Mark Ramprakash
Encyclopedia
Mark Ravin Ramprakash is an English
cricket
er, playing for Surrey
and England. A right-handed batsman, he initially made his name playing for Middlesex
, and was selected for England
aged 21. Despite being among the most gifted and heavily scoring English batsman of his generation at county level, he rarely performed well during a long but intermittent international career. He has been a particularly prolific run scorer since his move to Surrey
in 2001, averaging over 100 runs per innings in successive seasons (2006 & 2007). He is one of only 25 players in the history of the sport to have scored 100 first-class centuries.
, Hertfordshire
, and is of Indian and English descent. His father, born in the Caribbean, was an Indian from Guyana
and his mother was English
. He attended Gayton High School (now Harrow High School), and then Harrow Weald Sixth Form College
. His first local club was Bessborough Cricket Club in Headstone Lane where he showed early promise as a fast bowler before concentrating on his batting. He played his first match for Middlesex aged just 17, scoring 63 not out against Yorkshire, and top-scoring with 71 in his second match against Essex at Chelmsford (he was still a sixth-form student at the time). He scored his maiden first-class century at Headingley
against Yorkshire in 1989, and captained
the England U-19 team
. He came to national prominence when, at the age of only 18, he won the man-of-the match award in the 1988 NatWest Trophy Final after his innings of 56 helped Middlesex
beat Worcestershire
.
During his early days as a professional cricketer, Ramprakash had a reputation as a something of a mercurial and stormy character. Nicknamed "Bloodaxe" by Middlesex team-mates for his short temper, Ramprakash's younger days are now sharply contrasted with the laconic mellowness of his thirties.
Ramprakash at a young age had to choose between playing football for Watford FC or continue his playing career in cricket. His choice was made easier after Watford moved to London Colney training centre shared with Arsenal and after losing 7-0 he choose to continue with cricket.
at Headingley in 1991. This was the same game in which Graeme Hick
made his England Test debut, and like Hick, he struggled to impress producing a series of scores in the 20s. He was dropped in 1992 after a number of poor performances. However, his consistent heavy scoring in county cricket meant that he was always on the fringes of selection.
He was recalled to the England team for the final Test of the 1993 Ashes series
. With Australia
already 4-0 up it was a dead rubber, but he produced his first substantial innings for England by scoring 64 to help the team grab a consolation victory. This booked him a place on the subsequent tour of the West Indies. However, another string of low scores meant he was dropped and out of the selectors' plans. Ramprakash was not selected in the touring party for the 1994-95 Ashes series
, but was chosen as vice-captain for the England A
tour to India. However, an injury to Graeme Hick meant that he was flown out to play in the final Ashes Test scoring a useful 72. He was in and out of the England team over the next few years, never assured of selection but still scoring very heavily for Middlesex.
A breakthrough of sorts came in the 1997-98 Test series against the West Indies when he scored 154 in the fifth Test in Barbados
. It was his first Test century and it earned him regular selection for the England team for the next few years. While he scored a number of fifties against various teams (notably Australia), he was only able to add one more century to his tally - 133 against Australia at The Oval
in the 2001 Ashes series
. He was not picked again after England's tour of New Zealand
in March 2002.
During the build-up to the final Ashes Test of 2009, with the series poised at 1-1, Ramprakash was widely touted in the press as a possible choice to improve the struggling England middle order, with a number of pundits, including Alec Stewart
, suggesting his selection.
However, Jonathan Trott was selected instead, going on to score a Test century on debut.
. His form improved markedly as a result. In the 2003 season
, he became the first player to have scored a century against all 18 county teams, and completed the set with a century against his former county Middlesex. Only Carl Hooper
and Chris Adams have since achieved this feat.
Ramprakash became the first man to captain both Middlesex and Surrey when he stood in for the injured Mark Butcher
at the start of the 2005 English cricket season
. Butcher did not recover until the middle of August, and Ramprakash remained captain for most of the season. Ramprakash's move to Surrey, which some Middlesex members still carry a grudge about, seemed to backfire in 2005 when Surrey were relegated after a poor season. However, in their final Championship game, against Middlesex, who were also in danger of relegation themselves, Ramprakash gained consolation by hitting 252, sharing a Surrey record for a fifth-wicket partnership of 318 with Azhar Mahmood
as Surrey made 686 for five declared, and duly won by an innings and 39 runs.
