Wisden overview
He has been banned for cocaine use, no-balled for throwing and has a permanent twinkle in his eye: Giddins is as chequered and cheeky as they come. A wet-wicket specialist, he can get the ball to swing both ways with a busy action. Giddins played one Test in 1999, and, in his second, the following summer, promptly won the match award against Zimbabwe at Lord's. Two unproductive Tests later he was dropped: when the ball didn't swing, Giddins was cannon fodder (although his bowling average remained surprisingly low). He had joined Warwickshire in 1998 after the drugs scandal cost him his job at Sussex and earned him an 18-month ban, but his form fell away after England ditched him in 2000, and he was not offered a new contract at the end of that season. His batting is in the sub-rabbit class: in his first Test he fought with Phil Tufnell and Alan Mullally for the No. 11 spot - and won. Lawrence Booth

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