Phillip DeFreitas was taken to Australia on Mike Gatting's Ashes tour of 1986-87 and made an auspicious debut,
but he rarely lived up to the promise shown in his first match. A fast medium bowler and hard-hitting lower order
batsman, selectors seemed rarely to know if they wanted him in the England Test side or not. He was a first choice
in ODI sides, playing in the World Cups of 1987, 1992 and 1996 and his one-day performances often resuscitated his
Test career. DeFreitas scored 40 in that first Brisbane Tests and opened the bowling, taking 2-23, but the rest of his
tour was less dramatic. When Pakistan came to England in 1987 he played just one Test before losing his place to
Graham Dilley. He returned for the post-World Cup series in Pakistan and took 5-86 in Karachi. He played two Tests
in the rain ruined series in New Zealand early in 1988, but at home was dropped after three Tests of the 1988 West Indies
series and after one Test against Australia in 1989. He began to show his best form as a late addition to England's
four-pronged pace attack in West Indies in 1990, taking 2-59 and 3-69 in Barbados. He took 5-53 against New Zealand
in Nottingham in 1990, and on a 1990-91 Ashes tour showed his favour for Adelaide with 4-56 and 45 and 19 not out in
the Test there. In 1991 he, Derek Pringle and Chris Lewis played a big part in England's 2-2 series draw with West Indies
with useful lower order runs, his best being 55 not out at Trent Bridge. He took 4-62 in the Auckland Test of 1991-92.
Phil played in the England team who were losing finalists in the World Cups of 1987 and 1992. (Bob Harragan)
Phil De Freitas is pictured above playing cricket for England on 10th. June 1995.
Photo George Herringshaw. ©
Despite his successes against West Indies in 1991 DeFreitas - known to
all as 'Daffy' - fell out of favour again
against Pakistan the following
year and he played only one Test against Australia in 1993. Once again
it was success
in the ODIs of 1994 that gave him another Test chance. By
now he had matured into an accurate line and length
bowler delivering
from close to the stumps. That was effective and in the first Test at
Trent Bridge he took 4-94 and 5-71,
as well as scoring 51 not out. He
took six wickets at Lord's and scored 69 and took 3-61 at Old Trafford, a
Test in which
Darren Gough made his England debut. In the series
against South Africa which followed the two of them indulged in
some
big-hitting lower order partnerships which regularly demoralised the
bowlers. DeFreitas also took 4-94 at Headingley
and 4-93 at the Oval. In
Australia in 1994-95 he took four wickets in the first Test at
Brisbane, but his major contribution
was on his favourite Antipodean
ground, Adelaide, where he made 21 and 88, the latter an innings which
turned the Test
match and enabled Mike Atherton's England team to claim
an unexpected victory. In Perth he took 3-91. He played one Test
in the
1995 series against West Indies before he was replaced by Dominic Cork.
In the 1996 World Cup DeFreitas took 2-16
in 9.3 overs against the UAE
and 3-31 against Holland. He top scored with 67 in the quarter-final
match against Sri Lanka,
but was reduced to bowling off-spin on the dead
Asian wickets. He began his county career with Leicestershire, then
moved
to Lancashire from where he played much of his Test cricket. He
spent some seasons with Derbyshire before returning to
Leicestershire at
the turn of the century. (Bob Harragan)