Curtly Elconn Lynwall AMBROSE 1963-

	Player number 360 (f-c debut for Northamptonshire – 20 May 1989) Also List A #81 (debut 21 May 1989)
Birthplace	Swetes Village, Antigua
	County Cap 1990
First-Class	78 matches, 1,100 runs @ 15.71; 318 wickets @20.60; 38 catches
List A	95 matches, 404 runs @ 14.43; 115 wickets @ 22.17; 30 catches

When coach-turned-scout Brian Reynolds and chief executive Stephen Coverdale journeyed north to watch fast bowler Curtly Ambrose play in a Central Lancashire League match in 1987 the latter declared ‘he looks like a pipe cleaner.’ At that time, the tall Antiguan had made a solitary first-class appearance for Leeward Islands in the Shell Shield after gaining useful experience in English conditions with Chester Boughton Hall and Heywood. But Northamptonshire took a punt on the future Sir Curtly, only for West Indies to pick him for their 1988 tour to England which meant he didn’t make his County debut until the following summer, sharing the overseas player duties with Winston Davis. He returned to Wantage Road after another Windies tour to play a pivotal role in the 1992 NatWest Trophy triumph; his spell of 4-7 from 8.3 overs against Yorkshire ranks among the finest-ever bowling spells for Northamptonshire in limited-overs cricket. In 1994 his performances and personality dominated the season to an extraordinary degree – arriving late, leaving Coverdale to twiddle his thumbs at the airport, he then carried all before him with 77 Championship wickets at 14.45 (the most for the County since Sarfraz Nawaz took 82 in 1976), plus a match-winning innings of 78 against Somerset at Taunton. ‘By the time he returned to Antigua he had largely redeemed himself in the eyes of team-mates and supporters’ said Wisden. Sadly, injuries restricted his availability in 1996 and he was not re-engaged. But his international career continued for another four years, producing 405 wickets in 98 Tests – each one greeted with a ring of his mother Hillie’s famous handbell back home in Swetes. The Antiguan government knighted him in 2014. Since retiring as a player he has divided his time between musical (as a bass guitarist) and media commitments; an autobiography Time to Talk – a tongue-in-cheek reference, perhaps, to his renowned reluctance to speak to the media during his playing days – appeared in 2015.