2026 SQUAD
CHRIS SCHOFIELD – CAPTAIN
The skipper has now been a Lashings stalwart for well over ten years. The former Lancashire,
Surrey and England leg-spinner was the leading wicket-taker in the group stages of the 2007
T20 World Cup and he’s also a very handy lower-order batter: as a Lashings player he’s
bailed out his team mates on more than one occasion.
DAVID SMITH – MANAGER
Now in his seventh season as Lashings’ manager, Smithy was an innovative and pioneering batter during his playing days, with an elegance matched by the brute force that came with his 6’6 frame. David played for England, Surrey, Worcestershire, and Sussex, before retiring to pursue a career in the world of business and a side-line as a goalkeeper for the Lashings’ football team. His big bug bear is punctuality. Do NOT be late for a meeting with the management.
MARTIN BICKNELL
Bickers spent 20 years as a first-class cricketer for Surrey, during which he took over a thousand wickets and played for England in two stints that were, remarkably, separated by an entire decade. Now combines his Lashings’ duties with his role at Charterhouse School. The haircut he sported during the 1993 Ashes series is widely considered to be one of the finest ever displayed by any cricketer of any era.
SIR CURTLY AMBROSE
Curtly seems to have mellowed a little since his retirement from the first-class game. Which is probably just as well, as while most of us can never know what it feels like to face a 6”7 fast-bowler in his prime, (watching the opening scene of Saving Private Ryan on Blu-Ray probably comes closest) At his best he was unplayable. On rare off days he was merely lethal. He used to send his victims back to the pavilion with a celebration that looked like a witch doctor casting a spell and reporters got equally short shrift: “Curtly talk to no man,” came the reply. Since joining Lashings however, Curtly has been known to say the odd word – and even more remarkably it seems we’ve taught him how to smile.
JOHN EMBUREY
The most famous son of Peckham not to possess the surname “Trotter”, Embers took 1608 wickets during a first-class career that spanned two decades. Even now, at an age when he qualifies to travel for free on the buses Henry Blofeld so lovingly describes on TMS, Embers is still an inspirational spinner and a proven match-winner for the World XI, capable of ripping through an opposition batting line-up.
COURTNEY WALSH
Has there ever been an exponent of the fast bowler’s craft as gifted as Courtney? Plunderer of 519 test wickets, he is, put simply, one of the greatest fast bowlers ever to have languidly strolled on the face of the earth.
ADAM HOLLIOAKE
One of the architects of the rebirth of English cricket during the 1990s, Adam was a naturally combative all-rounder who captained Surrey to a glut of trophies and was England’s first-ever specialist one-day skipper, leading them to victory in the 1997 Sharjah Trophy. Won three county championships with Surrey and subsequently reinvented himself as a cage-fighter.
CHARL WILLOUGHBY
Blink-and-you’ll-miss-him pace Somerset bowler who made five appearances for his native South Africa in an 18-year first-class career that took him to several exotic places, and Essex. Should have been nicknamed “The Surgeon” for his ability to extract life from the deadest of county pitches but instead was called, you’ve guessed it, “Willow”. Having called time on a 15-year first class career at the end of 2018, the circuit’s loss was the World XI’s gain as we snapped him up for the 2019 season.
HUGO HAMMOND
England Physical Disability Cricketer fabled for his role in fringe television series, “Love Island”, Hugo had 12 operations before he was seven years old and had to spend a year in a wheelchair, but became a key member of England’s team, once scoring 68 from 22 balls against the Rest of the World at New Road. He made his Lashings’ debut in 2021.
SIR GORDON GREENIDGE
The imperious West Indies legend, Sir Gordon, returns to Lashings as the World XI’s coach and all-round nice guy. Part of the all-conquering Clive Lloyd side that made the rest of the world grovel (to paraphrase the late Tony Greig) Gordon was one of the most elegant batters ever to pick up the willow. His technique, combined with sheer power, took him to 37354 first-class runs, including 19 test match centuries.
KIRK EDWARDS
There are few ways of making a more emphatic entrance in the test arena than a debut century, but that’s exactly what Kirk did against India in 2011, when he became only the 14th West Indian to reach three figures on his debut, joining an exclusive club that includes Lashings ambassador Sir Gordon Greenidge.
Henry Blofeld
The legendary English cricket commentator, journalist, and broadcaster, best known for his distinctive voice, colourful personality, and decades-long association with BBC’s Test Match Special.
Affectionately nicknamed “Blowers,” he retired from the BBC in 2017 but has since continued entertaining audiences, cementing his reputation as one of cricket’s great voices.
RYAN SIDEBOTTOM
Flame-haired, Mick Hucknall lookalike and also left-arm fast-medium bowler who was part of England’s World Cup winning T20 side in 2010 and took a hat-trick in a test match with New Zealand in 2008.
NICKY BOJE
Once the number one ranked bowler in the world, the spinner took exactly 100 test wickets
for South Africa and 97 more in white-ball cricket. He made 159 apperances across all
formats for the Proteas, captained Northamptonshire and also played for Nottinghamshire.
OWAIS SHAH
Stalwart of England’s ODI side during the 2000s, Owais starred for Middlesex and Essex
before taking full advantage of the burgeoning opportunities overseas for limited over
specialists, playing for, among many others, the Hobart Hurricanes, Kolkata Knight Riders
and Rajasthan Royals.
ANYA SHRUBSOLE
MBE – WORLD CUP-WINNING ENGLAND PACE BOWLING LEGEND – Anya Shrubsole is one of England’s most celebrated former cricketers. A right-arm medium‑pace bowler and lower‑order batter, she represented her country from 2008 to 2022, claiming 106 ODI wickets and 102 T20I wickets—a true new‑ball specialist.
Her crowning moment came at Lord’s during the 2017 Women’s Cricket World Cup Final, where she delivered a match‑winning spell of 6 for 46, earning Player of the Match and helping England lift the trophy on home soil. For her extraordinary contribution, she received an MBE in 2018 and became the first woman to grace the cover of Wisden Cricketer’s Almanack.
MOHAMMAD ASHRAFUL
A veteran of well over 200 international appearances for Bangladesh, Mohammad is a stylish
batter who has captained the national team and holds the records (at the time of writing) for
being the fastest Bangladeshi reach 50 in both ODIs and T20s.
MONTY PANESAR
The iconic spin-bowler during English cricket’s revival during the 2000s, Monty was almost
as famous for his, shall we say, unconventional fielding style as he was for his mastery of the
slow bowler’s craft. Somehow managed to enhance his reputation during the 2006-2007
Ashes debacle and played a heroic role in the last wicket stand with Jimmy Anderson that
saved the first test against Australia back in 2009.
Manoj Oswal
Manoj Oswal is a celebrated LMS player in the UK, officially recognized as an LMS Legend; only the second person to receive this honour. Manoj has represented over 55 different teams since 2008, most notably for Barclays Cricket Club and Commerzbank CC. Beyond the statistics, Manoj serves as an ambassador for Lashings World XI. Known for his unwavering passion, he’s become a familiar and respected figure across the cricket scene.
YASIR ARAFAT
Part of the spine of the World XI team, Yasir is a genial limited-over specialist from Pakistan who was just seventeen when he earned his international call-up. We are unable to list all of the teams he is played for due to a lack of space, but wherever he goes he leaves a trail of goodwill and success. Has been a key performer for Lashings in the past few seasons.