Australian Services cricket team - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The Australian Services XI was a cricket

Cricket

Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...

team comprising solely military service personnel during World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

. They became active in May 1945 after the defeat of Nazi Germany

Nazi Germany

Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...

. The team played matches against English cricket sides of both military and civilian

Civilian

A civilian under international humanitarian law is a person who is not a member of his or her country's armed forces or other militia. Civilians are distinct from combatants. They are afforded a degree of legal protection from the effects of war and military occupation...

origins to celebrate the end of the war. These matches were aimed at increasing morale in the war-ravaged English cities and as a means of reviving cricket after the conclusion of fighting.

The end of the war marked the start of the 1945 cricket season. Plum Warner

Plum Warner

Sir Pelham Francis Warner MBE , affectionately and better known as Plum Warner, or even "the Grand Old Man" of English cricket was a Test cricketer....

organised a series of matches between England and Australian servicemen, known as the Victory Tests

Victory Tests

The Victory Tests were a series of cricket matches played in England from 19 May to 22 August 1945, between a combined Australian Services XI and an English national side...

, to celebrate the end of hostilities. However, Australian cricket administrators would not accredit the three-day matches as official Test matches, arguing that there were not enough Test-level players in the armed services; Lindsay Hassett

Lindsay Hassett

Arthur Lindsay Hassett MBE was a cricketer who played for Victoria and Australia. The diminutive Hassett was an elegant middle-order batsman, described by Wisden as, "... a master of nearly every stroke ... his superb timing, nimble footwork and strong wrists enabled him to make batting look a...

was the only Australian who had Test experience.

The side was composed of an amalgam of a Royal Australian Air Force

Royal Australian Air Force

The Royal Australian Air Force is the air force branch of the Australian Defence Force. The RAAF was formed in March 1921. It continues the traditions of the Australian Flying Corps , which was formed on 22 October 1912. The RAAF has taken part in many of the 20th century's major conflicts...

(RAAF) team, which had already been stationed in England during the war, and another group of mostly Australian Imperial Force

Australian Imperial Force

The Australian Imperial Force was the name given to all-volunteer Australian Army forces dispatched to fight overseas during World War I and World War II.* First Australian Imperial Force * Second Australian Imperial Force...

(AIF) soldiers from Australia. The players were deliberately stationed with each other in England for the express purpose of forming a cricket team to tour the country, with Australian prime minister John Curtin

John Curtin

John Joseph Curtin , Australian politician, served as the 14th Prime Minister of Australia. Labor under Curtin formed a minority government in 1941 after the crossbench consisting of two independent MPs crossed the floor in the House of Representatives, bringing down the Coalition minority...

pushing for the immediate resumption of international cricket after the war was over. The team was officially a military unit, led by Squadron Leader Stan Sismey

Stan Sismey

Squadron Leader Stanley George Sismey was an Australian cricketer whose career highlight was commanding officer of the Australian Services XI during the Victory Tests of 1945. Sismey, although commanding officer of the side, was not the on-field captain. That honour was bestowed upon Test...

, the team's wicket-keeper

Wicket-keeper

The wicket-keeper in the sport of cricket is the player on the fielding side who stands behind the wicket or stumps being guarded by the batsman currently on strike...

.

England were close to full strength, so the AIF and the RAAF teams merged to strengthen their quality. As a result, the Australian Services cricket team was formed under the leadership of Warrant Officer Lindsay Hassett

Lindsay Hassett

to compete in the Victory Tests.

The Australian team, despite being split by rank and service, all took their place in the side in good spirit and not much was made of the fact that Hassett, a warrant officer who was outranked by almost every other member of the team, was appointed captain.

The Victory Tests were greeted by packed English grounds, and raised a lot of money for war charities. Against expectations, the Australians managed to draw the series 2–2 against an England team filled with Test cricketers. As a result, the Australian government, cricket administrators and military officials ordered the team to travel home via India to play more fundraising matches, before finishing their campaign against the Australian state teams. By the time the team arrived in Australia they were extremely tired and their performances deteriorated, leading analysts who had not seen them in England to regard them as a weak team.

Personnel

The following cricketers played in at least one match.

Warrant Officer Lindsay Hassett
Lindsay Hassett
Arthur Lindsay Hassett MBE was a cricketer who played for Victoria and Australia. The diminutive Hassett was an elegant middle-order batsman, described by Wisden as, "... a master of nearly every stroke ... his superb timing, nimble footwork and strong wrists enabled him to make batting look a...

(captain) (VIC)
Squadron Leader Stan Sismey
Stan Sismey
Squadron Leader Stanley George Sismey was an Australian cricketer whose career highlight was commanding officer of the Australian Services XI during the Victory Tests of 1945. Sismey, although commanding officer of the side, was not the on-field captain. That honour was bestowed upon Test...

(NSW)
Flying Officer Keith Miller
Keith Miller
Keith Ross Miller MBE was an Australian Test cricketer and a Royal Australian Air Force pilot during World War II. Miller is widely regarded as Australia's greatest ever all-rounder. Because of his ability, irreverent manner and good looks he was a crowd favourite...

(VIC)
Captain Richard Whitington
Richard Whitington
Richard Smallpeice Whitington was an Australian first-class cricketer who played for South Australia and after serving in World War II, represented the Australian Services cricket team, which played in the Victory Tests....

(SA)
Flying Officer Jack Pettiford
Jack Pettiford
John "Jack" Pettiford was an Australian cricketer. He played over 200 first-class matches, mostly for Kent and New South Wales. In the 1949 and 1950 seasons he was the professional for Nelson Cricket Club in the Lancashire League.-References:...

(NSW)
Flight Sergeant Jim Workman (SA)
Sergeant Cec Pepper
Cec Pepper
Cecil George Pepper was an Australian first-class cricketer. An allrounder, he was the first to complete the double twice in the Central Lancashire League. With the bat he once hit 38 runs off an eight ball over....

