Patrick Patterson
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 West Indies (WI) |
||
 |
||
| Batting style | Right-hand bat | |
| Bowling type | Right-arm fast | |
| Tests | ODIs | |
| Matches | 28 | 59 |
| Runs scored | 145 | 44 |
| Batting average | 6.59 | 8.80 |
| 100s/50s | -/- | -/- |
| Top score | 21* | 13* |
| Balls bowled | 4829 | 3050 |
| Wickets | 93 | 90 |
| Bowling average | 30.90 | 24.51 |
| 5 wickets in innings | 5 | 1 |
| 10 wickets in match | - | N/A |
| Best bowling | 5/24 | 6/29 |
| Catches/stumpings | 5/- | 9/- |
|
As of 25 January 2006 |
||
Balfour Patrick Patterson (b. 15 September 1961 in Jamaica) was a fast bowler for the West Indian cricket team in the late 1980s and early 1990s.
He burst onto the international scene in 1986 in the absence of Michael Holding for the 1986 Sabina Park test against England, and was instantly heralded as the fastest bowler in the international game. Broadly built, aggressive and ferociously quick, Patterson was able to cover for the loss of Holding by picking up seven wickets on debut. He kept his place and became a regular new ball bowler for the West Indies until unceremoniously dropped for disciplinary reasons after the 1992/3 tour to Australia, the last time the West Indies, or any team for that matter, has beaten the Australians in a home test series.
Patterson was perhaps the fastest and most dangerous fast bowler the world has ever seen, prompting the legendary English opener Greame Gooch to opine that facing Patterson was the one time he feared for his life.
Evidence of Patterson's ferocious nature can be gauged from his performances on tour in India, traditionally a fast bowler's graveyard owing to its standard dry, flat wickets. In such conditions, Patterson returned figures of 5/24 in the first test of the 1987/8 series, bowling India out in 30.3 overs, or little over one session of play on the first day.[1]
His career strike rate of 51.9 is amongst the best of alltime, although his 93 test wickets came at a slightly high average of 30.9 owing to his excessively attacking nature and subsequent field settings, which always provided opportunity for runs aswell as wickets.
His retirement marked a turning point in the balance of power in world cricket, as the West Indies were unable to fill the void left in there bowling attack in his absence.
 |
This biographical article related to West Indian cricket is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