In 2006
, Ramprakash, relieved of the unwanted burden of captaincy, displayed outstandingly good form, making a career-best 292 against Gloucestershire
in May, then improving that still further with 301 not out against Northamptonshire
in early August. Later that month against Worcestershire
he made 196 in the first innings, and in the process passed 2,000 runs in first-class cricket
for the summer in only his 20th innings (a record). Ramprakash, the leading run scorer in 2006, was the first man to score 2,000 runs in a season since the Australian Mike Hussey in 2001, and the first Englishman to do it since Ramprakash himself back in 1995. He also became the first man to score over 150 runs in an innings in five consecutive matches. He ended with 2,278 runs at an average
of 103.54, only the sixth man to average over one hundred over eight or more completed first-class innings in an English season.
Surrey gained promotion back into the first division. His excellent form led some commentators to say that the England selectors should consider him for that winter's Ashes tour: Mike Selvey
called him "the best technician of his generation with a good record in trying circumstances in Australia" and said that he should be considered as a possible replacement for Marcus Trescothick
.
He was not, however, chosen. His 2006 form also won him the Professional Cricketers' Association Player Of The Year Award and selection as one of five Wisden Cricketers of the Year
.
His fine form continued in 2007, and Ramprakash was once again the most prolific batsman in county cricket. He finished the season with 2,026 first class runs, including ten centuries, at an average of 101.30, becoming the only man to average over 100 in two consecutive English seasons. His twin hundreds in the final game of the season, against Lancashire, are widely said to have ended Lancashire's hopes of winning the championship. His form and professionalism led to further remarks that he should be recalled to the England side. Ramprakash himself stated that whilst he found this attention flattering, he had more or less abandoned any hope of being recalled to the England team, given the present selection policy targeted towards youth.
In 2008 Ramprakash scored a century in his first innings of the season - his third consecutive first-class century, all against Lancashire - and another (his 99th) two matches later. He finally scored his 100th 100 against Yorkshire at Headingley
on 2 August 2008, becoming only the 25th player to reach this mark. It mirrored his very first century, also scored at Headingley
. He hit 200 not out vs Somerset to get his 101st first class hundred.
In 2009 there was, yet again, much media speculation that Ramprakash should receive an England call up for the final Test match of the 2009 Ashes series
. He averaged 90 for Surrey in 2009.
In 2010, Ramprakash again emerged as county cricket's leading run-getter - albeit in the second division. After 16 matches and 28 innings he ended the season with 1595 runs at an average of 61.34, including 5 hundreds with a highest score of 248.
Ramprakash has now played 442 first class matches, 729 innings, and scored 34839 runs at an average of 54.6. Moreover, he has struck 144 fifties and 113 centuries with a best of 301 n.o. With those 113 hundreds he is at 16 in the all-time list of first class century-makers, just one behind Sir Viv Richards's 114 and four behind Sir Donald Bradman's 117.
won the BBC's Strictly Come Dancing
. The couple beat Matt Dawson
, former England rugby
player, and Lilia Kopylova
in the final. Ramprakash was the second consecutive cricketer to win the show, following former England team mate Darren Gough
.
He is a supporter of the Arsenal Football Club and plays for the Arsenal Ex-Pros and Celebrities side. He lived in Northwood, London, with his wife, Vandana (married in 1993 according to Hindu
rituals in Birmingham
), and his two daughters, Cara and Anya; but the couple were divorced in July 2010.
On 9 March 2008, Ramprakash appeared on the CBBC
show Hider in the House
, setting up dad Ian Smeeton, with Ian's wife Wendy, two children Will and Pippa Smeeton, and their friend Dougy in Cambridge. He completed all his challenges.
In a special edition of Strictly Come Dancing for Sport Relief
on 14 March 2008, Ramprakash and partner Kara Tointon
were the winners after performing a samba
. In 2008, he appeared on a special Strictly Come Dancing episode of The Weakest Link
, being the fifth one voted off.