(NSW)
Flight Lieutenant Keith Carmody
Keith Carmody
Douglas Keith Carmody was an Australian first class cricketer who played during the 1940s and 1950s.He was Western Australia's captain when they won their first ever Sheffield Shield and is credited as being the inventor of the 'umbrella field'.Born in Mosman, Carmody started his career with New...

(NSW)
Flight Lieutenant Ross Stanford (SA)
Flying Officer Bob Cristofani
Bob Cristofani
Desmond Robert Cristofani, known as Bob Cristofani , was an Australian cricketer who played 18 first-class matches in the 1940s. 14 of those games were for the Australian Services, three for New South Wales and one for the Dominions.His best performances were both for the Australian Services side...

(NSW)
Flying Officer Eddie Williams (SA)
Sergeant Charles Price (NSW)
Warrant Officer Graham Williams
Graham Williams
Graham Williams was a British television producer and script editor, whose best known work was on the BBC science fiction television series Doctor Who....

(SA)
Flight Lieutenant Mick Roper (NSW)
Captain Albert Cheetham (NSW)
Flying Officer Reginald Ellis (SA)
Flying Officer Colin Bremner

The manager was Flight Lieutenant Keith Johnson from New South Wales.

Only one player in the side, future Test captain Lindsay Hassett

Lindsay Hassett

had Test match experience. Keith Miller

Keith Miller

Keith Ross Miller MBE was an Australian Test cricketer and a Royal Australian Air Force pilot during World War II. Miller is widely regarded as Australia's greatest ever all-rounder. Because of his ability, irreverent manner and good looks he was a crowd favourite...

, Bob Cristofani

Bob Cristofani

Desmond Robert Cristofani, known as Bob Cristofani , was an Australian cricketer who played 18 first-class matches in the 1940s. 14 of those games were for the Australian Services, three for New South Wales and one for the Dominions.His best performances were both for the Australian Services side...

, Cec Pepper

Cec Pepper

Cecil George Pepper was an Australian first-class cricketer. An allrounder, he was the first to complete the double twice in the Central Lancashire League. With the bat he once hit 38 runs off an eight ball over....

, Keith Carmody

Keith Carmody

Douglas Keith Carmody was an Australian first class cricketer who played during the 1940s and 1950s.He was Western Australia's captain when they won their first ever Sheffield Shield and is credited as being the inventor of the 'umbrella field'.Born in Mosman, Carmody started his career with New...

, Ross Stanford, Albert Cheetham, Stan Sismey

Stan Sismey

, Dick Whitington, and Graham Williams

Graham Williams

Graham Williams was a British television producer and script editor, whose best known work was on the BBC science fiction television series Doctor Who....

were the players who had previous first-class experience. The spinner Reg Ellis and opening batsman Jack Pettiford

Jack Pettiford

John "Jack" Pettiford was an Australian cricketer. He played over 200 first-class matches, mostly for Kent and New South Wales. In the 1949 and 1950 seasons he was the professional for Nelson Cricket Club in the Lancashire League.-References:...

had not prior experience at first-class level, but played for their states in Australia after making their debut for the Services. Charles Price and Jim Workman made their debut during the Australian Services campaign and never played first-class cricket afterwards.

Keith Miller

Keith Miller

, one of the ten inaugural inductees of the Australian Cricket Hall of Fame

Australian Cricket Hall of Fame

The Australian Cricket Hall of Fame is a part of the Australian Gallery of Sport and Olympic Museum in the National Sports Museum at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. This Hall of Fame commemorates the greatest Australian cricketers of all time....

at the time only a batsman with Victoria, played what many consider to be his breakout series in the Victory Tests, ensuring that when he returned to Australia he would have a place in the Australian national team now referred to as The Invincibles

The Invincibles (cricket)

The Australian cricket team in England in 1948 was captained by Don Bradman, who was making his fourth and final tour of England. The team is famous for being the first Test match side to play an entire tour of England without losing a match. This feat earned them the nickname of The Invincibles,...

.

In the batting department, Miller was the top-scorer; he scored 1,447 runs in 20 matches at an average of 49.89. Hassett scored 1,434 runs at 49.44 in 18 matches and top-scored for the whole campaign with 187. Opening batsman Whitington was the only other member of the team to score more than 1,000 runs. He totalled 1,054 runs at 35.13.

On the bowling front, Australia was heavily dependent on its spin attack. The left arm orthodox spinner Ellis took 72 wickets at 25.02, while the leg spin

Leg spin

Leg spin is a type of spin bowling in the sport of cricket. A leg spinner bowls right-arm with a wrist spin action, causing the ball to spin from right to left in the cricket pitch, at the point of delivery. When the ball bounces, the spin causes the ball to deviate sharply from right to left, that...

ner Pepper took 71 wickets at 32.47. The third highest wicket-taker was Cristofani, also a leg spinner; he took 34 wickets at 30.73. Miller was the leading paceman, taking 29 wickets at 28.96.

For all rounders, Pepper also scored 987 runs at 36.55, while Cristofani added 558 runs at 27.90. Pettiford scored 768 runs at 38.40 and took 22 wickets at 41.86 with his leg spin.

Graham Williams

Graham Williams (cricketer)

Graham Geoffrey Williams is an English cricketer. Williams played as a right-handed batsman and was a right-arm medium-pace bowler...

, the team's main strike bowler, had only been released from a German prisoner of war camp weeks before the series started, and played at 31 kg (68 lb) below his pre-war playing weight. In between overs he drank glasses of glucose and water to keep his energy up, but when he was unable to bowl Miller took his place and demonstrated what a valuable pace bowler he would become in the future himself.

Omissions

Some players with prior first-class experience could not be considered for selection because they could not be released from the units in which they were serving, particularly those serving in the Pacific. These included Arthur Morris

Arthur Morris

Arthur Robert Morris MBE is a former Australian cricketer who played 46 Test matches between 1946 and 1955. An opener, Morris is regarded as one of Australia's greatest left-handed batsmen. He is best known for his key role in Don Bradman's Invincibles side, which made an undefeated tour of...

