Steven Finn (cricketer)
Encyclopedia
Steven Thomas Finn is an English
cricket
er. He is a right-handed batsman and a right-arm fast-medium bowler.
Educated at Parmiter's School
in Garston
, at the age of 16 Finn became Middlesex County Cricket Club
's youngest debutant in first-class cricket, beating the record set by Fred Titmus
in 1949. Standing 6'7" tall, Finn, a former county basketball player, made his England Test cricket debut in 2010 against Bangladesh
and after an impressive first summer in the national team in which he took 32 wickets at an average of 23.21, he was named Best Emerging Player at the 2010 ICC Awards
.
debut for Middlesex
on 1 June 2005, playing against Cambridge UCCE at Fenner's
. He took 1 wicket for 16 runs (1/16) and 1/37 and did not bat. He became Middlesex's youngest debutant, beating the record set by 16-year-old Fred Titmus
in 1949.
In February and March 2010, he was part of the England Lions team to tour the United Arab Emirates
, earning selection with a solid 2009 season of 53 wickets at 30.64. He impressed the selectors, and was short-listed for the 2009 World Twenty20 though was not picked for the final team. When the senior squad's bowling attack was restricted by injury at the beginning of the 2010 Bangladesh tour
, he was flown in as bowling cover. He played a tour match the day after arriving, and took three wickets in some economical spells of bowling across the two innings, and subsequently leapfrogged Liam Plunkett
and Ajmal Shahzad
to be picked for the first Test match on 12 March 2010. He was aged just 20, and became the 647th man to play Test cricket for England.
He played in both Test matches, which England won by 181 runs and 10 wickets respectively. His first wicket was Bangladeshi batsman Shahadat Hossain
, who was caught by Paul Collingwood
, and proceeded to take one wicket in each of the four Bangladeshi innings. A double declaration by England in the first Test meant that he wasn't required to bat until the second Test where he finished unbeaten on 0 from 10 balls.
After an impressive start to the County season
, including a 14-wicket match haul, he was chosen again to face Bangladesh
, this time in England. In the first match at Lord's
, his home debut, he took a 5-wicket-haul in the second innings as England won by eight wickets, finishing with nine wickets in the match. In doing so was compared to Angus Fraser
and Glenn McGrath
by many media pundits, although he also worried them by frequently falling over in his follow-through
. Nevertheless he went on to Old Trafford to take a second five-for, being named Player of the Series in his debutante international home season.
Finn was not selected for the ODI series against Australia
and Bangladesh, but returned for the Test series against Pakistan
. Finn was quietly effective; though he did not bowl as much as fellow pace-bowlers James Anderson
and Stuart Broad
, he picked up 13 wickets at an average of 22.92. Finn was also part of a useful 49-run unbeaten last-wicket partnership with Matt Prior in the first Test, which enabled Prior to reach a century despite only having 63 runs when Finn came to the crease. England won the series 3-1, though the series ended amid newspaper allegations of spot-fixing involving several members of the Pakistan team
.
Finn's performances during the summer saw him selected for England's squad for the 2010-11 Ashes series and he won the Best Emerging Player award at the 2010 ICC Awards
. Chosen for the first Test at The Gabba in Brisbane
, Finn took his first Ashes wicket catching Simon Katich
off his own bowling. He later took the wickets of several of the Australian tail to finish with Test-best figures of 6-125, his third five wicket haul in only his ninth Test. He took a further 8 wickets in the next two Tests, as England won in Adelaide
before Australia squared the series at Perth. Despite being the leading wicket taker in the series for either side after 3 Tests, Finn was rested for the fourth Test, which England won. His replacement, Tim Bresnan
, impressed in the fourth Test and kept his place for the fifth Test as England won both games by an innings to record a 3-1 victory – their first in Australia for 24 years. Finn finished with 14 wickets at an average of 33.14. Although he wasn't initially included in the limited overs squads, he was added as cover for the rested James Anderson
for the two Twenty20 internationals and the first three ODI matches. On 30 January 2011 he made his ODI debut taking 1/61 off his 10 overs and scoring 35 runs as number 11 with a late flurry at the end of England's innings in a partnership of 53 with James Anderson.