He used to be on the books of Watford F.C.
as a schoolboy, but gave up the game to concentrate on his cricket. He also did a stint as a P.E.
teacher at St. Martin's School, Northwood, in 2003, teaching football for a brief period as a consideration for a job after cricket.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
cricket
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
er, playing for Surrey
Surrey County Cricket Club
Surrey County Cricket Club is one of the 18 professional county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Surrey. Its limited overs team is called the Surrey Lions...
and England. A right-handed batsman, he initially made his name playing for Middlesex
Middlesex County Cricket Club
Middlesex County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Middlesex. It was announced in February 2009 that Middlesex changed their limited overs name from the Middlesex Crusaders, to the...
, and was selected for England
English cricket team
The England and Wales cricket team is a cricket team which represents England and Wales. Until 1992 it also represented Scotland. Since 1 January 1997 it has been governed by the England and Wales Cricket Board , having been previously governed by Marylebone Cricket Club from 1903 until the end...
aged 21. Despite being among the most gifted and heavily scoring English batsman of his generation at county level, he rarely performed well during a long but intermittent international career. He has been a particularly prolific run scorer since his move to Surrey
Surrey County Cricket Club
Surrey County Cricket Club is one of the 18 professional county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Surrey. Its limited overs team is called the Surrey Lions...
in 2001, averaging over 100 runs per innings in successive seasons (2006 & 2007). He is one of only 25 players in the history of the sport to have scored 100 first-class centuries.
Career
Mark Ramprakash was born in BusheyBushey
Bushey is a town in the Hertsmere borough of Hertfordshire in the East of England. Bushey Heath is situated to the south east of Bushey on the boundary with the London Borough of Harrow.-History:...
, Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England. The county town is Hertford.The county is one of the Home Counties and lies inland, bordered by Greater London , Buckinghamshire , Bedfordshire , Cambridgeshire and...
, and is of Indian and English descent. His father, born in the Caribbean, was an Indian from Guyana
Indo-Guyanese
Indo-Guyanese are mostly descendants of indentured labourers from India who are citizens or nationals of Guyana. They are often referred to as Indians or East Indians...
and his mother was English
English people
The English are a nation and ethnic group native to England, who speak English. The English identity is of early mediaeval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Anglecynn. England is now a country of the United Kingdom, and the majority of English people in England are British Citizens...
. He attended Gayton High School (now Harrow High School), and then Harrow Weald Sixth Form College
Harrow College
Harrow College is the largest college in the London Borough of Harrow. It opened in 1999 following a merger of two former local colleges, Greenhill College and Weald College .Ofsted has reported the college as Outstanding for Social and Educational Inclusion...
. His first local club was Bessborough Cricket Club in Headstone Lane where he showed early promise as a fast bowler before concentrating on his batting. He played his first match for Middlesex aged just 17, scoring 63 not out against Yorkshire, and top-scoring with 71 in his second match against Essex at Chelmsford (he was still a sixth-form student at the time). He scored his maiden first-class century at Headingley
Headingley Stadium
Headingley Stadium is a sporting complex in the Leeds suburb of Headingley in West Yorkshire, England. It is the home of Yorkshire County Cricket Club, rugby league team Leeds Rhinos and rugby union team Leeds Carnegie ....
against Yorkshire in 1989, and captained
Captain (cricket)
The captain of a cricket team often referred to as the skipper is the appointed leader, having several additional roles and responsibilities over and above those of a regular player...
the England U-19 team
English U-19 cricket team
The English Under-19 cricket team have been playing official Under-19 test matches since 1974. Prior to 1991/92 they were known as England Young Cricketers....
. He came to national prominence when, at the age of only 18, he won the man-of-the match award in the 1988 NatWest Trophy Final after his innings of 56 helped Middlesex
Middlesex
Middlesex is one of the historic counties of England and the second smallest by area. The low-lying county contained the wealthy and politically independent City of London on its southern boundary and was dominated by it from a very early time...
beat Worcestershire
Worcestershire
Worcestershire is a non-metropolitan county, established in antiquity, located in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes it is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three counties that comprise the "Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire" NUTS 2 region...
.
During his early days as a professional cricketer, Ramprakash had a reputation as a something of a mercurial and stormy character. Nicknamed "Bloodaxe" by Middlesex team-mates for his short temper, Ramprakash's younger days are now sharply contrasted with the laconic mellowness of his thirties.