, Ian Johnson

Ian Johnson (cricketer)

Ian William Geddes Johnson CBE was an Australian cricketer who played 45 Test matches as a slow off-break bowler between 1946 and 1956. Johnson captured 109 Test wickets at an average of 29.19 runs per wicket and as a lower order batsman made 1,000 runs at an average of...

and Ray Lindwall

Ray Lindwall

Raymond Russell Lindwall MBE was a cricketer who represented Australia in 61 Tests from 1946 to 1960. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest fast bowlers of all time. He also played top-flight rugby league football with St...

. Lindwall and Johnson went on to make their debuts for Australia in 1946 in the first post-war Test, while Morris made his debut in 1946–47 against England. All three became long-serving Australian Test players, and all three captained their country, Johnson for two years. Bill Brown

Bill Brown (cricketer)

William Alfred "Bill" Brown, OAM was an Australian cricketer who played 22 Tests between 1934 and 1948, captaining his country in one Test. A right-handed opening batsman, his partnership with Jack Fingleton in the 1930s is regarded as one of the finest in Australian Test history...

had played regularly for Australia's Test team before the war, but was not available, nor was Colin McCool

Colin McCool

Colin Leslie McCool was an Australian cricketer who played in 14 Tests from 1946 to 1950. McCool, born in Paddington, New South Wales, was an all-rounder who bowled leg spin and googlies with a round arm action and as a lower order batsman was regarded as effective square of the wicket and against...

, who had made his first-class debut before the outbreak of war.

In England

The Australians and their schedule was administered by Keith Johnson, a member of the Australian Board of Control

Cricket Australia

Cricket Australia, formerly known as the Australian Cricket Board, is the governing body for professional and amateur cricket in Australia. It was originally formed in 1905 as the Australian Board of Control for International Cricket...

and the New South Wales Cricket Association

New South Wales Cricket Association

The New South Wales Cricket Association is a sporting club who administer cricket in New South Wales, based at the Sydney Cricket Ground. Their trading name is Cricket NSW....

. During World War II

World War II

, Johnson served in the Royal Australian Air Force

Royal Australian Air Force

(RAAF) and the rose to the rank of Flight Lieutenant

Flight Lieutenant

Flight lieutenant is a junior commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many Commonwealth countries. It ranks above flying officer and immediately below squadron leader. The name of the rank is the complete phrase; it is never shortened to "lieutenant"...

and was deployed to London, where he did public relations

Public relations

Public relations is the actions of a corporation, store, government, individual, etc., in promoting goodwill between itself and the public, the community, employees, customers, etc....

work at the RAAF's overseas headquarters. Officially a military unit, the team's commanding officer

Commanding officer

The commanding officer is the officer in command of a military unit. Typically, the commanding officer has ultimate authority over the unit, and is usually given wide latitude to run the unit as he sees fit, within the bounds of military law...

was Squadron Leader

Squadron Leader

Squadron Leader is a commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence. It is also sometimes used as the English translation of an equivalent rank in countries which have a non-English air force-specific rank structure. In these...

Stan Sismey

of the RAAF, although the on-field captain was Warrant Officer

Warrant Officer

A warrant officer is an officer in a military organization who is designated an officer by a warrant, as distinguished from a commissioned officer who is designated an officer by a commission, or from non-commissioned officer who is designated an officer by virtue of seniority.The rank was first...

Lindsay Hassett

of the Second Australian Imperial Force

Second Australian Imperial Force

The Second Australian Imperial Force was the name given to the volunteer personnel of the Australian Army in World War II. Under the Defence Act , neither the part-time Militia nor the full-time Permanent Military Force could serve outside Australia or its territories unless they volunteered to...

.

Wisden Cricketers' Almanack

Wisden Cricketers' Almanack

Wisden Cricketers' Almanack is a cricket reference book published annually in the United Kingdom...

praised the organisational work done by Johnson in arranging the services' programme in England: "A stranger to this country, he found the programme in only skeleton form; and that the tour proved such a success from every point of view was due to his hard work and courtesy." The almanack reprinted in full Johnson's "message" of thanks to English cricket before the team sailed to India.

The First Victory Test started at Lord's on 19 May and was expected to usher in a new post-war era, which it hoped would be more aggressive and attractive. The last Anglo-Australian Test series before the war had featured a large number of draws due to defensive play. England won the toss and batted first. They batted steadily although none of their specialist batsmen managed to pass 57 and reached 4/205, before Miller came on as the fifth bowler and bowled his Great Massingham pilot colleague Bill Edrich

Bill Edrich

William John "Bill" Edrich DFC was a distinguished cricketer who played for Middlesex, MCC, Norfolk and England.Edrich's three brothers, Brian, Eric and Geoff, and also his cousin, John, all played first-class cricket...

for 45, precipitating an English collapse from 4/200 to 267. Paceman Albert Cheetham took 3/49, while new ball partner Williams, spinner Reginald Ellis and Charles Price took two wickets each.

In reply to England's 267 from 100.1 overs, Australia reached 2/82 by stumps on the opening day, with Hassett and Sismey at the crease. The next day, Sismey fell for 37, and Miller came to the crease at 3/136 and joined Hassett. Miller gradually progressed, undeterred by the fall of Hassett for 77 at 4/171. He put on 99 with Ross Stanford, who fell for 49 soon after Australia passed England's total, with the score at 5/270.
Once Australia had taken the lead, Miller cut loose. After spending 40 minutes in the 90s, he finished with 105 in 210 minutes, with a straight six. The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...

opined that his innings was "as good a century as has been seen at Lord's in many a long day". Wisden said that he "was always getting runs with the soundness characteristic of most Australians". Harry Altham

Harry Altham

Harry Surtees Altham, CBE, DSO, MC was an English cricketer who became an important figure in the game as an administrator, historian and coach. His Wisden obituary described him as "among the best known personalities in the world of cricket"...

declared that "a brilliant new star had joined the cluster of the Southern Cross". Miller put on 87 for the sixth wicket with Pepper, and although both feel in quick succession in a collapse of 3/9, Price and Williams put on a ninth-wicket stand of 88 to take the Australian total to 455, giving them a 188-run lead, and the end of the innings marked the end of the second day's play.

