Corey Collymore

Self introspection is a tricky art. Some people take ages to master it, while some have the innate ability to realize what they can do and what not. Corey Collymore was of the later kind. Although blessed with flowing open-chested option, Collymore could never generate the famous West Indian pace.

He hardly went above 80mph. But with an action reminiscent of Malcolm Marshall coupled with brimming aggression and ability to hit consistent lines, he was able to make a name for himself in a West Indian side that was struggling to avoid a slip of reputation in the cricket world. Collymore was particularly good with outswingers to right-handers.

Collymore would have had a longer career than what he eventually had but for a stress fracture that troubled him sporadically throughout his playing days. However, he did beat the ailment, quite heroically after having a mediocre series against England in 2000. When he made a return in Zimbabwe in 2001, he was instrumental, with a four-fer, in orchestrating a win for West Indies in the final of Coca-Cola Cup against India. He featured in the team that played in the 2003 World Cup, but maybe the pacy conditions of Africa were not suitable to his kind of bowling and he ended the event on a mediocre note. Windies showed some faith in him as he was included in the Test side for the home series against Sri Lanka. The first Test ended in a draw but fetched him five wickets. In the second, Collymore was in his spirits and managed 7 scalps for 57 runs in the second innings. Windies were the eventual winners - by seven wickets.

But these infrequent exploits were not good enough to ensure a permanent spot in the team and he continued to feature sporadically. On the tour of England, where he was expected to make early inroads courtesy a new ball, Corey was ineffective due to lack of pace. Things were slightly better during the home series against India where he lasted the Test series and took wickets at imperative times. He only appeared in 8 international matches in 2006-07 but like previous occasions, found a way to come back into the side ahead of the World Cup after some decent showings in the domestic circuit. The World Cup of 2007 which was held in the Caribbean islands did not go well for him and he was soon out of favour from the national side. The following year, he ventured towards county cricket and stuck to playing game there.