.gif)
James Foster (cricketer)
Encyclopedia
James Savin Foster is an English
cricket
er: 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. He was educated at Forest School, Walthamstow
and Durham University
, as was fellow cricketer Nasser Hussain
, subsequently Foster's captain at Essex
and for England. He never cemented his place in the England line-up, and after breaking his arm in a freak practice accident then by the time Alec Stewart
finally left the scene first Chris Read
and then Geraint Jones
had moved above him in the selectors' thoughts.
and Craig Kieswetter
in terms of a starting place in any form of the game. Foster's batting is reliant on cuts, pulls and sweeps. In all forms of cricket, Foster uses the reverse sweep effectively. Foster usually bats at seven for Essex in all forms. He once hit 5 sixes off of the first five balls of a Scott Borthwick over vs Durham in a Pro40, but missed out on the elusive sixth when Borthwick bowled a leg-side wide.
In county cricket
Foster has played for Essex
since his County Championship
debut in 2000 and in 2009 Season was selected as Vice Captain. He had his maiden first-class
hundred against Worcestershire
in 2001, but two broken bones ruined his 2002 season and though 2003 was a better year there was little hint of the startling summer he was to enjoy with the bat in 2004. That season he hit four more centuries, including 212 against Leicestershire
as Essex racked up the small matter of 708/9 declared. He also passed 1,000 runs for the season for the first time, averaging
51.85, and claimed 51 victims. In the 2006 season, he averaged 42.41 in the Liverpool Victoria County Championship and showed good form with the gloves and bat in one day cricket also.
Foster was the recipient of the NBC Denis Compton Award
in 2001.
In the winter of 2007/2008, Foster played for England Lions team for their tour to India, after being called up following an injury to Worcestershire's Steven Davies.
Good form with both the gloves and the bat in recent seasons kept Foster in the selectors minds' for a possible recall to the England setup, demonstrated by his selection for the MCC season opener against Sussex in 2008. This was realised when he was picked as the only regular wicket-keeper in England's 30-man squad for the 2009 ICC World Twenty20
. Debate continued in the run up to the 2009 Ashes series whether Foster should be selected as the Test wicketkeeper for England
Foster played for England in the 2009 ICC World Twenty20
, receiving high praise for his sharp keeping and stumpings of Yuvraj Singh
and Dwayne Bravo
. However, due to the preference of selectors for wicketkeepers who can bat fluently, Matt Prior remains the first-choice gloveman for England.
Foster was made county captain of Essex in June 2010 for all forms of the game, when Mark Pettini
stepped down due to poor form with the bat. In 2011, Foster was given a beneficiary by Essex, and this included many events such as a Twenty20 match named "Fozzy's Big Bash". This match featured the Essex 1st XI vs an All Star XI, which included leading Test wicket-taker Muttiah Muralitharan and former England all-rounder Andrew Flintoff among others.
James Foster has been known to display a fiery temperament. This was demonstrated in a televised T20
game vs Surrey CCC in 2011 at The Oval
. Foster was the recipient of a waist-high full toss from Zander de Bruyn
, which Foster was caught out from. A heated argument with the umpires then followed. Foster was subsequently fined an undisclosed amount by Essex CCC and also given a two match ban by the ECB
.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
cricket
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
er: 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 played seven 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...
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. He was educated at Forest School, Walthamstow
Forest School, Walthamstow
Forest School is an independent school on the edge of Epping Forest, in Walthamstow in North East London, in the UK. The School occupies a large campus based around the original Georgian and Victorian buildings.-History:...
and Durham University
Durham University
The University of Durham, commonly known as Durham University, is a university in Durham, England. It was founded by Act of Parliament in 1832 and granted a Royal Charter in 1837...
, as was fellow cricketer Nasser Hussain
Nasser Hussain
Nasser Hussain OBE is a former Essex and England cricketer.Beginning his career in a strong Essex side in the late 1980s, he was an outstanding fielder and a stylish but inconsistent batsman. In first-class cricket from 1987 to 2004 Hussain scored 20,698 runs in 334 matches at an average of 42.06,...
, subsequently Foster's captain at 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...
and for England. He never cemented his place in the England line-up, and after breaking his arm in a freak practice accident then by the time 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...
finally left the scene first Chris Read
Chris Read
Christopher Mark Wells Read is an English cricketer, a wicket-keeper who is the captain of Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club...
and then 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...
had moved above him in the selectors' thoughts.
Playing Style
Foster, who is known by the Essex fans as Fozzy, is often regarded as the best wicket keeper in the game. In July 2011 Alec Stewart described him as the best pure wicket-keeper in the world. This is a fact that is underlined by his ability to stand up to the stumps to many quick bowlers with consistency and excellence, and for his athleticism standing back. However, his batting is seen as mediocre by the England selectors and therefore falls behind Matt Prior, Steven DaviesSteven Davies
Steven Michael Davies is an English cricketer, a wicket-keeper-batsman who currently plays for Surrey. A stylish and aggressive left-handed batsman who can open the batting in both first-class and limited-overs cricket...
and Craig Kieswetter
Craig Kieswetter
Craig Kieswetter is an England cricketer of South African and Scottish heritage. He is a wicket-keeper batsman. An aggressive batsman, he began his career with the South Africa Under-19s, before stating that he wished to play international cricket for England. He began playing county cricket for...
in terms of a starting place in any form of the game. Foster's batting is reliant on cuts, pulls and sweeps. In all forms of cricket, Foster uses the reverse sweep effectively. Foster usually bats at seven for Essex in all forms. He once hit 5 sixes off of the first five balls of a Scott Borthwick over vs Durham in a Pro40, but missed out on the elusive sixth when Borthwick bowled a leg-side wide.
