Matthew Hoggard

Squad Number - 77

Player Sponsor - Peter Freer

Born - Leeds, Yorkshire, December 31, 1976

Joined - Leicestershire 2010 as Club Captain

Role - Right arm fast-medium opening bowler, right handed batsman

Family - Wife Sarah, Son Ernie

Teams Represented - Yorkshire, England, Free State, Leicestershire

Honours - England Ashes winner in 2005, One of Wisden's Five Cricketers of the Year 2006, Test match hat-trick v West Indies, various man of the match awards, man of the series v Bangladesh 2004. Sixth in the list of all-time England wicket-takers in tests (248).

Highlights of Career - Winning the Ashes in 2005. All of the above honours.

Players Admired - Allan Donald, Courtney Walsh

Relaxations - Dog walking

Former England swing bowler Matthew Hoggard led Leicestershire Foxes to the Friends Life t20 title in his second year in charge of the Club.

It was a good end to what had been a frustrating campaign for Hoggard, who picked up a wrist injury that kept him out of action for a while.

Hoggard returned to lead the Foxes to silverware at Edgbaston and took charge of the first Champions League game against Trinidad and Tobago but suffered another injury – this time to his shoulder - that ruled him out of the rest of the tournament.

The first setback meant that he was not fully able to build on an excellent first season at the Club where he took 50 Championship wickets with a best of 6-63 at Lord’s. Hoggard picked up his 700th first-class wicket during the campaign.

Hoggard holds the impressive acclaim of being the sixth highest-wicket taker in England's test match history. He claimed 248 wickets during his 67 matches and was a reliable figure for whichever captain he played under.

Hoggard shapes the ball away from the right handers and has had a lot of success both domestically and internationally as a spearhead bowler. The Yorkshireman also appeared in 26 ODIs for his country, taking 32 wickets at an average of 36.00 and a best of 5-49.

He was a vital member of the England side that won the epic Ashes series of 2005 and his role as opening bowler of the five-man attack that performed so brilliantly against Australia is what he is most fondly remembered for.

Hoggard was chosen to lead England’s attack in India in 2001-02 despite having played only two test matches at that point and carried out the task with excellence.

It was part of an excellent winter for the swing bowler, who went on to take 7-63 against New Zealand during a vintage performance in Christchurch.

In 2004, his stock rose even further as he bowled beautifully throughout England’s unbeaten year. He took a hat-trick against West Indies in Barbados and then claimed a marvellous twelve-wicket haul – his best return in an England shirt – to lead the country to a famous series win against South Africa in Johannesburg.

That match return included a seven-wicket haul for 61 runs in the second innings and his bowling in the game went a long way to winning the game and series by giving England a crucial 2-1 lead. England then secured a draw in the final test to ensure they went home triumphant.

Hoggard’s England test career ended somewhat prematurely in March 2008 but he performed exceptionally well for Yorkshire after that point. He was the club’s leading wicket-taker in 2009 with 43 wickets at 34.11 and Yorkshire and England’s loss has certainly been Leicestershire’s gain.

MJ Hoggard 2011 (94.09 kB)