Mike (Michael John Knight) Smith, universally known as MJK, was born on 30 June 1933 at Westcotes, Leicestershire. He was educated at Stamford School and St Edmund Hall, Oxford University.
He played cricket, as a right-handed batsman, for Leicestershire (1951-55), Oxford University (1954-56) where he scored centuries in three consecutive Varsity matches against Cambridge, Warwickshire (1956-75) and England (1958-72). He was capped by Leicestershire in 1955 and by Warwickshire in 1957. He captained Oxford University in 1956 and Warwickshire from 1957-67 and England (1963-66). In fact, he captained England in 25 of his 50 Test matches. His son, Neil, played for, and captained, Warwickshire as well as playing a handful of ODIs for England.
He also played rugby for Oxford University, Leicester and England. His sole rugby cap for England came in January 1956, against Wales, where he played fly half opposite the great Cliff Morgan. MJK was England’s last double international.
He was a Wisden Cricketer of the Year in 1960 alongside Ken Barrington, Donald Carr, Ray Illingworth and Geoff Pullar. He was also South African Cricket Annual Cricketer of the Year in 1965. He was awarded his OBE in 1976 for his services to cricket.
MJK is most readily associated with Warwickshire. He is one of only 15 players in the Warwickshire Hall of Fame, and he holds two Warwickshire records – he scored 2,417 runs in 1959 (at 60.42) and he held 422 catches for them (593 for all teams) between 1956 and 1975. His Warwickshire team-mates rated him the best county batsman and he was a straightforward and unselfish captain who fielded at forward short leg and who always batted for the team.
He scored 39,832 first-class runs (at 41.84) in 637 matches, placing him 17th in the history of the game, sandwiched between Len Hutton and Wilfred Rhodes. He hit 69 centuries (with a best of 204) and 241 fifties. He was often out when batting for the team rather than himself – he generally scored his runs at a good pace. He made 2,000 runs in a season six times running from 1957-62.
He was a calculating batsman – most bowlers, except off-spinners, then tended to have most fielders on the off side. Therefore, MJK tried to score most of his runs on the leg side which he termed “the man’s side”. Having a strong right hand he was able to fetch to midwicket balls that were bowled well outside the off stump. Possessing a good sweep and pull, he was not an easy man to bowl to.
Playing his 50 Tests over a 14 years. period reflected the fact that he played during an era when England produced a lot of high class batsmen. Captaining England in half of his Tests may have reduced his batting ability. However, he still scored 3 Test centuries, with a best of 121 and 11 fifties averaging 31.63. He also held 53 catches.
He later became an ICC match referee and officiated in four Tests between 1991 and 1993 and 17 ODIs between 1991 and 1996.
KMB
A true man of cricket, Douglas Miller has put as much as any man could into the game he loves with a passion. A dogged left handed opening batsman at local level he played into his 70s . A major force in the Association of Cricket Statisticians he began to write several years ago. His books have included “A History of Gloucestershire Grounds” and biographies of Don Shepherd and Charles Palmer. His latest, on our guest tonight, MJK Smith, continues his desire to keep the history of the game alive.