On the 22 July 1995, professional cricketer for Nottinghamshire and England, Harold Larwood died aged 90 (1904-1995). A right-arm fast bowler who combined speed with great accuracy, Larwood was considered to be the finest bowler of his generation.

The main exponent of the ‘bodyline’ style of bowling, which during the MCC tour of Australia in 1932–33, caused uproar which resulted in the premature and acrimonious end of his international career. The Australians’ described the method as ‘unsportsmanlike’, souring cricketing relations between the two countries.

Larwood was born in 1904 in the Nottinghamshire village of Nuncargate, near the coal mining town of Kirkby-in-Ashfield. A coal miner’s son who began working in the mines at the age of 14, Larwood was recommended to Nottinghamshire on the basis of his performances in club cricket, and rapidly acquired a place among the country’s leading bowlers.

He made his Test debut in 1926, in only his second season in first-class cricket. and was a member of the 1928–29 touring side that retained the Ashes in Australia.

Larwood refused to apologise for his bowling, since he was carrying out his captain’s instructions. He never played for England after the 1932–33 tour, but continued his county career with considerable success for several more seasons.

In 1950 he and his family emigrated to Australia, where he was warmly welcomed, in contrast to the reception accorded him in his cricketing days.

In 1993, at the age of 88, he was appointed an MBE in recognition of his services to cricket.

22 July. 2019