Shaun Pollock's Life History And Cricket Career

                                                                    
                                                                     Shaun Pollock

Full Name: Shaun Maclean Pollock.

Nickname: Polly.
Date of Birth: 16 July 1973.
Place of Birth: Port Elizabeth, Cape Province, South Africa.
Batting Style: Right Handed Batsman.
Role: Bowling All Rounder.
Bowling Style: Right Arm Fast Medium.
Test Debut: 16 November 1995 Vs. England.
ODI Debut : 9 January 1996 Vs.England.
Playing Teams: 1992/93-2003/04 (Kwazulu-Natal), 1996-2002 (Warwickshire), 2004/05(Dolphins), 2008(Mumabai Indians), 2008(Durham), 1996-2008(South Africa).
Relations : Grandfather - AM Pollock, Great-uncle - R Howden, Father - PM Pollock, Uncle - RG Pollock, Cousin - AG Pollock, Cousin - GA Pollock.





                                                 History Of Shaun Pollock

Shaun Maclean Pollock (born July 16, 1973 in Port Elizabeth) is a retired South African cricketer who is considered a bowling all-rounder. From 2000 to 2003 he was the captain of the South African cricket team, and also played for Africa XI, World XI, Dolphins and Warwickshire.
Pollock came from a family of mainly Scottish ancestry. His paternal grandfather, Andrew Pollock, who played for Orange Free State, was born in Edinburgh. He is married to Patricia "Trish" Lauderdale and has two daughters, Jemma and Georgia. Jemma was born in August 2003, and Georgia in July 2006. Lauderdale was a finalist in the Miss South Africa pageant in the early '90s and also worked for MTN, a South African telecom company. He is a teetotaller. Pollock is a graduate of the University of Natal with a bachelor's degree in commerce.

He was brought into the South African Test side against Michael Atherton's England tourists in 1995/96 and although his father was the convener of selectors, there was never a hint of nepotism and the younger Pollock took quickly to the higher level.

In 1996 he had a spell with Warwickshire cut short because of an ankle injury and missed the tour to India at the end of that year. But he soon returned to resume his new-ball partnership with Allan Donald and this pairing was the springboard of much of South Africa's success during the latter half of the 1990s. Indeed, it is possible to argue that the emergence of Pollock inspired Donald to greater heights as the latter found himself with a partner who both complemented and challenged him. Perhaps the straightest bowler in world cricket, Pollock is able to move the ball both ways at a lively pace. He also possesses stamina and courage in abundance as in proved in Adelaide in 1998 when he toiled on hour after hour in blazing heat to take 7 for 87 in 41 overs on a perfect batting pitch.
If there is a criticism of Pollock, it is that he has under performed with the bat, but most Test teams would be perfectly happy to have him in their side if he never scored a run. Pollock was thrust into the captaincy in April 2000 when Hansie Cronje was drummed out of the game, and he faced the biggest challenge of his career - to lift a shocked and demoralized South African side. However, after a solid start to his captaincy, he lost some credibility after a 3-0 drubbing in Australia in 2001-02, and was later blamed for South Africa's disastrous World Cup in which they failed to qualify for the Super Sixes. As a result, Pollock immediately lost the captaincy and was replaced by Graeme Smith. Though his nagging brilliance around off stump remains, his pace and ability to take wickets at the top of the order has dipped.

Pollock missed the first Test against Australia at home in early 2006 with a back injury and was relegated from opener to first-change by the third. Four wickets in two Tests, with a new run-up and on pitches tailor made for his style, showed that he has slowed. But with 100 Tests under his belt, Pollock remains an integral part of the side. He missed the first Test against Sri Lanka due to the birth of his second daughter, returned for the second and was a pale shade of his former self. He managed just one wicket, and it was a telling sign of what appeared to be Pollock's decline to see him resort to off spin after being ton ked over his head for six by Sanath Jayasuriya. All that was reversed in the Champions Trophy in India, where he showed great form, and against India and Pakistan at home at the end of 2006 and in the New Year. Man of the Series in both the ODIs and Tests against India, Pollock was highly impressive with the new ball and chipped in with useful scores down the order. It was fitting that he became the first South African to take 400 Test wickets. Pollock continued his fine form against the touring Pakistanis next, despite being surprisingly rested for the final Test. Thrifty with the ball and useful with bat he offered precious control and breathing space for his captain. In the ODI series, he was the highest wicket-taker on either side and his 5 for 23 in the final game crushed a weary Pakistan. For the second consecutive one-day series in a row, Pollock was adjudged Man of the Series.

