Nigel David Howard (18 May 1925 – 31 May 1979) was an English cricketer, who played for Lancashire and England. Born in Gee Cross, Hyde, Cheshire, he captained England on the tour to India in 1951–52. In the only four Test matches he played in, England won one and drew three, although the series was tied after the Fifth Test was lost (Howard was ill and Donald Carr captained England in his absence). Howard was chosen to lead the side to the sub-continent largely because he was the best available amateur
He made his debut for Lancashire on 25 May 1946. Playing against Middlesex, Howard batted at number four and made scores of 4 and 3 as Lancashire won by seven wickets. It was the only first-class match he played in the year. In the 1946 and 1947 seasons, he scored 131 runs in 7 matches at an average of 14.56. He established himself as a regular player in the 1948 season,
Captaincy
Howard was officially given the Lancashire captaincy in 1949 at the age of 23, becoming the youngest player to captain Lancashire. He guided the team to a share of the County Championship title in 1950; Lancashire did not win again until 2011. He remained Lancashire's captain until he retired from first-class cricket at the end of 1953. He retired in 1976 and moved to the Isle of Man where he died on 31 May 1979, aged 54.