Andy Caddick v West Indies, four wickets in an over – ten great bowling performances

The West Indies’ tour of England in 2000 was a real turning point for us as a fan of both England and destructive bowling. Prior to this point, England had solid bowlers. Suddenly they had bowlers who could instigate collapses. With England at the time being no better than a middling side, the potential for batting collapses from the opposition played an important straw-clutching role for us as a spectator.

It was of course Andy Caddick and Darren Gough who were the destructors in this new fantasy land of ours. Earlier in the summer the two of them combined with Dominic Cork to bowl out West Indies for 54 in a fantastic match in which England were to come from behind to win by two wickets. However, we’ve plumped for Andy Caddick’s four wickets in an over as the defining moment of the summer.

West Indies did marginally better in this innings, making 61 all out, but the feeling of delirious chaos was more palpable while Andy Caddick was taking four wickets in seven balls (there was a no-ball). You just didn’t know where it was going to end. Our bowlers were unstoppable. When England next played Australia, we were going to bowl them out for a single run. It was amazing.

If we had to sum it up, we’d say: Full length, a good deal of swing and cartwheeling stumps. Bliss.

Apologies for the entirely inappropriate picture. It's just such a great photo. For those who might be wondering: Andy Caddick's the one WITH ears. Two of them.

10 Great Bowling Performances