On the final morning, England batted steadily and their Test openers Len Hutton

Len Hutton

Sir Leonard "Len" Hutton was an English Test cricketer, who played for Yorkshire County Cricket Club and England in the years around the Second World War as an opening batsman. He was described by Wisden Cricketer's Almanack as one of the greatest batsmen in the history of cricket...

and Cyril Washbrook

Cyril Washbrook

Cyril Washbrook was an English cricketer, who played for Lancashire and England. He had a long career, split by World War II, and ending when he was aged 44. Washbrook, who is most famous for opening the batting for England with Len Hutton, which he did fifty one times, played a total of 592...

took the score to 52 before leg spin

Leg spin

ner Cec Pepper

Cec Pepper

removed both. Jack Robertson

Jack Robertson

Jack Robertson was an English cricketer, who played county cricket for Middlesex, and in eleven Tests for England....

top-scored with 84 and his Middlesex teammate Edrich scored 50 as England moved to 5/286 late in the day, an overall lead of 98. It appeared that England would be able to hold on for a draw, but they lost their last five wickets for eight runs to be all out for 294. Pepper took 4/80 and Ellis and Price two wickets each.

This left Australia with a target of 107. Miller and Richard Whitington

Richard Whitington

Richard Smallpeice Whitington was an Australian first-class cricketer who played for South Australia and after serving in World War II, represented the Australian Services cricket team, which played in the Victory Tests....

were both out with only 11 runs on the board, but Hassett and Pepper put on 52 runs quickly and Australia reached their second innings target with two balls to spare. Pepper was unbeaten on 54.

The last pre-war series between England and Australia in 1938 had been an attritional and hard-nosed contest, but in the afterglow of war victory, the cricketers played flamboyantly with abandon in front of a packed stadium. The attractive style of cricket was widely praised by commentators and the match raised £1,935 for war relief charities.

The First Victory Test was followed by a month in which the Australian Services were not active as a team; the various players represented their respective RAAF teams during this time.

The Second Victory Test was played at Bramall Lane

Bramall Lane

-Cricket at the Lane:Bramall Lane opened as a cricket ground in 1855, having been leased by Michael Ellison from the Duke of Norfolk at an annual rent of £70. The site was then away from the town's industrial area, and relatively free from smoke. It was built to host the matches of local cricket...

in Sheffield

Sheffield

Sheffield is a city and metropolitan borough of South Yorkshire, England. Its name derives from the River Sheaf, which runs through the city. Historically a part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, and with some of its southern suburbs annexed from Derbyshire, the city has grown from its largely...

and started on 23 June, where the grandstands were damaged by German air raids. Hassett sent the Englishmen into bat, and the hosts' innings was highlighted by their captain Wally Hammond

Wally Hammond

Walter Reginald "Wally" Hammond was an English Test cricketer who played for Gloucestershire in a career that lasted from 1920 to 1951. Beginning his career as a professional, he later became an amateur and was appointed captain of England...

, who scored exactly 100, supported by Washbrook, who scored 63. However, Hammond's dismissal was part of a collapse that saw the home side lose their last five wickets for 38 runs. Cheetham and Pepper took three wickets each, and Ellis and Williams both captured a brace. Australia moved to be 0/23 at stumps on the first day, but lost wickets steadily on the second morning, and were all out for 147; Keith Carmody

Keith Carmody

scored 42, the only contribution beyond 21 by a batsman, while George Pope took 5/58.

In the second innings, England went about extending their lead and Miller bowled a fast and hostile spell, hitting Test world record holder Hutton in the arm before hitting Washbrook in the head, provoking an angry crowd reaction, comparing Miller to the Bodyline
Bodyline
Bodyline, also known as fast leg theory bowling, was a cricketing tactic devised by the English cricket team for their 1932–33 Ashes tour of Australia, specifically to combat the extraordinary batting skill of Australia's Don Bradman...

spearhead Harold Larwood

Harold Larwood

Harold Larwood was an English cricket player, an extremely accurate fast bowler best known for his key role as the implementer of fast leg theory in the infamous "bodyline" Ashes Test series of 1932–33....

. He later removed Washbrook and ended with 2/28. His efforts led to calls for him to start taking his bowling seriously, instead of simply jogging in releasing the ball, especially from former South African representative Bob Crisp

Bob Crisp

Robert James Crisp DSO MC was a South African cricketer who played in nine Tests from 1935 to 1936 before living for a while in England. He appeared for Rhodesia, Western Province, Worcestershire and South Africa. Though his Test bowling average lay over 37.00, Crisp had a successful first-class...

. Miller's spell helped reduce the hosts to 7/122, a lead of only 261, but a rearguard fightback pushed the total to 190, leaving the Australians with a target of 330. England were bowled out at the end of the second day, so the Australians had a full day's batting to reach their target.

The Australians started well, with their openers, Whitington and Jim Workman posting a century opening stand. However, both fell in quick succession for 61 and 63 respectively to leave the score at 2/121. Miller and Hassett took the score to 2/171 before Miller fell for eight. From then on, wickets fell steadily and Australia fell 41 runs short of the target and series was squared. For England, Dick Pollard

Dick Pollard

Richard "Dick" Pollard was an English cricketer born in Westhoughton, Lancashire, who played in four Tests between 1946 and 1948...

took 5/76.

The Services then spent the next three weeks playing non-first-class matches, against Oxford University

Oxford University Cricket Club

Oxford University Cricket Club is a first-class cricket team, representing the University of Oxford. It plays its home games at the University Parks in Oxford, England...

