A career that failed to blossom

Chris Lewis played in 32 Test matches and 53 one-day internationals

Former England cricketer Chris Lewis has been jailed for 13 years for smuggling cocaine into the UK on a flight from St Lucia.

The former Leicestershire, Nottinghamshire and Surrey all-rounder, 41, carried cans of fruit and vegetable juice which contained dissolved cocaine with a street value of more than £140,000.

Once touted as England's next Ian Botham, Chris Lewis was perhaps better known for incidents off the field than performances on it.

A half-century and six wickets in an early Test against the then-mighty West Indies in 1991 led fans to hope he might succeed in the all-rounder role.

His quick, loose-limbed bowling action and combative batting style contributed to some impressive displays in the 1992 World Cup, but Lewis's international successes were not consistent.

Sunstroke absence

He was in and out of the England team throughout the early and mid-1990s, eventually earning 32 Test caps and managing 53 one-day international appearances.

Lewis ended up with 93 Test wickets at a modest average of 37.52 and 1,105 Test runs at 23.02, including a best of 117.

Chris Lewis played for Leicestershire, Nottinghamshire and Surrey

Off the field, a national tabloid christened him the "Prat without the Hat" in 1994 when he shaved his head on tour in the West Indies and suffered sunstroke, missing the first match of the series as a result.

He attracted further ridicule for posing in his underwear for a magazine, long before David Beckham did the same.

Lewis, who was born in Guyana, began his career at Leicestershire and had spells at Nottinghamshire and Surrey.

He retired from county cricket in 2000 because of a persistent hip injury.

Unlikely comeback

At the age of 35, he took part in the BBC television series Superstars in 2003.

After spending several years playing league cricket and coaching, Lewis made a surprise return to top-flight cricket last year.

He came out of retirement to take part in Surrey's 2008 Twenty20 Cup campaign, but with little success.

Aged 40, he impressed observers with his fitness if not with his figures - his first two-over spell against Middlesex went for 24.

His conviction and jail sentence would appear to have brought his sporting career to an end.

E-mail this to a friend

Printable version