Fred Titmus

Frederick John Titmus MBE (24 November 1932 – 23 March 2011) was an English cricketer, whose first-class career spanned five decades. He was the fourth man after W.G. Grace, Wilfred Rhodes and George Hirst to take 2,500 wickets and make 20,000 runs in first class cricket. Although he was best known for his off spin (though at first he bowled medium pace as well), he was an accomplished lower-order batsman who deserved to be called an all-rounder, even opening the batting for England on six occasions. Outside of cricket, Titmus was also an able footballer; at one stage he was contracted to Watford as a professional, having earlier played for Chelsea as a junior.

Early years

Titmus was in his school's first XI by the age of thirteen, and when sixteen he wrote to Lord's, the ground being close to his home, to ask for a trial. He was accepted onto the MCC groundstaff, and in June 1949 he made his first-class cricket debut against Somerset at Bath. Although he did little in the match, his selection for the first team at such a young age was a clear sign of his potential.