winter of 2001-2002 and has been based at Loughborough University since 2003. In 2007 following the "Schofield Report" the National Academy was renamed The National Cricket Performance Centre. It consists of a state of the art...
squad. As first choice wicket-keeper in the Academy squad, Read got several opportunities to play, and had a successful tour, scoring 254 runs at an average of 66.25 in the West Indies before he had to prematurely return home to attend to a family emergency.
Second International comeback
Read continued to be on the fringes of England squads, and was selected for the England 'A' team against the touring Pakistan side in 2006, off the back of a strong start to the county season which had seen him average 50 in both formats of the game. He took advantage of his selection, scoring an unbeaten 150 in the tour match. Soon after, Geraint JonesGeraint Jones
Geraint Owen Jones MBE is an England cricketer of Welsh extraction but raised in Australia. Until August 2006 he was the first-choice wicketkeeper for England in both Test and One-day cricket, but fell behind Chris Read, Paul Nixon, Matt Prior and Tim Ambrose...
, who had remained first choice for England despite a slump in batting form, broke a finger in the second Test match against Pakistan in 2006; the next day Read scored a rapid 72 against Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire is a landlocked county in the English East Midlands, with a population of 629,676 as at the 2001 census. It has boundaries with the ceremonial counties of Warwickshire to the west, Leicestershire and Rutland to the north, Cambridgeshire to the east, Bedfordshire to the south-east,...
in a Natwest Pro 40 League game. On 31 July Read was recalled to the England squad as a replacement for Jones. Chairman of Selectors David Graveney
David Graveney
David Anthony Graveney OBE is a leading figure in English cricket and former chairman of the England Test selectors, a post he held from 1997 until 2008. Graveney attended Millfield School in Somerset....
stressed that this was down to Jones' poor form with the bat rather than his injury. Read took advantage of the opportunity with 38 in the first innings of the 3rd Test against Pakistan, and then completing his first Test half-century, shepherding the tail in the second innings whilst making 55, to add to a sharp performance (four catches and a stumping) behind the wickets. Despite finishing the summer as first choice, Read was passed over for a 12 month central contract for 2007 - the England selectors deciding to keep their options open by not contracting any wicket-keeper.
Prior to the first Test in the 2006-2007 England Ashes tour of Australia, Read was dropped in favour of Geraint Jones
Geraint Jones
Geraint Owen Jones MBE is an England cricketer of Welsh extraction but raised in Australia. Until August 2006 he was the first-choice wicketkeeper for England in both Test and One-day cricket, but fell behind Chris Read, Paul Nixon, Matt Prior and Tim Ambrose...
. England coach Duncan Fletcher said that Jones would be "a better prospect for batting at number seven".
Notts Director of Cricket, Mick Newell, responded to Fletcher's decision by calling his selection "bizarre".
Read was selected to play for two tour matches for England between the Second and Third Tests. In the first, against Australia Chairman's XI, Read was dismissed for a duck. In the two-day match against Western Australia, Read scored 59 not out while Jones, playing as a batsman, went for a first ball duck. Under increased pressure, Jones retained his place for the third Test but failed to score in either innings - the first and second ducks of his Test career - leading to Read being selected for the fourth Test.
Though he struggled with the bat in the final two Tests, he took 6 catches in the first innings of the fourth Test, becoming only the 3rd player in Test history to take 6 dismissals in an innings twice.
Read repeated that performance with another 6 dismissals in the first innings of the 5th Test in Sydney, making him the first, and so far only, keeper in Test history to achieve the feat in successive Tests. For the subsequent one-day tournament, and the following World Cup
2007 Cricket World Cup
The 2007 ICC Cricket World Cup was the ninth edition of the ICC Cricket World Cup tournament that took place in the West Indies from 13 March to 28 April 2007, using the sport's One Day International format...
, Read was overlooked for selection, with Paul Nixon
Paul Nixon
Paul Andrew Nixon is an English cricket player who has played for Leicestershire, England, England A, MCC and Kent. He is a wicket-keeper and left-handed batsman...
taking over the wicketkeeper position. The following summer, the Test wicketkeeping position was given to Matt Prior, who scored a century on his Test debut and retained his place for the subsequent one-day matches.
