Joel Garner

Joel Garner was a Barbadian fast bowler whose height and yorkers made him one of the most feared bowlers of the great West Indies teams of the 1970s-80s.

Joel Garner was born on 16 December 1952 in Christ Church, Barbados, and was coached at school by Bajan greats Seymour Nurse and Everton Weekes, developing at an unprecedented height that would come to define his bowling. Garner made his Test debut against Pakistan in 1977, and became, at 6 feet 8 inches, one of the tallest fast bowlers in Test history, delivering the ball from a height that made him an exceptionally difficult proposition for batters to face, relying on accuracy and steep bounce rather than express pace. Garner, nicknamed "Big Bird," formed part of the legendary West Indies four-pronged pace attack alongside Michael Holding, Andy Roberts, and Malcolm Marshall, taking 259 Test wickets at an outstanding average of 20.98, and remains one of only two bowlers in history with more than 100 ODI wickets at an average under 20. Garner enjoyed enormous success playing county cricket for Somerset alongside Viv Richards and Ian Botham, helping the club win multiple domestic trophies during the early 1980s, and later served as president of the Barbados Cricket Association, remaining one of the most feared and effective fast bowlers of the West Indies' dominant era.

Garner used his exceptional height of 6'8" to generate steep bounce and awkward angles that troubled batsmen. His trademark delivery was the yorker, which he could bowl with pinpoint accuracy at express pace, making him nearly unplayable in the death overs. He combined raw pace with remarkable control and accuracy for such a tall bowler.

Garner was instrumental in establishing the West Indies as the dominant force in world cricket during the late 1970s and 1980s. His bowling techniques and use of height advantage influenced a generation of tall fast bowlers who followed.

• ICC Cricket Hall of Fame