10 Famous Cricketers Who Played in Spectacles
Paul Allott, who is celebrating his 59th birthday on 14 September, is widely known for being part of Sky Sports’ cricket coverage, but back in his playing days, he was one of the few cricketers who regularly wore glasses when playing.
While the bespectacled pace bowler struggled to make the grade for England, several high-quality glasses-wearing players have enjoyed impressive international careers.
So, to coincide with Allott’s birthday, here, ranked in loose ascending order for their cricketing achievements, are ten rare but famous players who wore spectacles.
Please note while many players wear glasses off the pitch, inclusion in this list is reliant on the player wearing spectacles on the field of play at least once.
10. Narendra Hirwani
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Wearing a head band and glasses, Narendra Hirwani completed a remarkable Test debut at the age of 19, taking 16 wickets against the West Indies in Madras, India.
While he struggled to sustain this form at international level, the crafty leg-spinner enjoyed a 21-year first-class career in India, snaring 732 victims.
9. MJK Smith
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MJK Smith (third from the left in the photo) was a notable spectacle wearer whose cricketing career reached its zenith in the 1960s when he captained England for 25 Tests.
An aesthetically pleasing batsman, Smith scored nearly 40,000 first-class runs and 69 centuries—although he averaged just 31.63 for England.
8. David Steele
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The footage of the 32-year-old, glasses-wearing David Steele repelling a brutal barrage from Dennis Lillee and Jeff Thomson on his debut during the 1975 Ashes has become an iconic moment in English cricketing history.
Although his international career only spanned eight Tests, Steele became a national hero for his courageous approach and even won the BBC Sports Personality of the Year.
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7. Dilip Doshi
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Dilip Doshi’s metronomic left-arm spin made him a success in first-class cricket in India and England. However, international honours didn't arrive until he was 32 years old.
But the bespectacled bowler hit the ground running, finishing with debut match figures of eight wickets for 167 runs against Australia.
Doshi went on to take 100 wickets in just 28 Tests and finished with a miserly economy rate of just 2.25 before dropping out of favour.
6. Daniel Vettori
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When he made his Black Caps debut at the age of 18, the spectacles-wearing Daniel Vettori looked more like a Harry Potter character than a professional cricketer.
However, behind the timid-looking veneer lay a high-quality left-arm spin bowler and a more-than-useful batsman who excelled across all formats as well as captaining his country for 32 Tests.
Vettori played a key role in helping New Zealand reach the 2015 World Cup final before retiring after the tournament with 705 international wickets to his name.
5. Virender Sehwag
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Virender Sehwag has been terrorising world cricket’s bowlers since his international debut in 1999 with his unique brand of ultra-attacking cricket.
While other batsman have adopted similar tactics, few have managed to sustain it to the same level as the Indian opener, who has scored 8,586 Test runs and 23 centuries all at a strike rate of 82.23.
In what is clearly the latter stage of Sehwag's career, the legendary opener has occasionally worn glasses to the crease.
4. Zaheer Abbas
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A run machine whose relentless pursuit of high scores saw him dubbed the “Asian Bradman,” the bespectacled Zaheer Abbas plied his trade during the 1970s and 1980s.
His ability was such that, by the end of his career, the Pakistani had scored a century of first-class centuries, the only Asian cricketer to have ever achieved this feat.
Abbas, who remains a legend in Gloucestershire for his exploits in English county cricket, was recently named president of the International Cricket Council.
3. Anil Kumble
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True, he only wore spectacles for part of his playing career, but how can you keep the legendary Anil Kumble out of this list?
A prolific career produced 956 international wickets for the Indian leg spinner, including an incredible 35 five-wicket hauls at Test level.
Kumble usually relied on precision rather than turn and was lethal on deteriorating surfaces, non-more so than when he claimed all 10 wickets to fall in an innings against India’s archrivals Pakistan.
2. Geoff Boycott
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Way back at the start of his career in the early 1960s, run-maker extraordinaire Geoffrey Boycott used to bat in glasses before switching to contact lenses.
A few prolific decades later, and the Yorkshireman had scored 48,426 first-class runs, including 151 tons, and captained both his country and county on multiple occasions.
Boycott has since been a regular feature in cricket commentary boxes around the world, where his opinionated views always keep things interesting.
1. Clive Lloyd
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Forced to don glasses after sustaining an eye injury while breaking up a fight aged just 12 years old, Clive Lloyd became one of the sport's most revered figures with his brutal batting.
Although he switched to contact lenses later in his career, the West Indian plundered 7,515 Test runs at an average of 46.67 and scored 19 tons in the process. He also captained his country.
Since hanging up his pads in 1985, Lloyd has fulfilled various coaching and commentary roles and currently acts as the West Indies' chief selector.
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