Having been dropped from the Test side during the Ashes, Finn faced competition from fast bowlers such as Bresnan and Shahzad to break into the team. When Sri Lanka toured in May
Finn was included in the Test squad, though missed out on selection for the first match. An injury to James Anderson opened up a gap in England's bowling attack and Finn was chosen as his replacement. England's fast bowlers struggled to dismiss Sri Lanka, but Finn took 4/108 and in the process became the youngest player to reach 50 Test wickets for England. Anderson returned to fitness in time for the next Test and Finn was dropped to make room for him. Finn was subsequently dropped from the Test squad to face India in July in favour of Tim Bresnan but recalled as cover for the injured Chris Tremlett ahead of the third Test, though he did not play. Towards the end of the season, Finn's bowling was frequently reaching 90 miles per hour (40.2 m/s). He played three ODIs during England's 2011 home season, taking four wickets.
When England toured India in October for five ODIs, senior fast bowlers James Anderson and Stuart Broad were absent, rested and injured respectively. Finn was included in the squad. Finn finished as England's leading wicket-taker in the series with 8 dismissals at an average of 31.62. Commenting on Finn's performance in the series, which England lost 5–0, coach Andy Flower
said "Coming into the series he wasn't a first-choice limited-overs cricketer for us. But he has been the outstanding bowler in our side." After the tour Finn exploited a gap in England's international schedule to join Otago to gain experience.
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...
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. He is a right-handed batsman and a right-arm fast-medium bowler.
Educated at Parmiter's School
Parmiter's School
Parmiter's School is a co-educational school in Garston, Hertfordshire on the outskirts of North West London, England with a long history. Although the school admits pupils of all abilities it is partially selective...
in Garston
Garston, Hertfordshire
Garston is a village in Hertfordshire, England, more or less contiguous with Watford and now, despite retaining a local identity, is effectively, a suburb...
, at the age of 16 Finn became Middlesex County Cricket Club
Middlesex County Cricket Club
Middlesex 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 Middlesex. It was announced in February 2009 that Middlesex changed their limited overs name from the Middlesex Crusaders, to the...
's youngest debutant in first-class cricket, beating the record set by Fred Titmus
Fred Titmus
Frederick John Titmus MBE was an English cricketer, whose first-class career spanned five decades. Although he was best known for his off spin , he was an accomplished lower-order batsman who deserved to be called an all-rounder, even opening the batting for England on six occasions...
in 1949. Standing 6'7" tall, Finn, a former county basketball player, made his England Test cricket debut in 2010 against Bangladesh
English cricket team in Bangladesh in 2009–10
The England cricket team toured Bangladesh, playing three One Day Internationals and two Test matches, at the end of the 2009–10 cricket season. They were captained by Alastair Cook, due to regular captain Andrew Strauss controversially missing the series to rest for the 2010–11 Ashes series...
and after an impressive first summer in the national team in which he took 32 wickets at an average of 23.21, he was named Best Emerging Player at the 2010 ICC Awards
2010 ICC Awards
The 2010 LG ICC Awards were held on 6 October 2010 in Bengaluru in India. These awards will be presented in association with Federation of International Cricketers' Associations....
.
Domestic cricket
Finn made his first-classFirst-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 for Middlesex
Middlesex County Cricket Club
Middlesex 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 Middlesex. It was announced in February 2009 that Middlesex changed their limited overs name from the Middlesex Crusaders, to the...
on 1 June 2005, playing against Cambridge UCCE at Fenner's
Fenner's
Fenner's is the University of Cambridge's cricket ground.-History:Fenner's has hosted first-class cricket since 1848, and many of the world's great players have graced the wicket. The ground was established on land leased for the purpose by Francis Fenner, after whom the ground is named.Playing for...