Ramprakash at a young age had to choose between playing football for Watford FC or continue his playing career in cricket. His choice was made easier after Watford moved to London Colney training centre shared with Arsenal and after losing 7-0 he choose to continue with cricket.
Test career
Ramprakash was selected for his first Test match for England against the West IndiesWest Indian cricket team
The West Indian cricket team, also known colloquially as the West Indies or the Windies, is a multi-national cricket team representing a sporting confederation of 15 mainly English-speaking Caribbean countries, British dependencies and non-British dependencies.From the mid 1970s to the early 1990s,...
at Headingley in 1991. This was the same game in which Graeme Hick
Graeme Hick
Graeme Ashley Hick MBE is a Zimbabwean-born cricketer who played 65 Test matches and 120 One Day Internationals for England. He played county cricket for Worcestershire for his entire English domestic career, a period of well over twenty years, and in 2008 he surpassed Graham Gooch's record for...
made his England Test debut, and like Hick, he struggled to impress producing a series of scores in the 20s. He was dropped in 1992 after a number of poor performances. However, his consistent heavy scoring in county cricket meant that he was always on the fringes of selection.
He was recalled to the England team for the final Test of the 1993 Ashes series
Australian cricket team in England in 1993
Four players debuted in the First Test: Andy Caddick and Peter Such for England and Brendon Julian and Michael Slater for the tourists. The new Australian opening partnership of Slater and Mark Taylor dominated the first part of the first day, putting on 128 for the first wicket, but it was Such...
. With Australia
Australian cricket team
The Australian cricket team is the national cricket team of Australia. It is the joint oldest team in Test cricket, having played in the first Test match in 1877...
already 4-0 up it was a dead rubber, but he produced his first substantial innings for England by scoring 64 to help the team grab a consolation victory. This booked him a place on the subsequent tour of the West Indies. However, another string of low scores meant he was dropped and out of the selectors' plans. Ramprakash was not selected in the touring party for the 1994-95 Ashes series
English cricket team in Australia in 1994-95
The build-up to the First Test was chaotic from the England perspective. The first choice bowling attack was compromised when Devon Malcolm was struck down by chickenpox, which team manager Mike Smith described as "a major loss to the side". Malcolm was replaced by left arm spinner Phil Tufnell,...
, but was chosen as vice-captain for the England A
England A cricket team
The England Lions cricket team is a cricket team representing England and Wales. It is the "second-tier" of international English cricket below the full England cricket team, and is largely intended as a way for promising young cricketers to gain experience of playing international cricket...
tour to India. However, an injury to Graeme Hick meant that he was flown out to play in the final Ashes Test scoring a useful 72. He was in and out of the England team over the next few years, never assured of selection but still scoring very heavily for Middlesex.
A breakthrough of sorts came in the 1997-98 Test series against the West Indies when he scored 154 in the fifth Test in Barbados
Kensington Oval
The Kensington Oval is located to the west of the capital-city Bridgetown on the island of Barbados. "The Oval" is one of the major sporting facilities on the island and is primarily used for cricket...
. It was his first Test century and it earned him regular selection for the England team for the next few years. While he scored a number of fifties against various teams (notably Australia), he was only able to add one more century to his tally - 133 against Australia at The Oval
The Oval
The Kia Oval, still commonly referred to by its original name of The Oval, is an international cricket ground in Kennington, in the London Borough of Lambeth. In the past it was also sometimes called the Kennington Oval...
in the 2001 Ashes series
Australian cricket team in England in 2001
-Second Test: 19 – 22 July 2001:-Third Test: 2 – 6 August 2001:Australia retained the Ashes with a seven-wicket victory over England in the third Test at Trent Bridge. England won the toss and chose to bat first, England needed to win the game to give them a outisde chance of winning the Ashes. But...
. He was not picked again after England's tour of New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
in March 2002.
During the build-up to the final Ashes Test of 2009, with the series poised at 1-1, Ramprakash was widely touted in the press as a possible choice to improve the struggling England middle order, with a number of pundits, including Alec Stewart
Alec Stewart
Alec James Stewart OBE is a retired English cricketer, a right-handed batsman-wicketkeeper and former captain of the England cricket team...
, suggesting his selection.
However, Jonathan Trott was selected instead, going on to score a Test century on debut.