, HDG Leveson-Gower

HDG Leveson-Gower

Sir Henry Dudley Gresham Leveson Gower was an English cricketer who played for Oxford University and Surrey as well as England. He was the seventh son of Granville William Gresham Leveson-Gower JP DL FSA, by his wife The Hon Sophia Leveson Gower LJStJ .He captained England in all three of the Test...

's XI and Yorkshire. The result of the first match was unknown while the latter two of these one or two-day matches were drawn. The second did not reach the second innings, while Australia reached 1/27 in the second innings of the match against Yorkshire when time ran out.

In the Third Victory Test at Lord's, Hammond won the toss and elected to bat. Despite his efforts in the previous Victory Test, Miller was only Hassett's fifth-choice bowler. When finally called upon, he measured out a run up. Miller struck John Dewes

John Dewes

John Dewes is a former English cricketer, who played for Cambridge University and Middlesex, and was chosen for five Tests between 1948 and 1950.-Life and career:...

before uprooting his off stump. However, Hutton, on his way to a century, was holding up his end. Eventually, Miller bowled Donald Carr

Donald Carr

Donald Bryce Carr is a former English cricketer who played for Derbyshire from 1946 to 1967, for Oxford University from 1948 to 1951, and twice for England in 1951/52. He captained Derbyshire between 1955 and 1962, and scored over 10,000 runs for the county...

for four and then removed Hutton's off stump. He ended with 3/44 from 18 overs. These two wickets helped to precipitate a collapse of 7/92 as England fell from 3/162 to 254 all out on the first day. Bob Cristofani

Bob Cristofani

helped clean up the tail, taking 4/43.

Australia started their innings at the beginning of the second day. Their top-order failed and fell to 5/72, and it was up to Hassett (68), Carmody and Cristofani (32 each) to push the total to 194. Pollard took 6/75.

Miller took the new ball in the second innings after his performances in the first innings. He bowled Dewes for a duck with an outswinger, before bowling Edrich for 58. Nevertheless, England were in a strong position at stumps on the second day at 3/118, an overall lead of 178, with Hutton unbeaten on 49. However, the home team collapsed on the final morning to be all out for 164, with Cristofani taking 5/49 and Miller taking 3/42. This left Australia a target of 225 in five hours. Sismey (52) and Workman (30) laid the foundation for the run chase with a second wicket partnership of 82. Miller came into bat at 3/104 and saw Australia to the target unbeaten on 71 with four wickets in hand. C B Fry

C B Fry

Charles Burgess Fry, known as C. B. Fry was an English polymath; an outstanding sportsman, politician, diplomat, academic, teacher, writer, editor and publisher, who is best remembered for his career as a cricketer...

opined that Miller's innings was "superbly stroked and directed cover driving of the pace bowling formed the most telling and majestic feature".

During the Sunday rest day of the Third Victory Test, which came after the first day's play, the Australian's played in a one-day match against Gravesend Sunday Club, but the result is unknown.

After the Third Test the Australians played in a non-first-class match against Yorkshire at Bramall Lane. The hosts scored 243 in reply to the Australians' 232; Hassett's men were 5/162 when time ran out. They then played Sussex in another non-first-class match; the result is not known. Australia were then bowled out for 134 to lost by 74 runs to the Metropolitan Police in a single-innings one-day match. They were narrowly denied a victory in the next match, against the Royal Navy. The Royal Navy were 7/139 in their second innings, with a lead of only 12, when time ran out.

In the Fourth Victory Test, again at Lord's, Hassett won the toss and elected to bat. Whitington scored 46 and Sismey 59. Miller came in at 3/108 and after a slow start, scored another century, taking 170 minutes to reach the mark. At the end of the first day, Australia were 5/273 with Miller and Pepper at the crease. Miller was removed for 118 the next day. He struck ten fours, all off which were driven. Pepper continued and made 57 to help Australia reach 388. Pope and Pollard took four wickets each.

England's batsmen replied productively; Laurie Fishlock

Laurie Fishlock

Laurence Barnard "Laurie" Fishlock was an English cricketer, who played in four Tests from 1936 to 1947. A specialist batsman, he achieved little in those four matches, but might have had a much more substantial Test career, had he not lost six of what should have been his best years to World War...

scored 69, Hammond 83, Edrich 73 and Washbrook 112. They reached 3/249 by stumps on the second day and declared at 7/468.

In the second innings, Miller came to the crease with Australia at 3/54 and still in arrears. He scored an unbeaten 35 to ensure that Australia would not collapse further and lose the match. The public reception towards the Victory Tests resulted in an additional fifth match being added to the schedule. A record attendance of 93,000 witnessed the Fourth Test at Lord's.

In the lead-up to the Fifth Victory Test, the Australians played against Northamptonshire and Gubby Allen

Gubby Allen

Sir George Oswald Browning "Gubby" Allen, CBE was a cricketer who played for Middlesex, Cambridge University, MCC and England. Australian-born, Allen was a fast bowler and hard-hitting lower-order batsman, who captained England in eleven Test matches...

's XI; neither matches were first-class and the result is not known. They then played the North of England cricket team

North of England cricket team

The North of England appeared in first-class cricket between 1836 and 1961, most often in the showcase North v. South matches against the South of England although there were also games against touring teams, MCC and others....

in a two-day match at Blackpool

Blackpool

Blackpool is a borough, seaside town, and unitary authority area of Lancashire, in North West England. It is situated along England's west coast by the Irish Sea, between the Ribble and Wyre estuaries, northwest of Preston, north of Liverpool, and northwest of Manchester...

and suffered a defeat by an innings and 89 runs.

In the final Fifth Victory Test at Old Trafford, Australia won the toss and batted first. They collapsed to 4/66 under overcast conditions on a green pitch when Miller came to the crease. Against a swinging and seaming ball, Miller struck 14 from the first over that he faced and went on to finish 77 not out in a display that featured strong cutting and driving. However, he did not get much support from the lower order, with none of the last five batsmen passing single figures, including two run outs, and Australia could manage only 173 in 59 overs. Pollard took 4/78.

