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Allan Lamb

Personal information

Full name

Allan Joseph Lamb

Born

20 June 1954 (age 71)
Langebaan, Cape Province, Union of South Africa

Nickname

Legga, Lambie

Height

5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)

Batting

Right-handed

Bowling

Right-arm medium

Role

Batsman

International information

National side

England

Test debut (cap 494)

10 June 1982 v India

Last Test

18 June 1992 v Pakistan

ODI debut (cap 64)

2 June 1982 v India

Last ODI

24 August 1992 v Pakistan

Domestic team information

Years

Team

1972/73–1992/93

Western Province

1978–1995

Northamptonshire

1987/88

Orange Free State

Career statistics

Competition	Test	ODI	FC	LA
Matches	79	122	467	484
Runs scored	4,656	4,010	32,502	15,658
Batting average	36.09	39.31	48.94	39.14
100s/50s	14/18	4/26	89/166	19/98
Top score	142	118	294	132*
Balls bowled	30	6	305	32
Wickets	1	0	8	2
Bowling average	23.00	–	24.87	14.50
5 wickets in innings	0	–	0	0
10 wickets in match	0	–	0	0
Best bowling	1/6	–	2/29	1/4
Catches/stumpings	75/–	31/–	371/–	135/–

Medal record

Men's Cricket

Representing England
ICC Cricket World Cup
Runner-up	1987 India and Pakistan
Runner-up	1992 Australia and New Zealand

Source: Cricinfo, 30 November 2009

Allan Joseph Lamb (born 20 June 1954) is a former English cricketer. He was born in South Africa. He played for the first-class teams of Western Province and Northamptonshire.

Allan Lamb started playing for England in 1982. He was a key player in both Test and One-Day International teams for ten years. He played for England in three World Cups. He was also captain of Northamptonshire and led England in three Test matches. He helped England reach the finals of the 1987 Cricket World Cup and the 1992 Cricket World Cup.

About Allan Lamb's Life

Allan Lamb was born in Langebaanweg, Union of South Africa. His parents were British. His father, Mickey, was a club bowler. Allan went to Wynberg Boys' High School and Abbots College. He has one son named Richard.

Allan Lamb's Cricket Journey

Playing Cricket in South Africa

Allan Lamb first played for the Western Province in January 1973. He was 18 years old. This was in the Currie Cup. He scored 59 and 36 runs in his first match.

After this, he took a break for two years to join the South African Air Force. He helped build airfields. When he returned, he played for Western Province again. He often batted at number four. He also played one year for Orange Free State. There, he scored his highest ever first-class score of 294 runs.

Playing for Northamptonshire

In 1978, Allan Lamb moved to England. He joined Northamptonshire. He was not very well known at the time.

In 1980, Lamb had a great season. He scored 1,797 runs. He also won an award for his 72 runs in the Benson and Hedges Cup final. He was part of the team that won the 1992 NatWest Trophy. In 1995, he was captain and almost led Northamptonshire to win their first County Championship.

Allan Lamb played for Northamptonshire for 18 seasons, from 1978 to 1995. He scored over 30,000 runs for the club. In 2001, Northamptonshire named a room after him. In 2020, fans voted him the club's greatest player ever.

Allan Lamb's Test Cricket Career

Test cricket is the longest form of the game. Allan Lamb started playing Test cricket for England in 1982. This was after South Africa was banned from international cricket.

First Test Matches: 1982

Allan Lamb made his Test debut against India in 1982. England won that first match. He scored his first Test century in the third match of that series. Later in 1982, he played against Pakistan. England won that series 2-1.

Playing in the Ashes: 1982-83

Lamb's first overseas tour was to Australia for the Ashes series. He played in all five matches. He scored 414 runs in total.

Matches Against New Zealand: 1983-84

In 1983, Lamb scored 392 runs against New Zealand in England. He made two centuries. In the return series in New Zealand, he scored fewer runs.

Tough Times Against Pakistan: 1983-84

Lamb continued to have a difficult time scoring runs against Pakistan.

Facing the West Indies: 1984

Allan Lamb first played against the West Indies in 1984. They were a very strong team. England lost all five matches. However, Lamb was England's top scorer with 386 runs. He made three centuries in that series.

Match Against Sri Lanka: 1984

Sri Lanka played their first Test match in England in 1984. Lamb scored a century in this drawn match.

Touring India: 1984-85

England toured India for five Test matches. England won the series 2-1. Lamb scored 241 runs. He also took his only Test wicket in this series.

Winning the Ashes at Home: 1985

Lamb played in his first Ashes series in England in 1985. England won the series. In a key moment, a shot hit Lamb's boot and bounced to another player, leading to a controversial dismissal. This decision might have changed the series.

