A right handed batsman and a medium pace bowler, Derek Pringle could have been England's regular all-rounder but he always had to compete for a place in the side with Ian Botham, which made him an on and off member of the side. He made his debut as a 23 year old against the visiting Indians in 1982 and played a few more matches that season, but was dropped the following year after a few mediocre outings. He returned to the national side only after 3 years, when Ian Botham was banned for 3 months for smoking Cannabis. With Botham returning for the 4th Test of India's 1986 tour, Pringle had to make way and he didn't return for almost a year.

Pringle continued to be England's second choice all-rounder and was picked for the World Cup in 1987 after Ian Botham decided not to tour. Pringle's military medium bowling proved ineffective on the flat tracks in Asia, and lost his place once again. Pringle's in and out fortunes continued throughout his career, and after a couple of roller- coaster years, lost his place to Chris Lewis in 1990.

However, that was not the last of Pringle. England's youth policy did not last long and he made his way back in a couple of years. He worked on his swing bowling and returned a much better bowler in a Test series against West Indies. However, his old competitor Ian Botham made a surprise return for the final Test and Pringle was dropped again. He retained his spot in the ODI version, and was England's star in the 1992 World Cup where they finished runners up. Opening the bowling, he gave England tidy starts and proved to be effective on the Australian pitches. He retired from cricket after he was dropped from the Test squad for the 1992-93 tour of India. Pringle was interested in Archaeology, photography and writing, and became a cricket writer after his playing days.

By Cricbuzz Staff