Shaun Pollock

Shaun Pollock was a fast-medium seam bowler, with the ability to deliver a quicker ball with accuracy and swing. The nephew of legendary South African cricketer Graeme Pollock and the son of former South African fast bowler Peter Pollock, expectations from him were high since he started playing for South Africa in 1995/96, in their home series against England.

He cemented his place in the team with some excellent performances and found a steady bowling partner in Allan Donald. They were to be the mainstay of South African bowling till Donald's retirement.

Pollock was also a very useful hard-hitting batsman, whose style bears some resemblance to his famous uncle on occasions. He has normally batted at 7 or 8, with a Test average of over 30 and ODI average above 25. He is also an athletic fielder.

After Hansie Cronje was banned from cricket for life, Pollock took over the captaincy in April 2000. He had the task of boosting the morale of the team in the aftermath of the match-fixing scandal. After getting off to a good start as a captain he faced some disappointing series losses in his tenure.

He was eventually removed from the captaincy after South Africa's poor performance in the 2003 Cricket World Cup, a tournament that they were amongst the favourites to win as the host nation.
Full name Shaun Maclean Pollock
Born 16 July 1973 (age 40) Port Elizabeth, Cape Province, South Africa
Nickname Polly
Height 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Batting style Right-handed
Bowling style Right arm fast-medium
Role Bowling all-rounder
Relations AM Pollock (grandfather) PM Pollock (father) RG Pollock (uncle)
National side South Africa
Test debut (cap 261) 16 November 1995 v England
Last Test 10 January 2008 v West Indies
ODI debut (cap 39) 9 January 1996 v England
Last ODI 3 February 2008 v West Indies
ODI shirt no. 7