Australia reduced England to 2/46, but a 97-run stand by Hutton and Washbrook took the score to 3/143 before both fell for half-centuries. Nevertheless, England were already 5/162 at stumps on the first day, having almost overtaken the Australians' score.

The next morning, Cristofani took four wickets to dismiss England for 243 and ended with 5/55. Australia then collapsed to 6/69, still a run in arrears, when Cristofani came to the crease. He struck an unbeaten 110, while his teammates added only 41 for the remaining four wickets, as Australia were all out for 210. WE Phillipson took 6/48. England were left with a target of 141 on the final day, which they reached with six wickets in hand to square the series 2–2.

Hassett wrote at the end of the series that "This is cricket as it should be...These games have shown that international cricket can be played as between real friends—so let's have no more talk of "war" in cricket". Miller topped the batting averages for the series, with 443 runs at 63.28. His aggregate exceeded that of Hammond and Hutton, who made 369 and 380 respectively. Miller also took 10 wickets at 27.70. Of Miller's batting, Hassett said that "as a strokeplayer he is second to none". his exploits in military teams led some to compare him to Jack Gregory, who had broken into top-flight cricket with his exploits with an AIF team immediately after the First World War

World War I

World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...

.

The series was regarded as an outstanding success, with a total attendance of 367,000 and bright and attacking play.

The English summer concluded with five more matches. The Australians defeated Nottinghamshire by 103 runs and the Leveson-Gower's XI by an innings and 108 runs. This was followed by a low-scoring match in which Australia lost to Surrey by three wickets; 37 wickets fell for just 327 runs. Australia then scraped home by three wickets in a single-innings match against Sussex and then played against the Combined Counties with an unknown result.

In India

Due to the unexpectedly strong success of the Victory Tests, the government of Australia

Government of Australia

The Commonwealth of Australia is a federal constitutional monarchy under a parliamentary democracy. The Commonwealth of Australia was formed in 1901 as a result of an agreement among six self-governing British colonies, which became the six states...

, led by foreign minister Doc Evatt, ordered the Australian Services to delay their demobilisation. With the team raising so much money for war charities, the government directed them to travel home via India and Ceylon

Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...

for further fundraising matches for the Red Cross.

The Australians faced an arduous schedule; eight of the nine matches were first-class; three were international matches, and four were against the zones of India.

Miller, the vice-captain of the team, almost missed the trip to India after turning up late for the voyage. The servicemen arrived in Bombay

Mumbai

Mumbai , formerly known as Bombay in English, is the capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the most populous city in India, and the fourth most populous city in the world, with a total metropolitan area population of approximately 20.5 million...

and took a two-day train journey to Lahore

Lahore

Lahore is the capital of the Pakistani province of Punjab and the second largest city in the country. With a rich and fabulous history dating back to over a thousand years ago, Lahore is no doubt Pakistan's cultural capital. One of the most densely populated cities in the world, Lahore remains a...

to play North Zone

North Zone cricket team

The North Zone cricket team is a first-class cricket team that represents northern India in the Duleep Trophy. It is a composite team of players from six first-class Indian teams from northern India competing in the Ranji Trophy: Delhi, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab and...

. North batted first and made 410; Australia replied with 351, and Pepper top-scored with 77. He then took 5/45 in the second innings and reduced the hosts to 7/103, but time ran out and the match ended in a draw.

The Australians headed to Delhi

Delhi

Delhi , officially National Capital Territory of Delhi , is the largest metropolis by area and the second-largest by population in India, next to Mumbai. It is the eighth largest metropolis in the world by population with 16,753,265 inhabitants in the Territory at the 2011 Census...

with another long train journey for a match against a Prince's XI. It was a high-scoring match in hot conditions; the Indian Test players Vijay Merchant

Vijay Merchant

Vijaysingh Madhavji Merchant , real name Vijay Madhavji Thakersey was an Indian cricketer. A right-hand batter and occasional right-arm medium pace bowler, Merchant played first class cricket for Mumbai cricket team as well as 10 Test matches for India between 1929 and 1951...

, Lala Amarnath

Lala Amarnath

Nanik Amarnath Bhardwaj was an Indian Test cricketer. He was the first cricketer to score a Test century for the Indian cricket team, which he achieved on debut...

and Syed Mushtaq Ali all struck centuries in the hosts' only innings of 401, and Hassett struck 187 and 124 not out in Australia's 8/424 declared and 5/304. Hassett then rested as Miller led the team against West Zone

West Zone cricket team

The West Zone cricket team is a first-class cricket team that represents western India in the Duleep Trophy. It is a composite team of players from five first-class Indian teams from western India competing in the Ranji Trophy: Baroda, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Mumbai and Saurashtra...

in Bombay. Miller top-scored with 106 in Australia's 362. The hosts replied with 9/500 declared, with Rusi Modi

Rusi Modi

Rustomji Sheriyar 'Rusi' Modi was an Indian batsman who played for the Indian National Cricket Team from 1946 to 1952....

scoring 168, as the match ended in a high-scoring draw.

In the first match against India at Bombay's Brabourne Stadium

Brabourne Stadium

The Brabourne Stadium is a cricket ground in the Indian city of Mumbai. It is located on 90,000 square yards of reclaimed land along Marine Drive near Churchgate railway station in South Mumbai. The stadium is owned by the Cricket Club of India . Brabourne Stadium is India's first permanent...

, regarded as unofficial Tests, Hassett won the toss and elected to bat. Unlike the Victory Tests, these games were four days long. After Whitington fell for four, Carmody and Jack Pettiford

Jack Pettiford

added 177 for the second wicket, and scored 113 and 124 respectively. Australia proceeded to 2/301; Hassett scored 53, before four wickets fell in the space of 25 runs. Pepper added 95 and Workman 76, as Australia totalled 531 in almost two days of batting. Vijay Hazare

Vijay Hazare

Vijay Samuel Hazare was an Indian cricket player from the state of Maharashtra. He captained the Indian cricket team in 14 matches between 1951 and 1953...

took 5/109 and CS Nayudu 3/141.

