John Edrich
John Hugh Edrich, MBE (born 21 June 1937) is a former English cricketer who, during a career that ran from 1956 to 1978, was considered one of the best batsmen of his generation. Born in Blofield, Norfolk, Edrich came from a cricketing family, his four cousins, Eric Edrich, Bill Edrich, Geoff Edrich and Brian Edrich, all having played first-class cricket. He was educated at Bracondale Private School from the ages of eight to seventeen, during which time he played cricket at weekends and was coached by former cricketer CSR Boswell.
Edrich played for Surrey and England. He was renowned for playing the cut, the cover drive and scoring off his legs, earning over the years a reputation for dogged fearlessness. His statistical achievements show that he was amongst the best players of his generation, playing a total of seventy seven Test matches for England between 1963 to 1976, and scoring a triple-century in 1965 that is the fifth highest Test score for England.
A player during the time when One Day International cricket was in its infancy, he played, and top scored, in the first ever ODI match. The cricket writer Colin Bateman described him as "unflinching, unselfish, and often unsmiling while going about his business in the middle, he was a fiercely formidable opener who knew his limitations and worked wonderfully within them".