At Surrey
In 2001, thoroughly disillusioned with the organisation at Middlesex, who were by now playing second division level cricket, he joined London rivals SurreySurrey County Cricket Club
Surrey County Cricket Club is one of the 18 professional county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Surrey. Its limited overs team is called the Surrey Lions...
. His form improved markedly as a result. In the 2003 season
2003 English cricket season
The 2003 English cricket season was notable for the long overdue first official County Championship of the oldest county club: Sussex.-Honours:*County Championship - Sussex*C&G Trophy - Gloucestershire*National League - Surrey...
, he became the first player to have scored a century against all 18 county teams, and completed the set with a century against his former county Middlesex. Only Carl Hooper
Carl Hooper
Carl Llewellyn Hooper is a former West Indian cricket player and captain.-Career:He was a right-handed batsman and off-spin bowler, who came to prominence in the late 1980s in a side that included such players as Gordon Greenidge, Desmond Haynes, Malcolm Marshall and Courtney Walsh and represented...
and Chris Adams have since achieved this feat.
Ramprakash became the first man to captain both Middlesex and Surrey when he stood in for the injured Mark Butcher
Mark Butcher
Mark Alan Butcher is a former English Test cricketer, who played county cricket for Surrey from 1992 until his retirement from the sport in 2009. He was a left-handed batsman, and occasional right-arm medium-pace bowler....
at the start of the 2005 English cricket season
2005 English cricket season
Before the beginning of the 2005 English cricket season began, a resurgent English cricket team had won four Test series in a row, going unbeaten through the 2004 calendar year. The start of the international season saw England defeat Bangladesh 2–0 in their two-match series, winning both Tests by...
. Butcher did not recover until the middle of August, and Ramprakash remained captain for most of the season. Ramprakash's move to Surrey, which some Middlesex members still carry a grudge about, seemed to backfire in 2005 when Surrey were relegated after a poor season. However, in their final Championship game, against Middlesex, who were also in danger of relegation themselves, Ramprakash gained consolation by hitting 252, sharing a Surrey record for a fifth-wicket partnership of 318 with Azhar Mahmood
Azhar Mahmood
Azhar Mahmood Sagar is a Pakistani cricketer, . Originally his father objected to his interest in cricket, but later started to appreciate it seeing his accomplishments. As a teenager, Azhar was mentored by Irfan Bhatti who played a One Day International for Pakistan in the early 90’s...
as Surrey made 686 for five declared, and duly won by an innings and 39 runs.
In 2006
2006 English cricket season
The 2006 English cricket season includes home international series for England against Sri Lanka and Pakistan. England are coming off a winter with more Test losses than wins, for the first time since 2002-03, but still attained their best series result in India since 1985...
, Ramprakash, relieved of the unwanted burden of captaincy, displayed outstandingly good form, making a career-best 292 against Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire County Cricket Club
Gloucestershire County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh national cricket structure, representing the historic county of Gloucestershire. Its limited overs team is called the Gloucestershire Gladiators....
in May, then improving that still further with 301 not out against Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire County Cricket Club
Northamptonshire County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Northamptonshire. Its limited overs team is called the Northants Steelbacks. The traditional club colour is Maroon. During the...
in early August. Later that month against Worcestershire
Worcestershire County Cricket Club
Worcestershire County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Worcestershire...
he made 196 in the first innings, and in the process passed 2,000 runs in first-class cricket
First-class cricket
First-class cricket is a class of cricket that consists of matches of three or more days' scheduled duration, that are between two sides of eleven players and are officially adjudged first-class by virtue of the standard of the competing teams...
for the summer in only his 20th innings (a record). Ramprakash, the leading run scorer in 2006, was the first man to score 2,000 runs in a season since the Australian Mike Hussey in 2001, and the first Englishman to do it since Ramprakash himself back in 1995. He also became the first man to score over 150 runs in an innings in five consecutive matches. He ended with 2,278 runs at an average
Batting average
Batting average is a statistic in both cricket and baseball that measures the performance of cricket batsmen and baseball hitters. The two statistics are related in that baseball averages are directly descended from the concept of cricket averages.- Cricket :...
of 103.54, only the sixth man to average over one hundred over eight or more completed first-class innings in an English season.
