11 Facts about Steve Harmison – The lanky pacer

11 Facts about Steve Harmison – The lanky pacer: Steve Harmison was perhaps England’s best fast bowler during his prime, and was one of the world’s fastest bowler’s as far as consistency in maintaining a pace in excess of 140kmph is concerned. In spite of his lanky frame, Harmison managed to generate much of his pace due to the rhythmic momentum he generated with his quick run up. A bowler who used to destroy any team on his day was a part of the “quartet” pace attack, consisting of Matthew Hoggard, Andrew Flintoff and Simon Jones who were instrumental in the 2005 Ashes victory over Australia.

Here are 11 Facts about Steve Harmison – The lanky pacer:

1. Birth:

Steve Harmison was born and brought up in Ashington, Northumberland. He has two brothers and a sister. His youngest brother, Ben Harmison, plays First Class cricket for Kent.

2. Early Football fascination:

As a teenager, Steve Harmison was a member of Ashington A FC, a local football club. But later he quit to concentrate on cricket .

3. Debut and rollercoaster form:

Steve Harmison made his Test debut against India at Trent Bridge in 2002, replacing an injured Simon Jones. He had an impressive debut, having picked up 5 wickets in a match which ended as a draw. But he could not cement his place in the first team due to inconsistency and recurring niggles.

4. Breakthrough performances:

Steve Harmison took up the pacer spot for himself in the 2003-2004 season. He was selected for tour of Bangladesh. Though he took 9 wickets and was instrumental in England’s victory over Bangladesh, he was ruled out of Sri Lanka series due to a back injury. Despite that, he was selected for England’s tour of West Indies. That was where he really got the international limelight, with a jaw-dropping 7/12 spell, which resulted in West Indies getting bowled out for 47, their lowest ever Test score. He took 23 wickets in the series and was named as the man of the series.

5. Ashes 2005:

Steve Harmison played all the 5 Tests in what is now considered to be one of the greatest Tests series of all time. In spite of having a modest series; having picked up 17 wickets in 5 Tests at 32, he was the hero of the last day of the 2nd Test match, wherein Australia nearly took victory from the jaws of defeat. He took the final wicket, wherein England beat Australia by a thin margin of 2 runs.

Also Read – 2005 Ashes: The rebirth of English Cricket

6. Purple patch:

Steve Harmison had a purple patch against visiting Pakistan in 2006. He took a five-fer in the first Test against Pakistan, following it with a 10-wicket haul in the second Test at Old Traffold, which coincidently came exactly 50 years after Jim Laker’s mindblowing 19/90. But sadly, the series is known for it’s controversial 4th Test match, which was awarded to England following Pakistan’s protest against playing it due to tampering allegations.

7. Dip in form:

Steve Harmison was continuously hindered with injuries and was included in the playing XI for the first Ashes Test in 2006-07 at Brisbane, in spite of injury. He opened the bowling, only to bowl one of the most outrageous deliveries one has ever seen, with the ball being collected at the first slip. It set up the tone for rest of the series, wherein England were whitewashed.

8. ODI retirement:

Steve Harmison’s inconsistent performance in ODIs made him an irregular in the shorter formats, and he announced his retirement 3 months before 2007 World Cup. In what can be considered as a tame ODI career, he played just 58 matches and took 76 wickets at an average of 32.

9. Final comeback:

Following a poor 2006-07, Steve Harmison was dropped from English squad from all the forms of cricket. In late 2008, he made his comeback into Test cricket, against South Africa. Despite some decent performances with the ball, Steve Harmison made a dubious record of scoring most number of ducks for England, a record which he shared with Michael Atherton and Monty Panesar. Then ODI captain Kevin Pieterson managed to convince Harmison out of retirement and went on to play a few matches.

10. Retirement:

Steve Harmison played his final two Tests against Australia in Ashes 2009. Following that, his contract was terminated, and he could not manage to return to international arena despite some strong performances in domestic arena in 2008 and 2009. He played 62 Tests, and took 226 wickets with an average of 31.82. He played his last ODI against West Indies in the same year. He played just 2 T20is in his entire career, both in 2005-06 season.

11. Post retirement: 

Steve Harmison continued playing domestically till 2013 for Durham, despite his modest performances. He retired from cricket in 2013. After retirement, he took up coaching the Ashington FC in the 9th tier in English football.