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Until 1978 it looked as if Bob Taylor was going to be one of those
unlucky wicket-keepers who, despite recognition from their peers, would
not get a distinguished international career. Alan Knott was the
England wicket-keeper and looked likely to remain so until after Taylor
reached retirement age. Some reckoned Taylor was slightly the better
'keeper, but Knott, at times England's best batsman, always took
precedence over Taylor, a gutsy tail-ender. Taylor had been Knott's
understudy on several tours and had even been given a consolation Test
in New Zealand after Ray Illingworth's successful Ashes campaign of
1970-71. His chance came when Knott joined World Series Cricket in 1977.
By then Taylor had been playing county cricket for 16 years and his
hair had turned grey.
He kept against Pakistan and New Zealand in
1977-78. He even made a contribution with the bat, scoring an unexpected
97 in the second innings at Adelaide on the Ashes tour of 1978-79. He
also made 64 against India at Lord's in 1979. The deadly outswinger of
Ian Botham helped Taylor to take ten catches in Bombay, as Mhumbai was
then known, in India's Jubilee Test of 1979-80. Eight of them were off
Botham and seven in one innings. In the 1980 series against West Indies
Taylor found himself supplanted by the returning Knott. In the 1981
Ashes series he shared 'keeping duties with Paul Downton and Knott, but
played in Botham's match at Headingley, taking four catches in
Australia's second innings of 111. In the World Cup of 1979 he scored 20
not out in the low scoring match at Headingley against Pakistan, which
England won by 14 runs. (Bob Harragan)
Bob played for Derbyshire between 1961 and 1984.
Bob Taylor played in 639 first-class matches. His 1,649 dismissals (1,473 caught, 176 stumped) in 639 games remains a first-class record. With the bat, Taylor averaged only 16.92, and he is one of only two players to have passed 10,000 first-class runs without scoring a century though he subsequently scored exactly 100 against Yorkshire at Sheffield in 1981, his only first-class century. He also took one first-class wicket as a bowler.
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