. He took 1 wicket for 16 runs (1/16) and 1/37 and did not bat. He became Middlesex's youngest debutant, beating the record set by 16-year-old Fred Titmus
Fred Titmus
Frederick John Titmus MBE was an English cricketer, whose first-class career spanned five decades. Although he was best known for his off spin , he was an accomplished lower-order batsman who deserved to be called an all-rounder, even opening the batting for England on six occasions...
in 1949.
Youngest Englishman to 50 Test wickets
Finn toured South Africa with the England Under-16 squad in 2005. He played in two Under-19 Test matches and three Under-19 ODIs against the Indian side that toured England in 2006, and in seven Under-19 ODIs in Malaysia in early 2007.In February and March 2010, he was part of the England Lions team to tour the United Arab Emirates
United Arab Emirates
The United Arab Emirates, abbreviated as the UAE, or shortened to "the Emirates", is a state situated in the southeast of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia on the Persian Gulf, bordering Oman, and Saudi Arabia, and sharing sea borders with Iraq, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, and Iran.The UAE is a...
, earning selection with a solid 2009 season of 53 wickets at 30.64. He impressed the selectors, and was short-listed for the 2009 World Twenty20 though was not picked for the final team. When the senior squad's bowling attack was restricted by injury at the beginning of the 2010 Bangladesh tour
English cricket team in Bangladesh in 2009–10
The England cricket team toured Bangladesh, playing three One Day Internationals and two Test matches, at the end of the 2009–10 cricket season. They were captained by Alastair Cook, due to regular captain Andrew Strauss controversially missing the series to rest for the 2010–11 Ashes series...
, he was flown in as bowling cover. He played a tour match the day after arriving, and took three wickets in some economical spells of bowling across the two innings, and subsequently leapfrogged Liam Plunkett
Liam Plunkett
Liam Edward Plunkett is an English cricketer, who plays for Durham and England. In the 2005 season he was Durham's leading first-class wicket-taker, with 51 wickets at a bowling average of 30.84, including eight for 88 in his first game of the season against Leicestershire.-Test cricket:Plunkett...
and Ajmal Shahzad
Ajmal Shahzad
Ajmal Shahzad is an English cricketer who plays for Yorkshire County Cricket Club. A right-handed batsman and right-arm fast-medium bowler, he made his international debut in a Twenty20 International for England in February 2010...
to be picked for the first Test match on 12 March 2010. He was aged just 20, and became the 647th man to play Test cricket for England.
He played in both Test matches, which England won by 181 runs and 10 wickets respectively. His first wicket was Bangladeshi batsman Shahadat Hossain
Shahadat Hossain
Kazi Shahadat Hossain is a Bangladeshi cricketer. He made his Test debut in 2005 during Bangladesh's first tour of England. When he came onto the international scnene he was cited by then coach Dav Whatmore as the fastest bowler in the team. The following year, Hossain made his One Day...
, who was caught by Paul Collingwood
Paul Collingwood
Paul David Collingwood MBE is an English cricketer. He has been a regular member of the England Test side, was captain of the One Day International team 2007–2008. He is also vice-captain of his county, Durham County Cricket Club. Collingwood is a batting all-rounder, whose batting...
, and proceeded to take one wicket in each of the four Bangladeshi innings. A double declaration by England in the first Test meant that he wasn't required to bat until the second Test where he finished unbeaten on 0 from 10 balls.
After an impressive start to the County season
2010 County Championship
The 2010 County Championship season, known as the LV County Championship for sponsorship reasons, was the 111th County Championship season. It was contested through two divisions: Division One and Division Two. Each team played all the others in their division both home and away...
, including a 14-wicket match haul, he was chosen again to face Bangladesh
Bangladeshi cricket team in England in 2010
-2nd Test:-1st ODI:-2nd ODI:-3rd ODI:-First Class: Surrey vs Bangladeshis:-First Class: Bangladeshis vs Essex:-First Class: Bangladeshis vs England Lions:-List A: Sussex vs Bangladeshis:-List A: Middlesex vs Bangladeshis:...
, this time in England. In the first match at Lord's
Lord's Cricket Ground
Lord's Cricket Ground is a cricket venue in St John's Wood, London. Named after its founder, Thomas Lord, it is owned by Marylebone Cricket Club and is the home of Middlesex County Cricket Club, the England and Wales Cricket Board , the European Cricket Council and, until August 2005, the...
