Cricket World Cup History: Allan Lamb, the courageous and forthright Englishman

Forthright and courageous, upright and tenacious, is how one would describe South African-born, Allan Lamb. There was nothing pretty or tentative about his play. He forced his way into the England team by dint of sheer performance on the county circuit. While he was on the international scene he invariably delivered for his team, often in the face of adversity and against the most fearsome attacks. He had made his England debut only a year before the 1983 World Cup but by then he was already a key member of the batting line-up.

Not one to do things in half measure, Lamb made his first appearance in the World Cup with a bang. He immediately took charge at the overcast Oval cricket ground in southeast London against New Zealand. As he gained in confidence and the weather improved, Lamb opened out. He thrashed 15 runs off the first four deliveries of a Martin Crowe over. Joined by Mike Gatting, he made merry. Martin Snedden was smashed for 23 runs in one over, the hapless medium-pacer being swiped for 105 runs in his 12 overs, the highest number of runs conceded by a bowler in a World Cup match till Afghanistan’s Rashid Khan gave away 110 in 9 overs to the English batsmen in 2019.

Allan Lamb scored a century on his first appearance in the World Cup in 1983.

Scoring at well over 7 runs an over, Lamb and Gatting put on 115 for the fourth wicket in just 16 overs. Lamb reached a scintillating century on his World Cup debut and set England up for a mammoth total of 322 for six in their 60 overs. His 102 came off 105 deliveries studded with 12 fours and 2 sixes. For his brilliant effort, Lamb won the man-of-the-match award, capping a memorable maiden appearance in the tournament.

In the next match too, at Taunton against Sri Lanka, Lamb played his part to a nicety, with David Gower in irresistible form. The two added 96 runs for the third wicket, plundering the bowling to all parts of the small ground. Lamb scored 53 off 51 balls with 4 fours and 2 sixes to continue his honeymoon with the World Cup.

This was extended to the third match at Lord’s against Pakistan who managed a mere 193 for eight. Lamb was superb once again, being associated in an unbroken third-wicket stand of 106 with left-handed opener Graeme Fowler, carrying England to a facile win. His unbeaten 48 bore the stamp of class, which was by now apparent to all those who followed that competition.

The match at Edgbaston, Birmingham, in which Lamb registered his first failure was also one of the most exciting. England faltered, losing to New Zealand by two wickets with one ball left in the return encounter.

The second clash with Pakistan was as easy as the first, and the strong English line-up did not even work up a sweat. Lamb was required to put the finishing touches, and he dutifully obliged with an unbeaten 38, his unfinished fourth-wicket stand of 52 with Gatting carrying England to an easy victory.

The last round-robin encounter was with Sri Lanka, and Lamb was not required to bat as his side swept to a nine-wicket triumph.

This set up an intriguing semi-final clash with India, who were making their presence felt for the first time in the World Cup. The resilient Indians kept a stranglehold on the run-rate, and Lamb’s promising innings of 29 ended abruptly as he was run out by Yash Pal Sharma’s direct hit. That concluded a successful tournament for Lamb during which he accumulated 278 runs at an average of 69.50.

In 1987 it was England’s turn to visit the sub-continent. Their opening match against the West Indies at Gujranwala was a thriller, and once again Allan Lamb played a sterling inning. It was, in fact, a heroic role by him that day. Set a target of 244 in 50 overs, Lamb battled hard with only the lower order for a company. At 131 for six, England seemed to be fighting a lost cause. When the final ten overs commenced, there were 91 runs to get, with four wickets standing. But with help from John Emburey and Philip DeFreitas, Lamb pressed on.

With only three overs left, there were still 34 to get, and no.10 Neil Foster for company. Lamb hammered 15 off the 48th over bowled by Courtney Walsh. Patrick Patterson conceded only six runs in the penultimate over, leaving another 13 to get in the last over. The bowler, Walsh, seemed to be rattled as he sent down a full toss that Lamb duly despatched to the fence; a wide that sped to the boundary; and then a no-ball off which Lamb took a single. Foster hit the third legitimate delivery for a four to register a heart-stopping win. Lamb was unbeaten with 67 off 68 balls with a six and 5 fours. He was the obvious choice for the man-of-the-match prize.

On this warm autumn day, Lamb was completely drained as his strong mind willed him to achieve a glorious triumph. It was indeed a Herculean effort, characteristic of his bulldog spirit. Only a few months earlier, at the beginning of the year, Lamb had performed a similar amazing feat by taking 18 runs off lanky Aussie left-arm paceman Bruce Reid’s last over to snatch a victory for England at the Sydney Cricket Ground.

Back to the World Cup, just a few days later, England met Pakistan at Rawalpindi. The side seemed on course at 206 for four with Lamb still at the crease. But his dismissal for 30 led to an inexplicable collapse, and the innings folded up for 221 to slump to an 18-run defeat. That only highlighted Lamb’s immense value to his team. Had he stayed just a bit longer the story might have been different.

He was in prime form at Peshawar too where they played Sri Lanka. His stupendous 76 came off just 58 deliveries with 2 sixes and 3 fours. He put on 76 with Gatting for the third wicket in 12 overs, and then another blistering 69 with John Emburey. Lamb won the man-of-the-match award once again, having helped raise a huge total of 296 for four.

The hosts, Pakistan, continued to be a bogey as Imran Khan bowled Lamb cheaply for once, but the West Indies were at the receiving end again. Lamb scored a fine 40 and helped his team put up a match-winning score. Sri Lanka put up feeble resistance again and Lamb was not required to bat.

That set up a showdown with India in the semi-finals. The vociferous home crowd at the Wankhede Stadium nurtured fond hopes of their side repeating the 1983 triumph, but Graham Gooch literally swept them aside. Lamb got only a bit part and played it well with an unbeaten 32 off 29 deliveries.

The final at the Eden Gardens turned out to be a clash with Australia in the unfamiliar environs of the Eden Gardens, Calcutta. Australia set up the match with a total of 253 for five. The English top order, in which Lamb played a pivotal role, fought gamely. Lamb scored a fine 45, but after he and Gatting were dismissed, wickets tumbled regularly. England fell 7 runs short.

It was, nevertheless, another fine tournament for Allan Lamb. He hit up 299 runs at 59.80 per innings and showed once again that he was one of England’s most dependable middle-order batsmen of the eighties. In 13 innings of the two World Cups that he had played so far, Lamb had amassed 577 runs at an average of 64.11. Many of these were match-winning efforts.

This, alas, could not be said of his performance when the tournament was next held in 1992 in Australia. By then he was past his prime and played in only the last four matches. He managed a top score of 31 off 41 balls in the final against Pakistan. In that innings, he seemed to be regaining his touch of yore and steering the team towards glory by way of a fighting fifth-wicket partnership of 72 with Neil Fairbrother.

But Wasim Akram returned for a fresh spell and bowled Lamb and Chris Lewis off successive deliveries to deal mortal blows. Once again, even though he was not at his best, England’s hopes rose and fell with Lamb. That aptly describes his contribution to English cricket.

The World Cup - in which he had a fine strike-rate of 84.10 - appeared to inspire Lamb, and he invariably came up with fine performances. For years England struggled to find a fighter like him in the middle-order. Had they one like him in the interim they would not have had to go through the humiliation that they did until they revived in more recent times. There could be no greater tribute to Allan Lamb.

Allan Lamb’s World Cup batting and fielding record:

Matches: 19, Highest Score: 102, Runs: 656, Average: 50.46, Strike-rate: 84.10, Hundreds: 1, Fifties: 3, Catches: 9