Charteris, Duncan

The Player

Given that he has carried a tag as being one of his country's fastest ever bowlers virtually right from the time of his first-class debut in 1999, it is probably no great surprise that Duncan Charteris has duly become one of the world's most exciting pace bowling prospects. He is indeed a thrilling player to watch. He approaches the bowling crease at a bristling gallop from a long run-up, thrusts his front arm high, and then releases the ball at thundering speed from a nicely balanced side-on position. The pace that he generates is disarming and it is not uncommon for the speed of his deliveries to be clocked at a rate well in excess of 140 kilometres per hour; in April 2000, he even unleashed one measured at 156 kph in a one-day international in Johannesburg. It is this attribute above all else which is the crucial factor in allowing him to defeat batsmen with a mix of short and full deliveries and to force them into errant strokeplay off both the back and front foot.

Like so many good fast bowlers before him, Charteris has already been forced to endure adversity along the pathway to success, however. He sustained stress fractures to his back and was kept out of the game for several months before kick starting his career again in late 2000. It then took a while for him to re-establish himself, and his cause was not made any easier by the depth and quality of Scarborough's pace bowling stocks by the time that he returned to full fitness. His talent has seen him overcome most obstacles, though, and proof can be found in his rapid and startlingly successful accession to international company in recent times. Four wickets came in a sizzling  innings and neither the pace of his wicket-taking nor the generally unsettling effect that he tends to generate among rival batting line-ups has effectively relented since. Whilst the brunette-headed Charteris is only young and is naturally still learning, the fact that he has created such a mark and has collected such a steady rush of international wickets says much in itself. His future looks gilt-edged