Nigel Martyn Selected for England Seniors Cricket Squad, Set To Debut Against Scotland

Nigel Martyn, the England goalkeeper who went to two World Cups and made 666 professional appearances, has been selected for the Lions, England’s second-string, at 60s level and is set to make his debut against Scotland next Friday.

“Sportsmen being good at more than one sport is nothing new but sportsmen going on to excel excel in a different discipline after retirement is rather unique”

ESPN

The Athletic says Martyn told it that “I got an email out of the blue asking me to go for a trial,” after the county recommended him as he turned 60 this year.

GiveMeSport

The trial at Loughborough University and an intra-squad day in Derbyshire last week went so well that Martyn was back in the international picture when England cricket seniors named their squad for the summer.

ESPN reports Martyn has been selected for the England Seniors Cricket side at the age of 59, after swapping goalkeeping gloves for wicketkeeper gloves in cricket following his retirement from football in 2006.

ESPN also says Martyn “now keeps wicket for Leeds Modernians,” and that he starred alongside Paul Robinson for Knaresborough Cricket Club in 2024 to get them promoted to the Yorkshire Premier League North.

GiveMeSport says Martyn spent the best part of a decade as one of the better goalkeepers in the Premier League, earning 23 England caps, and that he was at the 1998 and 2002 World Cups watching from the bench as David Seaman started.

GiveMeSport adds that Martyn was named by England 60s Cricket in the England Lions squad at the age of 59, where he’ll represent his country as a wicket-keeper.

The New York Times

The Sun says the 59-year-old was even a feature at the 1998 and 2002 World Cups, but had to settle for the bench with Seaman between the sticks.

The Sun also says Martyn was selected in the 2026 Lion Squad by England 60s Cricket, and that on Thursday he was named in the 26-player Lions squad for the summer fixtures.

ESPN frames the selection as a continuation of Martyn’s cricketing path, saying he was selected to take part in the England Seniors team for matches this summer against the likes of Wales, Scotland and Western Australia.

The New York Times | Western Mainstream describes Martyn’s cricketing background from his school days in St Austell, saying he was always a wicketkeeper and that “There are transferable skills, hand-eye coordination being one of them.”

“The Athletic has launched a Cricket WhatsApp Channel”

The New York Times

It adds that Martyn said he was deemed more useful out on the pitch at school, but he kept wicket and enjoyed diving around, and that he is still learning “as you’re going on.”

ESPN says Martyn represented England at four major tournaments between 1996 and 2002 and that he got back into cricket following his retirement from football in 2006.

ESPN also reports Martyn was selected for a whole host of matches this summer, against the likes of Wales, Scotland and Western Australia, placing his return in a broader schedule beyond a single fixture.

The New York Times | Western Mainstream quotes Martyn saying, “It’s a little bit later in life, but it’s still a big thrill,” as seniors cricket grows and he takes the standards seriously alongside other 60-plus players.