In reply, India reached 1/82 at the end of the second day. All of their batsmen made a start, none of the top seven scoring less than 24, but only Amarnath (64) and Hazare (75) passed 50. India were out for 339 just before stumps on the third day and were forced to follow on. Four Australian bowlers took two wickets. The second innings followed a similar pattern and all of the top five Indian batsmen passed 20 without passing 70. India reached 8/239 and were only 47 runs ahead, leaving Australia in striking distance of victory, but Gul Mohammad

Gul Mohammad

Gul Mohammad , sometimes referred to as Gul Mahomed, played Test cricket for India and Pakistan....

and Amir Elahi

Amir Elahi

Amir Elahi was one of the fourteen cricketers who have played Test cricket for more than one country. Born in Lahore, Pakistan, he played one Test for India. After Pakistan acquired Test match status in 1952-3, he played 5 Tests for Pakistan as a leg break googly bowler with modest success...

added 51 for the ninth wicket and pushed the total to 304. This left Australia with 103 runs to win in half an hour. However, the Indian captain Merchant placed all of his fielders on the off side and instructed his bowlers to deliver the ball wide. The Australians ended at 1/31.

Australia were still searching for their first win of the Indian tour when they took on the Indian Universities in a non-first-class match in Pune

Pune

Pune , is the eighth largest metropolis in India, the second largest in the state of Maharashtra after Mumbai, and the largest city in the Western Ghats. Once the centre of power of the Maratha Empire, it is situated 560 metres above sea level on the Deccan plateau at the confluence of the Mula ...

. However, Australia managed 300 and then took only one wicket as their hosts reached 385 before declaring. Australia were 3/85 when time ran out.

Conflict hit the team after the ineffective display against the students. The team, mostly made up of RAAF personnel, had been ill with food poisoning and dysentery, and travelled across the Indian subcontinent

Indian subcontinent

The Indian subcontinent, also Indian Subcontinent, Indo-Pak Subcontinent or South Asian Subcontinent is a region of the Asian continent on the Indian tectonic plate from the Hindu Kush or Hindu Koh, Himalayas and including the Kuen Lun and Karakoram ranges, forming a land mass which extends...

via long train journeys. The airmen wanted to travel by air, and tried to ask Hassett and manager Keith Johnson for air travel. When this was refused, they threatened to abandon the tour or replace Lindsay Hassett

Lindsay Hassett

, an Australian Imperial Force

Australian Imperial Force

member, with either Keith Carmody

Keith Carmody

or Keith Miller

Keith Miller

, who were RAAF fighter pilots if their wish was not granted. With Bradman likely to miss the upcoming tour of New Zealand, the Services captain would be one of the leading candidates to lead Australia. Miller refused to plot against Hassett and the dispute ended when Squadron Leader

Squadron Leader

Stan Sismey

arranged for a RAAF plane already in India to transport the team. On the first flight to Calcutta, the squad survived an electrical storm that caused the plane to drop altitude.
The team was scheduled to play East Zone

East Zone cricket team

The East Zone cricket team is a first-class cricket team that represents eastern India in the Duleep Trophy. It is a composite team of five first-class Indian teams from eastern India competing in the Ranji Trophy: Assam, Bengal, Jharkand, Orissa and Tripura...

in Calcutta, but the city was gripped in deadly riots as independence activists agitated against British rule. The match went ahead, but on the first day, thousands of protestors invaded the pitch, interrupting play for an hour. Elsewhere in the city, 23 people were killed. Australia batted first and made only 107, before East Zone replied with 131. Led by Hassett's 125, Australia posted 304 to leave the hosts a target of 281. On the final day, Miller's friend Denis Compton

Denis Compton

Denis Charles Scott Compton CBE was an English cricketer who played in 78 Test matches, and a footballer...

, who was playing for East Zone while on deployment with the British Army in India, was nearing a century as his team closed in on victory. The pro-independence rioters broke through the security presence and invaded the pitch again. The leader of the demonstrators ran up to Compton and said: "Mr Compton, you very good player, but you must stop". In later years, Miller would quote this remark whenever Compton came to the crease

Crease (cricket)

In the sport of cricket, the crease is a certain area demarcated by white lines painted or chalked on the field of play.The term crease also refers to any of the lines themselves, particularly the popping crease. Law 9 of the Laws of Cricket governs the size and position of the crease markings...

in matches featuring both of them. Compton told the rioters to ask Hassett, saying that the Australian skipper controlled proceedings. Hassett smiled at the leader of the irate demonstrators and asked "You wouldn't happen to have a cigarette, would you, old boy?" The rioters calmed down and play resumed. Compton brought up his century with the winning runs. In 2005, the ECB

England and Wales Cricket Board

The England and Wales Cricket Board is the governing body of cricket in England and Wales. It was created on 1 January 1997 combining the roles of the Test and County Cricket Board, the National Cricket Association and the Cricket Council...

and Cricket Australia

Cricket Australia

decided that the player adjudged the Player of the Series in the Ashes

The Ashes

The Ashes is a Test cricket series played between England and Australia. It is one of the most celebrated rivalries in international cricket and dates back to 1882. It is currently played biennially, alternately in the United Kingdom and Australia. Cricket being a summer sport, and the venues...

would be awarded the Compton-Miller Medal

Compton-Miller medal

The 2005 Ashes Series in England saw the inauguration of the Compton-Miller medal for the Ashes Man of the Series award.The award is named after two great cricketers - the batsman Denis Compton of England and the all-rounder Keith Miller of Australia...

, recognising their friendship and rivalry.

