Editing Ian Botham (section)

===Somerset and England (1984 to 1986–87)===
After ten seasons as a first-team regular, Botham was appointed Somerset club captain in 1984 and 1985. In the County Championship, they finished seventh in 1984 and then dropped to 17th (bottom of the table) in 1985. In the JPL, they were 15th in 1984 and eleventh in 1985. They made little impression in either of the B&H Cup or the NatWest Trophy so, all in all, Botham's captaincy period was a lean time for the club who had enjoyed its most successful period ever in the preceding seasons.

Botham played in 18 Tests from 1984 to 1986, ten of them (five home, five away) against West Indies. Throughout Botham's Test career, the highest international standards were set by West Indies and Botham was generally unsuccessful against them. In both of these series, 1984 and 1985–86, West Indies beat England 5–0 in whitewashes that were dubbed "blackwash".<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://content-uk.cricinfo.com/engvwi/content/story/292033.html|title=England v West Indies: 1980–1995|publisher=[[ESPNcricinfo]]|access-date=4 August 2007|archive-date=11 July 2012|archive-url=https://archive.today/20120711055029/http://content-uk.cricinfo.com/engvwi/content/story/292033.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

His highest score and both his best and worst bowling performances against West Indies occurred in the same match at Lord's in 1984. [[Clive Lloyd]] won the toss and, perhaps mistakenly, elected to field. The first day was rain-affected and England, 167 for two overnight, scored 286 thanks to a century by [[Graeme Fowler]]; Botham scored a useful 30. West Indies lost three quick wickets, all of them to Botham who was a "reminder of his old self" in the words of ''Wisden'',<ref name=EWI84>{{cite web |url=http://www.espncricinfo.com/wisdenalmanack/content/story/152304.html |title=England v West Indies, Lord's, 1984 |publisher=Wisden Cricketers' Almanack |year=1985 |access-date=3 May 2017 |archive-date=9 July 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170709080920/http://www.espncricinfo.com/wisdenalmanack/content/story/152304.html |url-status=live }}</ref> but recovered to reach 119 for three at the close of play on day two. 

In the third morning, Viv Richards was dismissed by Botham under dubious circumstances but Botham was inspired by the capture of his great friend's wicket and went on to take eight for 103, dismissing West Indies for 245 and for once giving England a chance of victory against the world's best team, with a first innings lead of 41. This was Botham's best-ever bowling performance against West Indies by some distance. England began their second innings and had been reduced to 88 for four when Botham joined [[Allan Lamb]]. They reached 114 for four at day three close. There was no Sunday play and England resumed on the Monday 155 runs ahead with six wickets standing. Botham and Lamb added 128 for the fifth wicket before Botham was out for 81, including nine fours and one six, easily his highest score and best innings against West Indies. Lamb made a century and England were all out on the Tuesday morning (final day) for exactly 300. West Indies needed 342 to win in five and a half hours. They lost [[Desmond Haynes]] to a run out at 57 for 0, whereupon [[Larry Gomes]] (92 not out) joined [[Gordon Greenidge]] (214 not out) and West Indies went on to win by nine wickets with 11.5 of the last twenty overs to spare.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Scorecards/44/44895.html |title=England v West Indies, Lord's, 1984 |publisher=CricketArchive |access-date=3 May 2017 |archive-date=28 February 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090228190512/http://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Scorecards/44/44895.html |url-status=live }}</ref> 

Although ''Wisden'' does not name Botham except as an "inattentive" fielder who dropped a catch, it describes the England bowlers "looking second-rate and nobody but Willis bowling the right line or setting the right field to the powerful and phlegmatic Greenidge". Botham bowled the most overs, 20, and with nought for 117 he conceded almost a run a ball (Willis had nought for 48 from 15 overs).<ref name=EWI84/> In mitigation, ''Wisden'' conceded that Greenidge played "the innings of his life, and his ruthless batting probably made the bowling look worse that it was".<ref name=EWI84/>

Botham also played in the one-off Test against Sri Lanka: not bowling particularly well in the first innings although he took the first wicket (1/114 out of 491), and being dismissed for 6 as England batted (370). Toward the end of Sri Lanka's second innings as the match meandered to a draw, in absolutely ferocious heat Botham dispensed with his usual fast bowler's long run-up and switched to bowling off-spin off a few paces, surprising everybody (himself included) by taking several wickets with it, out of an analysis of 6/90. He decided to take a rest over the winter, and sit out of the 1984–85 tour of India.

In 1985, Botham played in all six Tests against a poor Australian team as England, themselves a second-rate team based on their recent performances, comfortably regained the Ashes and he was the leading wicket-taker, but the series was dominated by England's specialist batsmen, especially [[Mike Gatting]] and [[David Gower]].<ref name=ITBTests/> Botham, who by this time had adopted a dyed blonde [[Mullet (haircut)|mullet]] haircut as a trademark, contributed relatively little with the bat, compared with the massive totals amassed by Gower, Gatting, [[Graham Gooch]] and [[Tim Robinson (English cricketer)|Tim Robinson]]. He scored 250 runs at 31.25 with a highest of 85. He did take the most wickets (31 at 27.58 with a best of five for 109) but he was rarely impressive and he was bowling to a weak batting side, Allan Border apart. England's best bowler was [[Richard Ellison (cricketer)|Richard Ellison]] who played only twice and took 17 wickets at only 10.88 with a best of six for 77 and one 10wM.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Events/0/Australia_in_British_Isles_1985/t_England_Bowling.html |title=Test Bowling for England, 1985 |publisher=CricketArchive |access-date=9 May 2017 |archive-date=21 September 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170921000501/https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Events/0/Australia_in_British_Isles_1985/t_England_Bowling.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

