Tom Pritchard

Who is Tom Pritchard?

Thomas Leslie Pritchard was a cricketer who played most of his first-class cricket in England.

Pritchard was a genuinely fast right-arm bowler and a useful lower order right-handed batsman who played in several matches for Wellington before the Second World War. Coming to Europe and then England with the New Zealand forces during the War, he qualified for Warwickshire and was highly successful for several seasons. His best year was 1948 when he took 172 wickets at an average of 18.75; in 1951, his bowling, by now fast-medium rather than outright fast, played a big part in Warwickshire's unexpected County Championship success.

His bowling declined across the 1950s, and he left Warwickshire after the 1955 season. He played a few matches for Kent in 1956, but was not a success, and then retired. His last match was against Warwickshire, and as a batsman he was out first ball as part of a hat-trick by Keith Dollery.

He has lived in Levin, New Zealand, since 1986. A biography, Tom Pritchard: Greatness Denied by Paul Williams, was published in 2013.