While enjoying a leisurely week's holiday in West Wales, I noticed that a couple of cricketers announced they were taking an immediate and permanent break friom playing cricket. Coldplay's lead singer may have displaced him as the most famous Chris Martin, but the New Zealand paceman deserves recognition as an unsung hero for his nation. Only Hadlee and Vettori have taken more Test wickets than his 233 for the Black Caps and his career tally of first-class victims stalled at an impressive 599, to go with 242 in shorter formats.
Of course he may be better remembered for his wonderfully awful batting, but that's not why he was picked to represent his country 97 times, including 71 Tests, the last of which came at Cape Town in January. In 394 matches of all kinds, his highest score was a mighty 25, after which he must have retired ill! Only once in Test cricket did Martin reach double figures, even taking two successive boundaries. Hang your head in shame, Shahadat Hossain, for it was he who was bowling at the time....
Probably his best bowling performance was in a nine-wicket defeat of South Africa on his home ground of Auckland nine years ago. His 6-76 and 5-104 from a typically heavy workload of 50+ overs earned him a rare Man of the Match award. While his record was relatively modest in Asia, England, Australia and the Caribbean, Chris Martin's place in Kiwi cricketing history is secured.
Perhaps less renowned globally is Arul Suppiah, the Somerset favourite who has been forced into early retirement by worsening knee injuries at the age of 29. Probably the best cricketer to have been born in Kuala Lumpur, Arul followed a well-worn route to Somerset via Millfield School, making his debut as a teenager in 2002. He often looked classy, albeit the junior partner to stroke-maker Marcus Trescothick, and rarely made the big scores his talent deserved, the 2009 season apart. Ironically he boasts a world record not for his batting but for his part-time left-arm spin. In 2011, he took 6-5 against Glamorgan, the best return in any T20 match so far. Take that, Malinga, Nannes, Ashwin et al!
Suppiah's loss of form and troublesome joints couldn't have come at a worse time for the county, shorn of a once-sparkling batting line-up by injury and international call-ups. However, I hope he can remain part of the Somerset set-up for a while yet. He has become a familiar figure in Taunton and, despite a less outstanding record than many team-mates, was a real favourite with the county cognoscenti. You may have been maddening sometimes but, Arul, we Somerset fans will miss you!