Surrey gained promotion back into the first division. His excellent form led some commentators to say that the England selectors should consider him for that winter's Ashes tour: Mike Selvey
Mike Selvey
Mike Selvey is an English former Test and county cricketer, and now a cricket writer and commentator. Selvey played in three Tests for England between 1976 and 1977...
called him "the best technician of his generation with a good record in trying circumstances in Australia" and said that he should be considered as a possible replacement for Marcus Trescothick
Marcus Trescothick
Marcus Edward Trescothick MBE is an English cricketer. He plays first-class cricket for Somerset County Cricket Club, and represented England in 76 Test matches and 123 One Day Internationals. A left-handed opening batsman, he made his first-class debut for Somerset in 1993 and quickly established...
.
He was not, however, chosen. His 2006 form also won him the Professional Cricketers' Association Player Of The Year Award and selection as one of five Wisden Cricketers of the Year
Wisden Cricketers of the Year
The Wisden Cricketers of the Year are cricketers selected for the honour by the annual publication Wisden Cricketers' Almanack, based primarily on their "influence on the previous English season"...
.
His fine form continued in 2007, and Ramprakash was once again the most prolific batsman in county cricket. He finished the season with 2,026 first class runs, including ten centuries, at an average of 101.30, becoming the only man to average over 100 in two consecutive English seasons. His twin hundreds in the final game of the season, against Lancashire, are widely said to have ended Lancashire's hopes of winning the championship. His form and professionalism led to further remarks that he should be recalled to the England side. Ramprakash himself stated that whilst he found this attention flattering, he had more or less abandoned any hope of being recalled to the England team, given the present selection policy targeted towards youth.
In 2008 Ramprakash scored a century in his first innings of the season - his third consecutive first-class century, all against Lancashire - and another (his 99th) two matches later. He finally scored his 100th 100 against Yorkshire at Headingley
Headingley Stadium
Headingley Stadium is a sporting complex in the Leeds suburb of Headingley in West Yorkshire, England. It is the home of Yorkshire County Cricket Club, rugby league team Leeds Rhinos and rugby union team Leeds Carnegie ....
on 2 August 2008, becoming only the 25th player to reach this mark. It mirrored his very first century, also scored at Headingley
Headingley Stadium
Headingley Stadium is a sporting complex in the Leeds suburb of Headingley in West Yorkshire, England. It is the home of Yorkshire County Cricket Club, rugby league team Leeds Rhinos and rugby union team Leeds Carnegie ....
. He hit 200 not out vs Somerset to get his 101st first class hundred.
In 2009 there was, yet again, much media speculation that Ramprakash should receive an England call up for the final Test match of the 2009 Ashes series
2009 Ashes series
The 2009 Ashes series was that year's edition of the long-standing and storied cricket rivalry between England and Australia, and was part of the Australian cricket tour of England in 2009. Starting on 8 July 2009, England and Australia played five Tests, with England winning the series 2–1...
. He averaged 90 for Surrey in 2009.
In 2010, Ramprakash again emerged as county cricket's leading run-getter - albeit in the second division. After 16 matches and 28 innings he ended the season with 1595 runs at an average of 61.34, including 5 hundreds with a highest score of 248.
Ramprakash has now played 442 first class matches, 729 innings, and scored 34839 runs at an average of 54.6. Moreover, he has struck 144 fifties and 113 centuries with a best of 301 n.o. With those 113 hundreds he is at 16 in the all-time list of first class century-makers, just one behind Sir Viv Richards's 114 and four behind Sir Donald Bradman's 117.
Outside cricket
In 2006, Ramprakash and Karen HardyKaren Hardy
Karen Hardy is a professional ballroom dancer, coach, teacher and adjudicator. In 1998 she won the professional International Latin American Dance Championship with Bryan Watson. She also won the United Kingdom Open, British National, European and World Masters championships...
won the BBC's Strictly Come Dancing
Strictly Come Dancing
Strictly Come Dancing is a British television show, featuring celebrities with professional dance partners competing in Ballroom and Latin dances. The title of the show suggests a continuation of the long-running series Come Dancing, with an allusion to the film Strictly Ballroom...
. The couple beat Matt Dawson
Matt Dawson
Matthew James Sutherland "Daws" Dawson, MBE is a retired English rugby union player who played scrum half for Wasps and Northampton Saints. During his international career he toured with the British and Irish Lions three times and was part of England's 2003 Rugby World Cup winning side...
