Mark Ramprakash facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Mark Ramprakash

Personal information
Full name	Mark Ravin Ramprakash
Born	(1969-09-05) 5 September 1969 (age 55) Bushey, Hertfordshire, England
Nickname	Ramps, Bloodaxe, The Hips, Twenties
Height	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)
Batting	Right-handed
Bowling	Right arm off-spin
Role	Batsman
International information
National side	England
Test debut (cap 549)	6 June 1991 v West Indies
Last Test	3 April 2002 v New Zealand
ODI debut (cap 114)	25 May 1991 v West Indies
Last ODI	13 October 2001 v Zimbabwe
Domestic team information
Years	Team
1987–2000	Middlesex
2001–2012	Surrey (squad no. 77)
Career statistics
Competition Test ODI FC LA Matches 52 18 461 407 Runs scored 2,350 376 35,659 13,273 Batting average 27.32 26.85 53.14 40.22 100s/50s 2/12 0/1 114/147 17/85 Top score 154 51 301* 147* Balls bowled 895 132 4,177 1,734 Wickets 4 4 34 46 Bowling average 119.25 27.00 64.76 29.43 5 wickets in innings 0 0 0 1 10 wickets in match 0 0 0 0 Best bowling 1/2 3/28 3/32 5/38 Catches/stumpings 39/– 8/– 261/– 136/–
Source: CricketArchive, 11 July 2013

Mark Ravin Ramprakash MBE (born 5 September 1969) is a former English cricket player and coach. He was known as a right-handed batsman.

Outside of cricket, Mark won the fourth series of Strictly Come Dancing in 2006. Since 2020, he has been the director of cricket for Harrow School.

Mark Ramprakash's Cricket Journey

Mark Ramprakash started his cricket career playing for Middlesex. He was chosen to play for England when he was just 21 years old.

He was a very talented batsman and scored many runs at the county level. However, he found it harder to show his full potential during his time playing for England.

Mark became a top scorer when he moved to Surrey in 2001. He scored over 100 runs per innings in two seasons (2006 & 2007). He is one of only 25 players in cricket history to have scored 100 first-class centuries.

In November 2012, he became the batting coach for the England Lions in India. He also coached Middlesex as a batting coach in January 2013. From November 2014, he served as England's batting coach for six years.

In 2022, he returned to Middlesex as a consultant batting coach. He also works as the director of cricket for Harrow School. In 2023, Middlesex chose him as their club president for two years.

Early Life and Club Cricket

Mark Ramprakash was born in Bushey, Hertfordshire. His father was from British Guiana, and his mother was English. He went to Gayton High School (now Harrow High School) and Harrow Weald Sixth Form College.

He first played for Bessborough Cricket Club. He showed early talent as a fast bowler but later focused on batting. Mark played his first match for Middlesex at 17, scoring 63 not out. He scored 71 in his second match against Essex.

In 1989, he scored his first century in a first-class match at Headingley. He also captained the England U-19 team. At 18, he won the man-of-the-match award in the 1988 NatWest Trophy Final. His score of 56 helped Middlesex beat Worcestershire.

Mark was a good all-round sportsman. He had to choose between playing football for Watford FC and continuing with cricket. He chose cricket.

"Bloodaxe" Nickname

In his younger days as a professional cricketer, Mark Ramprakash was known for having a fiery temper. His Middlesex teammates nicknamed him "Bloodaxe" because he could get angry quickly. Even as he got older, he sometimes showed this temper. Some people believe this temper might have stopped him from being even more successful at the international level.

Mark's Test Career

Mark Ramprakash played his first Test match for England in 1991 against the West Indies. He found it tough to score many runs in his early Test matches. The West Indies had some of the best bowlers in the world at that time.

He was recalled to the England team for the last Test of the 1993 Ashes series. He scored 64 runs, helping England win that match. This earned him a spot on the tour to the West Indies. However, he was dropped again after scoring low runs.

He was later chosen as vice-captain for the England A tour to India. Due to an injury to another player, he joined the 1994–95 Ashes series. He scored 72 runs in the final Test and ended up with the best batting average for England in that series.

Mark was in and out of the England team for several years. He scored his first Test century in 1997–98 against the West Indies, scoring 154 runs in Barbados. This helped him play regularly for England for the next 18 months. He scored one more century, 133 against Australia in 2001. He was not picked for England after March 2002.

Playing for Surrey

In 2001, Mark Ramprakash left Middlesex and joined Surrey. His batting improved a lot after this move. In the 2003 season, he became the first player to score a century against all 18 county teams. He completed this by scoring a century against his old team, Middlesex.

Mark became the first person to captain both Middlesex and Surrey in 2005. Surrey was relegated that year, but Mark scored 252 runs in their final game against Middlesex. He shared a record partnership of 318 runs with Azhar Mahmood.

In 2006, Mark had an amazing season. He scored a career-best 292 runs and then 301 not out. He became the first player since 2001 to score over 2,000 runs in a season. He also became the first person to score over 150 runs in five matches in a row. He finished the season with 2,278 runs at an average of 103.54. Surrey was promoted back to the first division. His great form earned him the Professional Cricketers' Association Player of the Year Award.

His excellent form continued in 2007. He was again the top batsman in county cricket, scoring 2,026 runs with ten centuries. He became the only player to average over 100 in two English seasons in a row.

In 2008, Mark scored his 100th first-class century against Yorkshire. He was only the 25th player to reach this milestone. As of 2025, he is the last cricketer to achieve 100 centuries in first-class cricket. He also scored 200 not out against Somerset.

He was suspended for two matches in 2008 for arguing with an umpire. In 2009, he averaged 90 for Surrey. In 2010, he was again the leading run-scorer in county cricket's second division.

Mark Ramprakash retired from all forms of cricket on 4 July 2012. He had scored 114 centuries, placing him 16th on the all-time list of first-class century-makers. He was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in 2013 for his contributions to sport.

Coaching Career

Middlesex Coaching Role

In December 2012, Mark Ramprakash joined Middlesex as their new batting coach. He was excited to work with the players.

England Batting Coach

In November 2014, Mark Ramprakash was appointed as England's batting coach. Many people thought his own experiences as a player would help him coach England's batsmen.

During his time as England's batting coach, the team had mixed results.

• In 2015, England's batsmen showed a more positive style of play against New Zealand. They scored high totals in One Day International (ODI) matches.
• In the 2015 Ashes series against Australia, England won 3-2. However, only one England batsman scored a century in the Test matches.
• In 2016, England set a new world record score in an ODI against Pakistan, making 444 runs.
• England's batting was strong in the 2017 ODI series against West Indies, winning 3-0.

Mark Ramprakash left his role as England's batting coach in 2020.

Franchise Cricket

In July 2019, Ramprakash became the head coach of the Edinburgh Rocks for the first Euro T20 Slam cricket tournament.

Life Outside Cricket

In 2006, Mark Ramprakash and his partner Karen Hardy won the BBC show Strictly Come Dancing. He was the second cricketer in a row to win the show. In 2008, he won a special Strictly Come Dancing episode for Sport Relief.

As a schoolboy, Mark played football for Watford F.C. but chose to focus on cricket. He is a supporter of Arsenal Football Club and plays for their ex-pros and celebrities team.

In 2008, Mark appeared on the CBBC show Hider in the House. He is also an ambassador for the British Asian Trust.