, his home debut, he took a 5-wicket-haul in the second innings as England won by eight wickets, finishing with nine wickets in the match. In doing so was compared to Angus Fraser
Angus Fraser
Angus Robert Charles Fraser is the current Managing Director of Cricket of Middlesex County Cricket Club, and a former English cricketer and journalist....
and Glenn McGrath
Glenn McGrath
Glenn Donald McGrath AM , nicknamed "Pigeon", is a former Australian cricket player. He is one of the most highly regarded fast-medium pace bowlers in cricketing history, and a leading contributor to Australia's domination of world cricket from the mid-1990s to the early 21st century...
by many media pundits, although he also worried them by frequently falling over in his follow-through
Follow through (cricket)
In the sport of cricket, the follow through is the motion of the bowler after releasing the ball.-See also:*Grip*Approach*Bound*Back foot contact*Front foot contact*Point of release*Cricket terminology...
. Nevertheless he went on to Old Trafford to take a second five-for, being named Player of the Series in his debutante international home season.
Finn was not selected for the ODI series against Australia
Australian cricket team in England in 2010
-2nd ODI:-3rd ODI:-4th ODI:-5th ODI:-Tour match:...
and Bangladesh, but returned for the Test series against Pakistan
Pakistani cricket team in England in 2010
The Pakistan cricket team toured England from 29 July to 22 September 2010. The tour consisted of four Tests, two Twenty20s and five One Day Internationals .-1st Test:-2nd Test:-3rd Test:-4th Test:...
. Finn was quietly effective; though he did not bowl as much as fellow pace-bowlers James Anderson
James Anderson (cricketer)
James Michael "Jimmy" Anderson is an English cricketer. He plays first-class cricket for Lancashire County Cricket Club and since bursting onto the scene in 2002/03, before his first full season of county cricket, Anderson has represented England in over 50 Test matches and over 100 One Day...
and Stuart Broad
Stuart Broad
Stuart Christopher John Broad is a cricketer who plays Test and One Day International cricket for England and is currently the captain of their Twenty20 team...
, he picked up 13 wickets at an average of 22.92. Finn was also part of a useful 49-run unbeaten last-wicket partnership with Matt Prior in the first Test, which enabled Prior to reach a century despite only having 63 runs when Finn came to the crease. England won the series 3-1, though the series ended amid newspaper allegations of spot-fixing involving several members of the Pakistan team
2010 Pakistan cricket spot-fixing controversy
The Pakistan cricket spot-fixing scandal centres on members of Pakistan's Cricket team being convicted of taking bribes from a bookmaker, Mazhar Majeed, to under-perform deliberately at certain times in the 4th Test match at Lord's Cricket Ground, London, in 2010.Undercover reporters from News of...
.
Finn's performances during the summer saw him selected for England's squad for the 2010-11 Ashes series and he won the Best Emerging Player award at the 2010 ICC Awards
2010 ICC Awards
The 2010 LG ICC Awards were held on 6 October 2010 in Bengaluru in India. These awards will be presented in association with Federation of International Cricketers' Associations....
. Chosen for the first Test at The Gabba in Brisbane
Brisbane
Brisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...
, Finn took his first Ashes wicket catching Simon Katich
Simon Katich
Simon Matthew Katich is an Australian cricketer. He is the captain of the New South Wales Blues, and also captained, up until the end of the 2007 season, Derbyshire County Cricket Club...
off his own bowling. He later took the wickets of several of the Australian tail to finish with Test-best figures of 6-125, his third five wicket haul in only his ninth Test. He took a further 8 wickets in the next two Tests, as England won in Adelaide
Adelaide Oval
The Adelaide Oval is a sports ground in Adelaide, South Australia, located in the parklands between the Central Business District and North Adelaide...
before Australia squared the series at Perth. Despite being the leading wicket taker in the series for either side after 3 Tests, Finn was rested for the fourth Test, which England won. His replacement, Tim Bresnan
Tim Bresnan
Timothy 'Tim' Thomas Bresnan is an English cricketer. He is a fast-medium bowler, as well as being respected for his ability with the bat for Yorkshire. He normally fields in the deep. He won the NBC Denis Compton Award in 2002 and 2003. In June 2006 he was called up to the England One Day...
