Chris Taylor (cricketer, born 1976)

Christopher Glyn Taylor (born 27 September 1976 in Bristol) is an English cricketer.

Chris Taylor is a right-handed batsman and a right-arm off-break bowler, who occasionally takes position as a wicket-keeper. He played first-class cricket for Gloucestershire (2000–2011). Since leaving Gloucester in 2011, Taylor has taken up an array of coaching roles, most notably joining England as fielding coach in 2014.

Playing career

Taylor's first opportunity in first-class cricket came against Middlesex in 2000, where he hit a century on his debut for the side. Covering extensively as a wicket-keeper throughout his first year of cricket, he found himself in one of his first cricket matches up against a touring Zimbabwe team. Having aided Gloucestershire through five seasons of Division Two cricket, he was instrumental in their rise to Division One of the County Championship for 2004, the year he was made captain of the four-day side by player-coach Mark Alleyne.

Despite managing to keep a strong hold on his middle-order batting position during his first season in the top division, he was unable to stop his Gloucestershire side from dropping to Division Two once again in the year 2005. For 2006 he lost the position of captain to Jon Lewis.

2007 proved to be one of his best seasons with the club, as he scored over 1000 runs and averaged 42.34 with the bat.

In 2011 he had another stellar season, scoring 1,139 runs, and in the process becoming Gloucester's leading run scorer for the season.

Despite having a hugely successful career at Gloucester, which included winning seven one day trophies with the club, his departure was controversial and he took the County to a tribunal for unfair dismissal after his contract was not renewed after 2011, due to the County being in a poor financial position.^[1] A settlement was eventually reached and Taylor retired from playing to focus on coaching.^[2]

Coaching career

Domestic career

Taylor's first move into coaching came in 2008 when he was appointed Gloucester fielding coach in 2008 while still playing for the club. He left in 2011 when his contract with the club expired.

He spent the 2013 season with Somerset working as assistant coach, before moving to Surrey as fielding coach for the 2014 season.

International career

Taylor worked with the England Lions as fielding coach on and off from 2008 to 2014. During this time he also had a brief spell with the Denmark national side, acting as a consultant coach.

England

In 2014 Taylor became the England fielding coach after Peter Moores was appointed as head coach.

2014 India and Sri Lanka

The first opposition Taylor faced as fielding coach was Sri Lanka, but England lost the ODI series 3-2, the T20 series 1-0 and the Test series 1-0. England were criticised for being lacklustre in batting, bowling and fielding. In the second Test against Sri Lanka, which England lost, Taylor appeared on the pitch as a substitute fielder.^[3]

England beat India 3-1 in the Test series. After going 1-0 down, they went on to win the next three matches to a clinch the series win. However, they performed poorly in the ODI series, losing it 3-1. They did however win the only T20 game between the two sides, and England looked lively in the field.

2014 Sri Lanka and Tri Series

England lost the series against Sri Lanka 5-2. The series marked the end of Alistair Cook's reign as captain. England fielded fairly well in the series but it was not enough as England were out classed by the opponents.

England improved for the Tri- series with India and Australia. Although they lost both group games to Australia, they beat India twice to qualify for the final against Australia. England's fielding continued to improve. In particular, their slip catching looked better and Ian Bell made a stunning catch against India. However, England lost the final against Australia to finish as runners-up.

2015 World Cup

In the buildup to the World Cup, Taylor spoke about how he was pleased with England's fielding and that he felt the team was improving.^[4] The World Cup did not go well for England as they were eliminated in the group stage, managing to beat only Scotland and Afghanistan and losing to Australia, New Zealand, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.

2015 West Indies and New Zealand

England drew the series with Test series with the West Indies 1-1. Although the result was poor, England performed well in the field, with Chris Jordan taking several spectacular catches at slip. There was also a noticeable improvement in the wicket keeping of Jos Buttler.

England were victorious in the first Test against New Zealand but lost the second, but both sides were praised for their energetic performance in the field. England went on to win the ODI series between the sides 3-2 and won the sole T20 match between the sides. England's catching was criticised in the second ODI but their general performances throughout the series were seen as positive.

2015 Australia

Taylor was fielding coach for the 2015 Ashes. England won the first Test by 169 but lost the next match by 405 runs. The third match of the series went England's way, as they secured an eight wicket victory. England's catching helped them win the next match, as Ben Stokes and Joe Root both took acrobatic catches as England dismissed Australia for 60 and won by an innings and 78 runs. although England lost the last match of the series by an innings Jos Buttler took a good catch and looked convincing behind the stumps. England won the series 3-2, with their fielding being impressive throughout. England continued their impressive fielding in the limited overs series.

2015 Pakistan

In the Test series against Pakistan, England's catching was impressive, with James Anderson showing a safe pair of hands. Jonny Bairstow kept wicket in the final game of the series, and made few mistakes. England's fielding was impressive during the ODI series, and Sam Billings looked comfortable behind the stumps in the T20Is.

2015-16 South Africa

In the Test series against South Africa James Taylor took two outstanding catches while fielding at short leg. These catches proved crucial as England won the series 2-1. However, there were numerous examples of poor fielding in the ODI series, with Adil Rashid dropping a catch for England which would have seen them win the series when they eventually lost 3-2. In the first T20I, a mistake from Reece Topley when attempting a run out cost England the game in a series they went on to lose 2-0.

2016 T20 World Cup

England fielded well as they reached the final of the T20I World Cup. They beat South Africa, Afghanistan and Sri Lanka in the group stage and beat New Zealand in the semi-final. However, they went on to lose the final to the West Indies, although England caught well throughout the tournament.

2016 Sri Lanka

In the Test series against Sri Lanka, England fielded well, with Jonny Bairstow in particular accumulating a large number of catches behind the stumps, as England won the three match series 2-0. Although Joe Root dropped an easy catch in the ODI series, Jason Roy and David Willey both performed well in the field, with Roy running out several batsmen in a series which England won 3-0. England won the only T20I match between the sides, with another two Sri Lanka batsmen being dismissed through run-outs, as England's fielding continued to look sharp.

2016 Pakistan

In the Test series against Pakistan, England dropped several slip catches in the slip cordon, with James Vince and Joe Root both being at fault. England eventually drew the Test series 2-2. In the ODI series, England won 4-1, but were criticised for throwing the ball at the stumps too often. England assistant coach Paul Farbrace said before the only T20I between the two sides, which England lost, that England had not been as good in the field as they would have wanted.

External links

• Christopher Taylor at Cricket Archive
• Chris Taylor discusses scoring 100 on first class debut at Lords.
• Chris Taylor leaves Gloucestershire

References