Alan Philip Eric Knott was born on 9 April 1946 and is a former cricketer who represented England at international level in both Tests and One-Day Internationals.
20 Facts About Alan Knott
1.
2.
Alan Knott was described by cricket journalist Simon Wilde as "a natural gloveman, beautifully economical in his movements and armed with tremendous powers of concentration".
3.
Alan Knott gained his first Test cap at the age of 21, having been named Cricket Writers' Club Young Cricketer of the Year in 1965.
4.
Alan Knott made his Test debut against Pakistan in 1967.
5.
Amidst the tension - which was too much for Cowdrey and Tom Graveney, who had gone and locked themselves in the toilets - Alan Knott stayed calm and guided Jones through the final over to obtain the draw.
6.
Alan Knott made two 50s in the series, including 96 not out at Karachi when the match was prematurely ended by a pitch invasion by Pakistani fans, denying him a well-deserved hundred.
7.
In 1970 Alan Knott was named as one of the Wisden Cricketers of the Year.
8.
Alan Knott did not miss a Test until 1977, making a sum of five centuries and twenty-eight 50s in that time.
9.
Alan Knott has the distinction of once scoring 7 runs from a single delivery in Test cricket, off Vanburn Holder in the Fourth England v West Indies Test at Headingley in 1976.
10.
Alan Knott took a quick single to extra-cover where Bernard Julien fielded and overthrew the wicket-keeper.
11.
Alan Knott helped England regain the Ashes in England in 1977.
12.
Alan Knott did not play in the tour of the West Indies that immediately followed, but was picked for the final two Tests of the famous 1981 Ashes series.
13.
Alan Knott played for England in 20 one-day internationals, including the first one-day international of all and all of their matches in the first Cricket World Cup.
14.
Alan Knott captained England in one one-day international in 1976 against the West Indies, incidentally the match in which Ian Botham made his international debut, and Graham Gooch his one-day international debut.
15.
Alan Knott was still regarded as one of the finest wicketkeepers in the country, and his reasons for retirement included concern over an ankle injury as well as concentrating on his sports shop in Herne Bay, Kent, and gymnasium business.
16.
Alan Knott was known for his idiosyncratic behaviour on the field.
17.
Alan Knott's trademarks included always keeping his shirt collar turned up to protect him from the sun; his sleeves rolled down to safeguard his elbows when diving; and, after a tip from former Northamptonshire and England wicket-keeper Keith Andrew, warming his hands with hot water before going onto the field.
18.
Alan Knott would have taken up a specialist wicketkeeping coaching position but it never materialized.
19.
On 6 September 2009 Alan Knott was inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame, and in 2013 he was named in Wisden's all-time Test World XI.
20.
Alan Knott was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire in the 2020 New Year Honours for services to cricket.