Herbie Wilfred Taylor was a fine batsman and an astute captain who led the South African side in 16 Tests. Taylor was especially, known for his skills on matting wickets. He played for South Africa for close to 20 years.

Taylor made his Test debut back in 1912 against Australia at Lord's. It was a triangular Test series that also included England. Interestingly, till date it is the one and only triangular Test series that has been held in the history of cricket.

It was in 1913-14 though, that Taylor made an impact when he composed over 500 runs against England at home. It was a series in which the legendary Sydney Barnes made the ball talk by snaring 49 wickets at just 10.93! However, the one batsman who stood up to facing Barnes' challenge and came out on top was Taylor. Cricket pundits were unequivocal in their praise for Taylor's masterful batsmanship.

Taylor then was a part of the Royal Field Artillery during the World War I. Even after the War ended, Taylor continued to be the captain of the set-up. When England toured South Africa in 1923-23, Taylor was one of the few batsmen who made his presence felt. In the Test match played at Johannesburg, he cracked a magnificent knock of 176. Despite losing partners at the other end, he played with a dash of fearlessness and collected 25 fours in the innings. Riding on the back of his marvellous knock, the hosts completed a fine win. This was also Taylor's first Test victory as a captain and also as a Test cricketer.

In two successive series against England in 1929 and in 1930-31, Taylor shored up the batting line-up time and again. He eventually retired from the game at the age of 43 in 1931-32. Taylor passed away at the age of 84 in 1973 in Cape Town.

By Bharath Ramaraj