, impressed in the fourth Test and kept his place for the fifth Test as England won both games by an innings to record a 3-1 victory – their first in Australia for 24 years. Finn finished with 14 wickets at an average of 33.14. Although he wasn't initially included in the limited overs squads, he was added as cover for the rested James Anderson
James Anderson (cricketer)
James Michael "Jimmy" Anderson is an English cricketer. He plays first-class cricket for Lancashire County Cricket Club and since bursting onto the scene in 2002/03, before his first full season of county cricket, Anderson has represented England in over 50 Test matches and over 100 One Day...
for the two Twenty20 internationals and the first three ODI matches. On 30 January 2011 he made his ODI debut taking 1/61 off his 10 overs and scoring 35 runs as number 11 with a late flurry at the end of England's innings in a partnership of 53 with James Anderson.
Having been dropped from the Test side during the Ashes, Finn faced competition from fast bowlers such as Bresnan and Shahzad to break into the team. When Sri Lanka toured in May
Sri Lankan cricket team in England in 2011
-First-class: England Lions vs Sri Lankans:-First class: Essex vs Sri Lankans:-List A: Worcestershire Royals vs Sri Lankans:-1st Test:Jonathan Trott's score of 203 is the highest score by an English batsman against Sri Lanka, beating the previous score of 174 set by Graham Gooch in 1991. Sri...
Finn was included in the Test squad, though missed out on selection for the first match. An injury to James Anderson opened up a gap in England's bowling attack and Finn was chosen as his replacement. England's fast bowlers struggled to dismiss Sri Lanka, but Finn took 4/108 and in the process became the youngest player to reach 50 Test wickets for England. Anderson returned to fitness in time for the next Test and Finn was dropped to make room for him. Finn was subsequently dropped from the Test squad to face India in July in favour of Tim Bresnan but recalled as cover for the injured Chris Tremlett ahead of the third Test, though he did not play. Towards the end of the season, Finn's bowling was frequently reaching 90 miles per hour (40.2 m/s). He played three ODIs during England's 2011 home season, taking four wickets.
When England toured India in October for five ODIs, senior fast bowlers James Anderson and Stuart Broad were absent, rested and injured respectively. Finn was included in the squad. Finn finished as England's leading wicket-taker in the series with 8 dismissals at an average of 31.62. Commenting on Finn's performance in the series, which England lost 5–0, coach Andy Flower
Andy Flower
Andrew "Andy" Flower OBE is a former international cricketer for Zimbabwe and is currently the England coach.-Playing career:...
said "Coming into the series he wasn't a first-choice limited-overs cricketer for us. But he has been the outstanding bowler in our side." After the tour Finn exploited a gap in England's international schedule to join Otago to gain experience.
Statistics
Five wicket hauls in an innings:| Date | Opponent | Ground | Record/Scorecards |
|---|---|---|---|
| 27 May 2010 | Lords Lords - Places :*Lord's Cricket Ground, English Cricket Ground and home of Marylebone County Cricket Club.- Politics :*House of Lords, upper house of the British parliament*Lords Spiritual, clergymen of the House of Lords... , London, England |
Bowling: 5/87 | |
| 13 March 2010 | Old Trafford, Greater Manchester Greater Manchester Greater Manchester is a metropolitan county in North West England, with a population of 2.6 million. It encompasses one of the largest metropolitan areas in the United Kingdom and comprises ten metropolitan boroughs: Bolton, Bury, Oldham, Rochdale, Stockport, Tameside, Trafford, Wigan, and the... , England |
Bowling: 5/42 | |
| 26 November 2010 | The Gabba, Brisbane Brisbane Brisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of... , Australia |
Bowling: 6/125 |
External links
- Profile from Middlesex CCC