The Yorkshire-born Derek Shackleton, who went on to play for Hampshire and England, was praised for his untiring control and stamina. He played for Hampshire for a little more then 20 years. To make it even better, day-in and day-out, he delivered the goods.

It shouldn't surprise anyone that he scalped 2,857 wickets and at a stunning average of 18.65 in First-Class cricket. Unfortunately, as he perhaps bowled at just medium pace, he only played seven Tests, in a Test career spanning around 13 years.

He was though an irresistible force in the County circuit. Shackleton picked up nine wickets in an innings as many as four times in his career. Once against Somerset in 1955, he took his game to dizzying heights by scalping 8 wickets for a mere four runs. in the limited opportunities he got to play for England, one of his better shows came against West Indies at Lord's in 1963 when he picked up seven wickets in the match. After retiring from the game, Derek Shackleton also served as a First-Class umpire for a brief period.

By Bharath Ramaraj