glenn turner

In two senses the most professional cricketer ever produced by New Zealand, Glenn Turner made himself a household name throughout the cricket world by dedicating himself to cricket from an early age and making the best possible use of a considerable natural ability. Unswervingly single-minded in his pursuit of runs, unashamedly ambitious and often impatient of amateur administrators in New Zealand, his career with Worcestershire was the key to his success everywhere else. He deliberately enrolled in the hard school of county cricket, learnt his lessons quickly and never forgot them. Almost frail-looking, pale-faced and serious-minded, Turner was an immaculately straight-playing opener, who defended with a solidity of technique few contemporaries matched. Although limited in his early days, he eventually played every shot on demand, and scored as fast as anyone when necessary. His most characteristic shots were the off-drive and a beautifully-timed drive to midwicket with the face of the bat turned on impact. He began his Test career with a duck, but the broad canvas of the five-day game suited his tempo and temperament, giving a cultured craftsman the opportunity to build his innings steadily, soberly and coolly. He twice carried his bat through a completed Test innings, and in the West Indies in 1971-72 hit four double-centuries in all matches, including successive innings of 259 at Georgetown. Turner captained New Zealand in ten Tests, but relinquished the job after one of his regular disagreements with administrators. He managed New Zealand’s teams in Australia and England in 1985-86, and was reappointed in 1995. He coached Otago and was appointed a national selector in August 2007. Christopher Martin-Jenkins