  

It was decent form to carry into his fourth World Cup, but his lack of pace was exposed on the small Caribbean grounds, especially by Matthew Hayden, although his miserly spell against England was key in South Africa securing a semi-final berth. He lost his place in the Test line-up late in 2007 but returned against West Indies, on his home ground in Durban, for what turned out to be his final Test. He announced his retirement midway through the match, the following one-day series being his last international commitments.

Shaun Pollock was a medium-fast seam bowler, with the ability to deliver a quicker ball with accuracy and swing. He is considered to be one of the straightest bowlers in world cricket.
The nephew of legendary South African cricketer Graeme Pollock and the son of former South African fast bowler Peter Pollock, expectations from him were high since he started playing for South Africa in 1995/96, in their home series against England. He cemented his place in the team with some excellent performances and found a steady bowling partner in Allan Donald. They were to be the mainstay of South African bowling till Donald's retirement.
Pollock was also a very useful hard-hitting batsman who normally bats at 7 or 8, with a Test average of over 30 and ODI average above 25. He is also an athletic fielder.

After Hansie Cronje was banned from cricket for life, Pollock took over the captaincy in April 2000. He had the task of boosting the morale of the team in the aftermath of the match-fixing scandal. After getting off to a good start as a captain he faced some disappointing series losses in his tenure. He was eventually removed from the captaincy after South Africa's poor performance in the 2003 Cricket World Cup, a tournament that they were amongst the favourites to win as the host nation. Current captain Graeme Smith took over the job.

Although no longer captain, he retained his place in the team. Of late, especially after a disappointing Test series tour of Australia in 2005/2006, he has been facing criticism for losing his wicket taking ability. He has the lowest (best) economy rate of any bowler to have taken 300 ODI wickets, and he is also the first South African and only the tenth player to take 400 Test wickets. However, minor injuries have hampered his most recent performances, and in September 2007 he was dropped from the South African test side for the first time in his career. Pollock was later readded to the test series against the West Indies, whereupon he announced his retirement, effective on February 3, 2008. He stated that "I realise I have been blessed by God and feel I have nurtured my talents to the best of my abilities." After South Africa sealed a series victory against the West Indies, Graeme Smith paid tribute to Pollock, stating "It's very important that people celebrate what he's given to South African cricket and what he's achieved as an individual." Shaun Pollock recently represented Mumbai Indians in the Indian Premier League, and Durham Dynamos in the 2008 Twenty20 Cup in England.

Shaun Pollock is currently commentating on Sky Sports and Test Match Special on the BBC during the 2008 England vs South Africa Test Series.
Some Highlights of Shaun Pollock:
· Pollock took four wickets in four balls on his first appearance for Warwickshire - in a limited-overs (B&H Cup) game v Leicestershire at Birmingham in 1996.
· He also recently received the SA Player's Player award and the SA ODI Player of the Year Award.
· He was also chosen as the Wisden Cricketer of the Year in 2003. Having both taken over 400 test wickets and scored over 3,700 test runs in his 107 test matches as of 2007.
· He is currently tenth on the all time Test Wicket takers list, and was named joint 10th in the all time best ever bowler ratings in the LG ICC Ratings.
· He has taken over 400 wickets and is one of only six players to have scored 3000 runs and taken 300 wickets in Test matches.
· In June 2007 he represented an Africa XI in an ODI game against an Asia XI in Bangalore. Playing as a specialist batsman, Pollock scored 130 from number 7 in the batting order, the highest ever score by an ODI batsman in that position. The record would however not last long, MS Dhoni bettered it later in the series.

                                         Cricket Career Of Shaun Pollock

 

 TEST CAREER
Matches: 108.
Runs: 3781.
Best Score: 111.
100’s/50’s: 2/16.
Bat Average: 32.31.
Wickets: 421.
5w’s/10w’s:16/1.
Best Bowling: 7/87.
Bowl Average: 23.11.
Catches: 72.  

One Day 

Matches: 303.
Runs: 3519.
Best Score: 130.
100’s/50’s: 1/14.
Bat Average: 26.45.
Wickets: 393.
5w’s/10w’s: 5/0.
Best Bowling: 6/35.
Bowl Average: 24.50.
Catches: 108.

First Class Career 

Matches: 186.
Runs: 7,021.
Best Score: 150*.
100’s: 6/35..
Bat Average: 33.11..
Wickets: 667.
5/10 wicket’s: 22/1.
Best Bowling: 7/33.
Bowl Average: 23.25.
Catches: 132. 

T20 Career 

Matches: 46.
Runs: 569.
Best Score: 59.
100’s: 0/1.
Bat Average: 21.07.
Wickets: 45.
5/10 wicket’s: 0/0.
Best Bowling: 3/12.
Bowl Average: 22.13.
Catches: 9. 

 

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