Derek Randall is an English former cricketer. He played first-class cricket for Nottinghamshire, and Tests and ODIs for England in the late 1970s and early 1980s.

In a day's fielding,  Derek habitually saved 20 runs through quicksilver interceptions and the safe singles his mobility inhibited. As a batsman he was in David Gower's class when it came to timing a cover-drive, but he was a twitchy starter, especially when there was movement for the seamers, and was at his most effective at No. 5 or 6.

It was said of Derek that he could catch swallows. Watching him patrolling the covers, you could almost believe it. It was his anticipation and speed over the ground rather than strength of arm that made him such a wonderful fielder - he would often run batsmen out simply by outpacing them to the wicket and whipping off the bails. With Randall on one side of the wicket and David Gower on the other, few batsmen chanced quick singles against England

But there was more to Randall than his fielding. There was his spectacular, eccentric batting too. His Test record of 2,470 runs in 47 matches at an average of just over 33 betrays a lack of consistency, but when he was good, he was very, very good. There was his match-winning knock at Sydney in 1978-79 when, with England trailing after the first innings by 142 runs, Randall held the second innings together with a magnificent 150. But that was against an Australian side depleted by the Packer ban. On a different plain altogether was his 174 in 1977 in the Centenary Test against a strong Australia side at Melbourne. With England chasing an improbable 463 to win, Randall took them unbelievably close - doffing his cap to the mighty Dennis Lillee in the process after just evading a bouncer - but in the end their valiant chase fell 46 runs short.

Randall, known as Arkle after the racehorse, was seldom far from the drama. His lightning run-out of Rick McCosker in the Test when England clinched the Ashes at Headingley in 1977 amazed all who witnessed it.