Legendary fast bowlers produced by Windies

#9 Colin Croft

Colin Croft

Colin Croft played international cricket for less than 5 full seasons and yet in the very limited time he did, he regularly troubled opposition batsmen with venomous pace and ability to angle the ball and then move it away, a trick later mastered by Courtney Walsh and Merv Dillion.

6 foot 5 inches tall and strong as an ox, Croft had an unusual action. He used to run in directly behind the umpire and he would move out of the ump's shadow only when very close to the popping crease, culminating in collisions with the umpires on several occasions. He famously collided with New Zealand umpire Fred Goodall in the ill-tempered Test series against the Kiwis in the 1979-80 season.

In 1982, Croft made a baffling decision to join the rebel tour to the apartheid-torn South Africa, violating an international ban on sports tours of the country. All players who participated in the tour were banned from international cricket and as a result, it wouldn't be incorrect to say that Croft killed his own international career.

Croft ended up taking 125 wickets in just 27 Tests. He played 19 ODIs picking up 30 wickets. Croft's figures of 8 for 29 against Pakistan in 1977 are still the best Test innings figures by a fast bowler from the West Indies.