Alan Mullally, the former England Test paceman, looked beaten down literally and metaphorically - as he exited Perth Magistrates Court on a chilly late May afternoon in the last few days of autumn. Scratches dotted his face as if he had been involved in a scuffle. Several notable lines stretched across his forehead as his brows furrowed. Stubble completed Mullally's dishevelled exterior. His sombre demeanour was a jarring sight for those who knew the effervescent ex-cricketer.

A media pack outside the court awaited Mullally, who once was used to journalists circling him. But that was long ago. Now aged 46, Mullally had not played international cricket for 15 years but he was once again in the sights of a hungry press pack.

Mullally was back in the headlines but for all the wrong reasons. On February 26, 2016, Mullally crashed his mum's car into a car dealership, hitting a wall and two parked cars in the Perth eastern suburb of East Victoria Park. The incident took place the middle of the day, where Mullally had a blood-alcohol level of 0.28 to record his fourth drunk-driving offence in less than a decade. After pleading guilty, Mullally was fined (AUD) $2000 and had his driver's licence disqualified for 36 months. Tests had revealed that the alcohol level was nearly six times the legal limit.

Magistrate Joe Randazzo, in a statement of length that surprised long-time court observers, said Mullally hadn't "coped with those experiences of life stresses and resorted to alcohol". "Personal and general deterrence is important because of the danger drivers with high levels of intoxication pose to themselves and the public," Magistrate Randazzo said.

"Repeat offending for drink driving is a serious offence. It is not apt to describe him as a person of good character."

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Before his life started to spiral in retirement, in many ways, Mullally perfectly encapsulated English cricket from that dreaded bygone era of the late 1990s. In those interminable years, England was permanently in the abyss and a reverberating punchline around the world.

Possessing the requisite attributes to be a world class paceman, Mullally seemed likely to carve a distinguished international career. Very tall - 6 foot 5 (196cm) - and lithe, Mullally was languid when he ran into bowl. He didn't bound in manically, like say partner in crime Darren Gough, instead he glided into the wicket effortlessly.

Aesthetically, he appeared to be a prototypical dangerous left-arm quick, capable of bowling sharply with an ability to threateningly move the ball in both directions. Unfortunately, like many of his teammates, Mullally's talents frustratingly couldn't materialise in the Test arena. He had an unfortunate knack of spraying the new ball and lacked hostility to consistently hustle batsmen. Disappointingly, he wasn't able to conjure much swing at Test level.

Playing just 19 Tests for 58 wickets from 1996-2001, Mullally was never able to find a permanent place in the team. "Warnie (Shane Warne, his teammate at Hampshire) said I should have played 80 Tests," Mullally tells Cricbuzz. "The way we (England's players) were managed was shocking. Management wanted instant success and players were constantly getting dropped. I don't think I played a Test match with the same eleven."

His comical batting, for which he was once infamously rated England's worst ever number 11, and dubious fielding did little to help his Test candidacy. His enduring legacy on YouTube is a video titled '