, former England rugby
England national rugby union team
The England national rugby union team represents England in rugby union. They compete in the annual Six Nations Championship with France, Ireland, Scotland, Italy, and Wales. They have won this championship on 26 occasions, 12 times winning the Grand Slam, making them the most successful team in...
player, and Lilia Kopylova
Lilia Kopylova
Lilia Andreyevna Kopylova , born 18 June 1978 in Moscow, Soviet Union, is a professional dancer.With her husband Darren Bennett she has been competing as an amateur since July 1997 and as a professional since May 2003...
in the final. Ramprakash was the second consecutive cricketer to win the show, following former England team mate Darren Gough
Darren Gough
Darren Gough is a retired English cricketer and former captain of Yorkshire County Cricket Club. The spearhead of England's bowling attack through much of the 1990s, he is England's highest wicket-taker in one-day internationals with 234, and took 229 wickets in his 58 Test matches, making him...
.
He is a supporter of the Arsenal Football Club and plays for the Arsenal Ex-Pros and Celebrities side. He lived in Northwood, London, with his wife, Vandana (married in 1993 according to Hindu
Hindu
Hindu refers to an identity associated with the philosophical, religious and cultural systems that are indigenous to the Indian subcontinent. As used in the Constitution of India, the word "Hindu" is also attributed to all persons professing any Indian religion...
rituals in Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
), and his two daughters, Cara and Anya; but the couple were divorced in July 2010.
On 9 March 2008, Ramprakash appeared on the CBBC
CBBC
CBBC is one of two brand names used for the BBC's children's television strands. Between 1985 and 2002, CBBC was the name given to all the BBC's programmes on TV for children aged under 14...
show Hider in the House
Hider in the House
Hider in the House was a British children's game show presented by Jason King and Joel Ross . In the programme, a celebrity had to be hidden in a family's house by three children and a parent. If the family have fewer than three children, they use friends or related children to make up the numbers...
, setting up dad Ian Smeeton, with Ian's wife Wendy, two children Will and Pippa Smeeton, and their friend Dougy in Cambridge. He completed all his challenges.
In a special edition of Strictly Come Dancing for Sport Relief
Sport Relief
Sport Relief is a biennial charity event from Comic Relief, in association with BBC Sport, which brings together the worlds of sport and entertainment to raise money to help vulnerable people in both the UK and the world's poorest countries...
on 14 March 2008, Ramprakash and partner Kara Tointon
Kara Tointon
Kara Louise Tointon is a British actress, best known for playing Dawn Swann in BBC soap opera EastEnders. Tointon was the 2010 winner of BBC television series Strictly Come Dancing.-Early life:...
were the winners after performing a samba
Samba
Samba is a Brazilian dance and musical genre originating in Bahia and with its roots in Brazil and Africa via the West African slave trade and African religious traditions. It is recognized around the world as a symbol of Brazil and the Brazilian Carnival...
. In 2008, he appeared on a special Strictly Come Dancing episode of The Weakest Link
The Weakest Link
The Weakest Link is a television game show which first appeared in the United Kingdom on BBC Two on 14 August 2000 and will end its run in 2012 when its host Anne Robinson ends her contract. The original British version of the show airs around the world on BBC Entertainment...
, being the fifth one voted off.
He used to be on the books of Watford F.C.
Watford F.C.
Watford Football Club is an English professional football club based in Watford, Hertfordshire. It is often referred to as Watford F.C., Watford, or by the team's nickname The Hornets . Watford Rovers, Founded in 1881, entered the FA Cup for the first time in 1886, and the Southern League a decade...
as a schoolboy, but gave up the game to concentrate on his cricket. He also did a stint as a P.E.
Physical education
Physical education or gymnastics is a course taken during primary and secondary education that encourages psychomotor learning in a play or movement exploration setting....
teacher at St. Martin's School, Northwood, in 2003, teaching football for a brief period as a consideration for a job after cricket.
External links
- Mark Ramprakash from Surrey County Cricket ClubSurrey County Cricket ClubSurrey County Cricket Club is one of the 18 professional county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Surrey. Its limited overs team is called the Surrey Lions...