Botham was suspended for 63 days by the [[Test and County Cricket Board]] in 1986 after he admitted in an interview that he had smoked [[cannabis (drug)|cannabis]].<ref name=86ban>{{cite news|date=2 July 2006|url=http://sport.guardian.co.uk/news/story/0,,1970796,00.html|title=Caborn attacked on plan to ease dope rules|work=The Guardian|location=UK|last=Mackay|first=Duncan|access-date=27 December 2006|archive-date=28 November 2007|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071128091324/http://sport.guardian.co.uk/news/story/0,,1970796,00.html|url-status=live}}</ref> Due to the ban, Botham played in only one Test which was the final one of the series against New Zealand.<ref name=ITBTests/> He made his mark on that Test though: beginning it by taking the wicket of Bruce Edgar with his very first delivery, to go level with Dennis Lillee on 355 as holder of the world record for Test wickets. The next delivery was edged through the slip cordon by Jeff Crowe. Botham went past the mark in his second over to hold the record outright, by trapping Crowe leg-before. Then on the fourth day of the match, coming in after centuries from Gatting and Gower, he bashed a quickfire half-century in just 32 balls, including 24 off one over from Derek Stirling – equalling the record at the time, for most runs off an over in Tests... a record which he was responsible for, but from the other side, having conceded 24 runs to Andy Roberts back in the 1980/81 tour of the West Indies. England declared with a massive first-innings lead, but rain came after lunch on the fourth day and only one further over was bowled.

Botham was succeeded by [[Peter Roebuck]] as Somerset captain for 1986 but, during the season, tensions arose in the Somerset dressing room which eventually exploded into a full-scale row and resulted in the sacking by the club of Botham's friends Viv Richards and [[Joel Garner]]. Botham, who supported Richards and Garner, decided to resign at the end of the season.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://content-uk.cricinfo.com/columns/content/player/19456.html |title=Player Profile: Peter Roebuck |publisher=ESPNcricinfo |access-date=28 August 2009 |archive-date=13 February 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090213202148/http://content-uk.cricinfo.com/columns/content/player/19456.html |url-status=live }}</ref> 1986 was not a season for Botham to remember except for one brilliant List A innings when he made his career highest score in the limited overs form of 175 [[not out]] for Somerset against [[Northamptonshire County Cricket Club|Northamptonshire]] in a 39-over JPL match at the [[Wellingborough School (cricket ground)|Wellingborough School ground]]. It was to no avail, however, as the weather intervened and the game ended in no result. His innings remains a ground record.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Scorecards/47/47721.html |title=Northamptonshire v Somerset (JPL), 1986 |publisher=CricketArchive |access-date=10 May 2017 |archive-date=28 September 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180928004652/http://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Scorecards/47/47721.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Grounds/11/822/a_Centuries.html |title=Highest score at Wellingborough School Ground (one day) |publisher=CricketArchive |access-date=10 May 2017 |archive-date=14 December 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171214153511/https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Grounds/11/822/a_Centuries.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

Botham's final tour of Australia was in 1986/87 under Mike Gatting's captaincy. He played in four Tests and England won the Ashes for the last time until 2005. In many ways, the series was also Botham's last hurrah because he scored his final Test century (138 in the first Test at Brisbane which England won by seven wickets) and took his final Test 5wI (five for 41 in the fourth Test at the MCG which England won by an innings and 14 runs). ''Wisden'' pointed out that although Botham had a modest series statistically, "he was an asset to the side" because of his enthusiasm and "going out of his way to encourage younger players, especially [[Phil DeFreitas]]".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.espncricinfo.com/wisdenalmanack/content/story/155272.html |title=England in Australia 1986–87 |publisher=WisdenOnline |access-date=9 May 2017 |archive-date=7 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160307013434/http://www.espncricinfo.com/wisdenalmanack/content/story/155272.html |url-status=live }}</ref> 

Botham suffered a severe rib injury in the Second Test in Perth, which kept him out of the 3rd Test entirely and reduced the pace of his bowling for the remainder of the tour as he tried to manage it:  as a result, with reasonable success, he changed his bowling style to a defensive, miserly military-medium pace. England also won the two one-day tournaments, the one-off Benson & Hedges Perth Challenge (against Australia, West Indies and Pakistan) and the World Series (against Australia and Windies): Botham produced several match-winning performances with both bat and ball despite being not fully fit, and was Man of the Match in both matches of the best-of-three final of the World Series – with the bat in the first, opening the batting for 71 (scored out of 91 while he was at the crease), and with the ball in the second, for a particularly miserly spell which also took three wickets as England defended a low total by nine runs, to win the finals 2–0. Once again, thanks to the fielding restrictions in place for the World Series tournament, Botham opened the batting - a tactic that had been trialled in the 1982-3 tour: the tactic met with mixed success in the group stages, but it came good in the final.