I was as shocked as anyone when I first caught the internet headline announcing the sudden retirement of James Taylor. Why would one of England’s best batsmen and fielders call it a day at just 26 years old?
Then came the explanation that an examination and scans after an uncharacteristic display of symptoms had revealed a potentially fatal heart condition ARVC. Remembering the reaction to ex-England opener Wilf Slack’s fatal collapse at the crease, and watching the game on TV when Spurs footballer Fabrice Muamba’s heart stopped, I’m hopeful we will be spared the sight of JWA suffering a similar fate. Faced with a choice of continuing his playing career or dying, it’s a no-brainer. If we have learned nothing else about Taylor, it is that he is one of the most intelligent cricketers around.
It is cruel and absolutely ridiculous that he was often defined by his height, or lack of it. As a fellow shorty, I have followed his career for years, since he started breaking all sorts of records at Leicestershire and the England under-19s, revelling in his success in county cricket and failing to understand why he wasn’t selected for his country. When he finally made it to the Test and ODI sides, I was delighted for him.
I did feel irritated that he had to move away from lowly Leicestershire to high-flying Nottinghamshire but I guess it’s the way of top sport that you have to play in the top division to really get noticed. Nevertheless, some ignorant people saw his sixty-six inches rather than his weight of runs. Kevin Pietersen, take a bow! Maybe KP just felt threatened by young talent who was shorter than he was, and his ego couldn’t cope!
At first, Taylor’s strengths seemed to sit within first-class cricket but in the past few years, he has demonstrated his immense value in the fifty-over game. In fact, I’d say he had no peers in that format in this country. He wasn’t a slogger in the Hales/Buttler mould, but could be devastating either for Notts or England. His final List A average of 53.11 is extraordinary. World-class! He was also a brilliant, shrewd captain and a very nifty close fielder to boot.
He hadn’t delivered to his Test potential but showed no fear against South Africa’s fast bowlers, either in his first Test at Headingley in 2012 or last at Centurion earlier this year. Nevertheless, I’m convinced he had greater staying power in the middle-order than, say, Ballance, Compton or even Bairstow.
The breadth of supportive tweets and comments in the past few days from around the counties are testament to his popularity as a character and respect as a cricketer. I haven’t seen anything from Pietersen, of course. Provided his imminent heart surgery is successful, I look forward to following Taylor’s next career, hopefully remaining in cricket. He’ll definitely be missed on the pitch and on top of everything, I now have to find a new favourite player!