Playing Career
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:...
Foster has played for 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...
since his County Championship
County Championship
The County Championship is the domestic first-class cricket competition in England and Wales...
debut in 2000 and in 2009 Season was selected as Vice Captain. He had his maiden 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...
hundred against Worcestershire
Worcestershire County Cricket Club
Worcestershire 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 Worcestershire...
in 2001, but two broken bones ruined his 2002 season and though 2003 was a better year there was little hint of the startling summer he was to enjoy with the bat in 2004. That season he hit four more centuries, including 212 against Leicestershire
Leicestershire County Cricket Club
Leicestershire 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 Leicestershire. It has also been representative of the county of Rutland....
as Essex racked up the small matter of 708/9 declared. He also passed 1,000 runs for the season for the first time, 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 :...
51.85, and claimed 51 victims. In the 2006 season, he averaged 42.41 in the Liverpool Victoria County Championship and showed good form with the gloves and bat in one day cricket also.
Foster was the recipient of the 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:...
in 2001.
In the winter of 2007/2008, Foster played for England Lions team for their tour to India, after being called up following an injury to Worcestershire's Steven Davies.
Good form with both the gloves and the bat in recent seasons kept Foster in the selectors minds' for a possible recall to the England setup, demonstrated by his selection for the MCC season opener against Sussex in 2008. This was realised when he was picked as the only regular wicket-keeper in England's 30-man squad for the 2009 ICC World Twenty20
2009 ICC World Twenty20
The 2009 ICC World Twenty20 was an international Twenty20 cricket tournament which took place in England in June 2009. It was the second ICC World Twenty20 tournament, following the inaugural event in South Africa in September 2007...
. Debate continued in the run up to the 2009 Ashes series whether Foster should be selected as the Test wicketkeeper for England
Foster played for England in the 2009 ICC World Twenty20
2009 ICC World Twenty20
The 2009 ICC World Twenty20 was an international Twenty20 cricket tournament which took place in England in June 2009. It was the second ICC World Twenty20 tournament, following the inaugural event in South Africa in September 2007...
, receiving high praise for his sharp keeping and stumpings of Yuvraj Singh
Yuvraj Singh
Yuvraj Singh Bhandal is an Indian cricketer, and the son of former Indian fast bowler and Punjabi movie star Yograj Singh. He has been a member of the Indian cricket team since 2000 and played his first Test match in 2003. He was the vice captain of the ODI team from late-2007 to late-2008...
and Dwayne Bravo
Dwayne Bravo
Dwayne James John Bravo is a West Indian cricketer. A right-handed pace bowler, Bravo is expected to play a significant role in attempts by the West Indies to return to international prominence in the sport....
. However, due to the preference of selectors for wicketkeepers who can bat fluently, Matt Prior remains the first-choice gloveman for England.
Foster was made county captain of Essex in June 2010 for all forms of the game, when Mark Pettini
Mark Pettini
Mark Lewis Pettini is an English cricketer. He is a right-handed batsman. He can also bowl right-arm medium-pace bowler and has also acted as Essex's wicket-keeper, but not for a number of years. Nicknamed "Swamps" by his Essex team mates.-Playing Style:Mark Pettini is an aggressive batsman who...
stepped down due to poor form with the bat. In 2011, Foster was given a beneficiary by Essex, and this included many events such as a Twenty20 match named "Fozzy's Big Bash". This match featured the Essex 1st XI vs an All Star XI, which included leading Test wicket-taker Muttiah Muralitharan and former England all-rounder Andrew Flintoff among others.
James Foster has been known to display a fiery temperament. This was demonstrated in a televised T20
Twenty20
Twenty20 is a form of cricket, originally introduced in England for professional inter-county competition by the England and Wales Cricket Board , in 2003. A Twenty20 game involves two teams, each has a single innings, batting for a maximum of 20 overs. Twenty20 cricket is also known as T20 cricket...
game vs Surrey CCC in 2011 at The Oval
The Oval
The Kia Oval, still commonly referred to by its original name of The Oval, is an international cricket ground in Kennington, in the London Borough of Lambeth. In the past it was also sometimes called the Kennington Oval...
. Foster was the recipient of a waist-high full toss from Zander de Bruyn
Zander de Bruyn
Zander de Bruyn is a South African cricketer. He is a right-handed batsman and a right-arm medium-fast bowler. He has played three Test matches for South Africa, and currently plays domestic cricket for the Highveld Lions and Surrey County Cricket Club...
, which Foster was caught out from. A heated argument with the umpires then followed. Foster was subsequently fined an undisclosed amount by Essex CCC and also given a two match ban by the ECB
England and Wales Cricket Board
The England and Wales Cricket Board is the governing body of cricket in England and Wales. It was created on 1 January 1997 combining the roles of the Test and County Cricket Board, the National Cricket Association and the Cricket Council...
.