More West Indies Challenges: 1985-86

England again lost 5-0 to the West Indies in a five-match series. Lamb played in all matches.

Later Test Series: 1986-1992

England vs India 1986: Lamb played in two matches as England lost the series.
Australia vs England 1986-87: England kept the Ashes in Australia, but Lamb didn't score many runs.
England vs West Indies 1988: Lamb returned to the team. He was the second-highest English scorer with 254 runs. He scored a century at Lord's.
England vs Sri Lanka 1988: Lamb scored 63 runs in England's win.
England vs Australia 1989: At 35, Lamb was an experienced player. He scored his only Ashes century in the first match.
West Indies vs England 1989-90: This was a special tour for Lamb. He scored 132 runs in the first match, which England won. This was England's first Test win against the West Indies since 1974. Lamb was also captain for two matches on this tour.
England vs New Zealand 1990: Lamb played in all three matches, scoring 129 runs.
England vs India 1990: Lamb scored two centuries in this series.
Australia vs England 1990-91: Lamb captained England in the first match. He scored his highest Test score in Australia (91 runs) in the final match.
England vs West Indies 1991: This was Lamb's final Test series against the West Indies. England drew the series 2-2, which was a good result.
New Zealand vs England 1991-92: Lamb was called back to the team. He scored his highest Test score ever, 142 runs, in this series. He was the top scorer for England.
England vs Pakistan 1992: This was Lamb's final Test series. It was also the last series for other famous players like Ian Botham and David Gower. Lamb's last Test match was at Lord's.

Allan Lamb's One Day International Cricket Career

One Day International (ODI) cricket is a shorter form of the game. Allan Lamb's batting style was very good for this format. He played for England for 10 years.

He quickly found success. In his second match, he scored 99 runs. In his third match, he scored 118 runs, which was his highest ODI score. As of May 2022, he is still one of England's top run-scorers in ODIs.

The Famous 18-Run Final Over

In a match against Australia, England needed 18 runs to win from the very last over. Allan Lamb was batting. He had not hit any boundaries yet.

The first ball: 2 runs.
The second ball: 4 runs (his first boundary!).
The third ball: 6 runs!
The fourth ball: 2 runs.
The fifth ball: 4 runs to win the match!

Lamb scored all 18 runs himself. England won with one ball to spare! This is still one of the most runs scored in the final over of an ODI to win a match.

Playing in World Cups

Allan Lamb played in three World Cups for England.

1983 World Cup: Lamb scored a century against New Zealand in his first World Cup innings. England reached the semi-finals but lost to India.
1987 World Cup: England started strong, winning a close game against the West Indies. They beat India in the semi-finals. Lamb helped England reach 254 runs in the final. However, Australia won the final by just 7 runs. Lamb scored 45 runs in the final.
1992 World Cup: England was a strong team. Lamb played in the last four games. England won a semi-final against South Africa in a match affected by rain. This was the only time Lamb played against his birth country. England lost the final to Pakistan by 22 runs. Lamb scored 31 runs in the final.

Allan Lamb's international career ended after a One Day International match against Pakistan. He was not chosen to play for England again after that.

Allan Lamb's Cricket Legacy

Allan Lamb started his Test career at age 28. He became a very important player for England for the next 10 years. He scored 4,656 runs in 79 Test matches, with 14 centuries. England won 21 of the Test matches he played in. When England won, his batting average was much higher.

He played 122 One Day Internationals. England won 64 of these matches. He was especially good against the West Indies, scoring 6 centuries against them. This is a record for England, shared with other great players. He did this when the West Indies were the best Test team in the world.

Lamb loved playing in big matches. In the World Cup, he scored 656 runs. This is one of the highest batting averages for an English player in World Cups. He was part of two Ashes series wins. He captained England in 3 Test matches and 4 One Day Internationals.

The bowler Malcolm Marshall dismissed him the most times (13 occasions). Lamb scored the most runs at Lord's cricket ground, with 959 runs and 4 centuries. In a 1984 Test match at Lord's, he batted on all five days of the match.

After Cricket: Allan Lamb's Life

After retiring from cricket in 1995, Allan Lamb wrote his autobiography called Silence of the Lamb. He also worked as a cricket analyst for TV channels like Sky Sports and Channel 5.

He was involved in legal discussions related to articles written about cricket. Lamb also teamed up with Ian Botham for an advertising campaign for beef and lamb. He even appeared in a movie called 'What Rats Won't Do'. He was also a contestant on a TV show called The Weakest Link. Allan Lamb also started a company called Lamb Associates, which organizes sporting events and travel.