One-cap wonders: 7 good Test debutants who were never seen again

Jonhenry Wilson 26 Oct 2025

Ed Joyce played one Test for Ireland.

The history of Test cricket is full of giants whose careers spanned more than a decade, producing records and legends.

But in among the long-serving greats are those who experienced Test cricket only once – fleeting presences who, in some cases, made their mark and yet were never seen again.

These ‘one-cap wonders’ offer a curious reminder of the game’s unpredictability: that talent, timing, and fortune often matter as much as performance.

Here are seven men who impressed in their only Test yet never got a second chance.

1. Andy Ganteaume (West Indies, 1948)

Test career: 1 match, 112 runs at 112.00

The most famous one-cap wonder of all. Andy Ganteaume scored a century on debut against England in Port of Spain, making a patient 112 that helped the West Indies draw the match.

His average of 112.00 remains the highest for any player with a completed innings. Yet he was never selected again.

The reasons were as much political as cricketing – accusations of slow scoring, fierce competition for places, and the politics of West Indian selection committees at the time.

Ganteaume would play domestic cricket for years, but his Test career ended with one of the most curious records in cricket history.

2. Rodney Redmond (New Zealand, 1973)

Test career: 1 match, 159 runs at 79.50

Redmond’s single appearance was against Pakistan in Auckland, where he scored a stylish 107 and 56. With that, he looked destined for a long stay at the top of New Zealand’s order.

But poor eyesight – he had issues with contact lenses – led to difficulties in county cricket, and he lost his place in the side before the next series.

Incredibly, he toured England later in 1973 but never made the playing XI, leaving him with a century and a half-century from his only Test. Few players have departed the stage with such an enviable record.

Also read – Ranked: The top 12 wicket-takers for India in Tests

3. Charles Marriott (England, 1933)

Test career: 1 match, 11 wickets at 8.72

Charles Marriott, a leg-spinner nicknamed “Father” for his genial personality, played just one Test, against West Indies at The Oval.

He destroyed the tourists with 5 for 37 and 6 for 59, finishing with 11 wickets at a staggering average under nine. Yet Marriott was 37 years old, an amateur schoolteacher, and seen more as a stopgap.

England never picked him again, and he returned to his teaching duties. His case remains one of cricket’s great mysteries: how does a bowler take 11 wickets on debut and never play again?

4. Stuart Law (Australia, 1995)

Test career: 1 match, 54 not out

In another era, Stuart Law would likely have played 50 Tests. Instead, he was a victim of Australia’s golden generation. Called up for a single Test against Sri Lanka in Perth, he made an unbeaten 54 in his only innings.

But with Ricky Ponting, Damien Martyn, Mark Waugh and others ahead of him, Law never got another opportunity.

Law went on to play over 50 ODIs and had a long, successful career in English county cricket, where he became a legend for Essex and later Lancashire.

5. Darren Pattinson (England, 2008)

Test career: 1 match, 8 runs, 2 wickets

Sometimes the ‘one-cap wonder’ story is less about achievement and more about timing. Darren Pattinson, a Nottinghamshire seamer born in Australia, was a surprise pick for England’s second Test against South Africa at Headingley in 2008.

He took 2 for 95 in the match and bowled steadily, but his selection was controversial – he had barely played county cricket at that point. England lost, the selectors were criticised, and Pattinson never appeared again.

Though his figures were modest, his case is remembered as one of the most unusual selections in modern English cricket.

6. Robin Singh (India, 1998)

Test career: 1 match, 27 runs at 13.50

Robin Singh was a mainstay of India’s one-day side in the late 1990s, famed for his athletic fielding and hard-hitting lower-order batting. Yet in Tests he was afforded only a single opportunity, against Zimbabwe in Harare in 1998.

He got his chance when India played a single Test against Zimbabwe, a game that followed on from an ODI series. Instead of bringing out a Test specialist for a single game, Singh got the nod to play.

Batting at No. 6, he made 27 runs across two innings and bowled a few overs of medium pace without success. With India’s Test middle order stacked with stars such as Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar and Mohammad Azharuddin, Singh never returned to the longest format.

The fact that India lost the game to Zimbabwe also didn’t count in his favour. Still, his ODI career – 136 matches over a decade – left him one of India’s most recognizable utility cricketers of his era, even if his Test career was confined to one brief appearance.

As a curious aside, Robin Singh was the second Indian player called Robin Singh to represent his country.

The other Robin Singh was also a ‘one-Test wonder’ although in his case not so much a wonder… he claimed 2 for 74 with the ball and made a duck as India drew the third Test against New Zealand at Hamilton in 1999.

7. Ed Joyce (England, 2006)

Test career: 1 match, 21 runs at 10.50

Ed Joyce began life as an Irishman, qualified to play for England and then ended his cricket career as an Irishman again. For England he was a dependable white-ball batsman, averaging 38 in ODIs and 33.75 in T20I.

A prolific run-scorer in county cricket for Middlesex and later Sussex, Joyce returned to his Irish roots at the tail-end of his career where his final game of cricket was both his and Ireland’s maiden Test in 2018.

He made scores of 4 and 43 as Ireland were beaten by five wickets by Pakistan.