Post England career with Nottinghamshire
In September 2007, Read took over as the captain of Nottinghamshire. In October 2007, he signed a new contract with the county, keeping him with Nottinghamshire until the end of the 2010 season. In 2008 Read had an excellent season with Nottinghamshire scoring 1,203 runs at an average of 75.18 including 4 centuries in first class cricket. He remains one of Notts most important players, both as captain and batsman as well as wicket-keeper.Career Best Performances
as of 9 September 2010| Batting | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Score | Fixture | Venue | Season | |
| Tests Test cricket Test cricket is the longest form of the sport of cricket. Test matches are played between national representative teams with "Test status", as determined by the International Cricket Council , with four innings played between two teams of 11 players over a period of up to a maximum five days... |
55 | England v Pakistan | Headingley Headingley Stadium Headingley Stadium is a sporting complex in the Leeds suburb of Headingley in West Yorkshire, England. It is the home of Yorkshire County Cricket Club, rugby league team Leeds Rhinos and rugby union team Leeds Carnegie .... |
2006 |
| ODI | 30* | England v South Africa | Old Trafford | 2003 |
| T20I Twenty20 International A Twenty20 International is a form of cricket which is played over 20 overs per side between two national cricket teams. The game is played under the rules of Twenty20 cricket... |
13 | England v Pakistan | Bristol County Cricket Ground, Bristol The County Cricket Ground is a cricket venue in Bristol, England. It is in the district of Ashley Down. The ground is home to the Gloucestershire County Cricket Club.... |
2006 |
| FC First-class cricket First-class cricket is a class of cricket that consists of matches of three or more days' scheduled duration, that are between two sides of eleven players and are officially adjudged first-class by virtue of the standard of the competing teams... |
240 | Nottinghamshire Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Nottinghamshire, and the current county champions. Its limited overs team is called the Nottinghamshire Outlaws... v Essex Essex County Cricket Club Essex County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh national cricket structure, representing the historic county of Essex. Its limited overs team is called the Essex Eagles, their team colours this season are blue.The club plays most of its home games... |
Chelmsford County Cricket Ground, Chelmsford The County Cricket Ground, is a cricket venue in Chelmsford, Essex, England. It is home to Essex County Cricket Club.Chelmsford is a small ground, and therefore suits big-hitting batsmen. Essex stalwart Graham Gooch scored many of his runs here and Graham Napier scored 152 of 58 balls in a... |
2007 |
| LA | 135 | Nottinghamshire Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Nottinghamshire, and the current county champions. Its limited overs team is called the Nottinghamshire Outlaws... v Durham Durham County Cricket Club Durham County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh national cricket structure, representing the historic county of Durham. Its limited overs team is called the Durham Dynamos. Their kit colours are blue with yellow trim and the shirt sponsor was... |
Trent Bridge Trent Bridge Trent Bridge is a Test, One-day international and County cricket ground located in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, England and is also the headquarters of Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club. As well as International cricket and Nottinghamshire's home games, the ground has hosted the Finals Day of... |
2006 |
| T20 | 58* | Nottinghamshire Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Nottinghamshire, and the current county champions. Its limited overs team is called the Nottinghamshire Outlaws... v Lancashire Lancashire County Cricket Club Lancashire County Cricket Club represents the historic county of Lancashire in cricket's County Championship. The club was founded in 1864 as a successor to Manchester Cricket Club and has played at Old Trafford since then... |
Old Trafford | 2009 |
Personal life
Chris is married to Louise and together they have two children, a son named Caleb Mattias Wells Read, who was born on 3 May 2009, and a daughter named Callista Lily Read, who was born on 18 January 2011.On 4 November 2007 Read ran the New York City Marathon the raise money for Bowel Cancer UK in honour of his first cricket coach, Trevor Ward, who died of the disease. Read finished 4358th out of over 90,000 runners, placing him in the top 5%.