The second international match took place at Eden Gardens a week later. Merchant won the toss and elected to bat. Vinoo Mankad, Hazare and Modi all made half-centuries and the hosts ended with 386 on the second day. Pepper was the most successful of the Australians with 4/120. The Australian innings was set up by a second wicket partnership of 218 between Whitington (155) and Pettiford (101). Miller came in 3/312 and then hit Mankad for four sixes from five balls, before falling to the said bowler for 82. This set up Australia's total of 472. India started their second innings late on the third day, and they declared late on the final day at 4/350, after Merchant (155 not out) and Abdul Hafeez Kardar (86 not out) had put on an unbroken stand of 189. This left Australia with an unfeasible target of 266 in around and hour. The Australians reached 2/49 and the match ended in a draw.

Captaining the team, Miller took 3/19 and 1/8 in a match against South Zone

South Zone cricket team

The South Zone cricket team is a first-class cricket team that represents southern India in the Duleep Trophy. It is a composite team of players from six first-class Indian teams from southern India competing in the Ranji Trophy: Andhra Pradesh, Goa, Hyderabad, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu...

in Madras

Chennai

Chennai , formerly known as Madras or Madarasapatinam , is the capital city of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, located on the Coromandel Coast off the Bay of Bengal. Chennai is the fourth most populous metropolitan area and the sixth most populous city in India...

, the Australians' only win on Indian soil, by six wickets.

The final match in India was the third and deciding match in the international series, at Madras. Hassett won the toss and elected to bat, but his batsmen collapsed to 5/103, when Pepper joined Hassett at the crease. The pair added 181, but their dismissals for 87 and 143 signalled the end of the Australian innings for 339 early on the second day after a collapse of 5/55. Shute Banerjee

Shute Banerjee

Sarobindu Nath "Shute" Banerjee was a cricketer who represented India in one official and five unofficial Test matches...

took 4/86 and Chandu Sarwate

Chandu Sarwate

Chandrasekhar Trimbak Sarwate was an Indian cricketer. He was an all-rounder who played nine Test matches for India between 1946 and 1951 without much success — his Test batting average was only 13.00, and his Test bowling average was 124.66...

4/94.

In reply, India fell to 4/110, before Amarnath (113) and Modi (203) rebuilt the innings, supported by Gul Mohammad (55) and Nayudu (64). The hosts were eventually out for 525 late on the third day. Pepper was the most successful of the Australians, taking 4/118. Australia faced an uphill task to save the match, and the opening pair of Carmody and Whitington added 133. However, wickets fell regularly thereafter and the tourists were all out for 275. Banerjee and Sarwate both took four wickets each for the second time. India then accumulated the 92 runs needed for victory, with six wickets in hand.

It was not a happy tour for Johnson and his men on the playing arena. They lost the three-match series against India 1–0 and recorded only one victory, against South Zone

South Zone cricket team

.

Australia ended the subcontinental part of the tour with victory over Ceylon

Sri Lankan cricket team

The Sri Lankan cricket team is the national cricket team of Sri Lanka. The team first played international cricket in 1926–27, and were later awarded Test status in 1981, which made Sri Lanka the eighth Test cricket playing nation...

by an innings and 44 runs. Not wanting to wait a month for the next boat and a fortnight's sea voyage, the Australians returned to Perth by hitching a ride on a B-24 Liberator

B-24 Liberator

The Consolidated B-24 Liberator was an American heavy bomber, designed by Consolidated Aircraft of San Diego, California. It was known within the company as the Model 32, and a small number of early models were sold under the name LB-30, for Land Bomber...

. The pilot of the RAAF plane had already promised 14 friends a lift so that they would not be stuck in India for another six months, so the Australian team sat on the floor of the aircraft. They made it back to Australia despite suffering engine trouble and an overloaded plane.

In Australia

Johnson's team arrived in Australia late in 1945, but the armed services and Australian Board of Control ordered them to play another series against the various Australian states. The fixtures were meant to revive cricket following the war and were also used as a lead-up to the international tour to New Zealand

New Zealand

New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...

in March 1946.

The Services performed poorly; after playing consecutive draws against Western Australia

Western Warriors

The Western Australia cricket team are an Australian first class cricket team representing the state of Western Australia...

and South Australia

Southern Redbacks

The South Australia cricket team, nicknamed the Southern Redbacks and known as the West End Redbacks due to their sponsorship agreement with local brewers West End, are an Australian first class cricket team based in Adelaide, South Australia, and represent the state of South Australia...

, they were crushed by an innings by both Victoria

Victorian Bushrangers

The Victorian cricket team, nicknamed the Bushrangers, is an Australian cricket team based in Melbourne, that represents the state of Victoria. It is administered by Cricket Victoria and draws its players from Melbourne's Premier Cricket competition...

and New South Wales

New South Wales Blues

The New South Wales cricket team are an Australian first class cricket team based in Sydney, New South Wales...

, before drawing against Queensland

Queensland Bulls

The Queensland cricket team, nicknamed the Bulls, are the Brisbane-based Queensland representative cricket team in Australia's domestic cricket tournaments:*Sheffield Shield, 4-day matches with first-class status, since the 1926/27 season...

and Tasmania

Tasmanian Tigers

The Tasmanian cricket team, nicknamed the Tigers, represents the Australian state of Tasmania in cricket tournaments. They compete annually in the Australian domestic senior men's cricket season, which currently consists of the first-class Sheffield Shield, the limited overs Ford Ranger Cup, and...

, the smallest state.

The first match against Western Australia saw the hosts score 323, and the servicemen replied with 301; Miller top-scored with 80. The Western Australians reached 2/144 when time ran out. The second match against South Australia followed a similar pattern. The hosts replied to the Services' 314 with 319, and after Hassett's men replied with 255, the Bradman-led South Australians reached 1/130 when time ran out. Pepper took 4/100 and Ellis 5/88.

In the next match against Victoria at St Kilda, Hassett's men were hammered. Ian Johnson

Ian Johnson (cricketer)

took ten wickets for the match and the hosts bowled out the Servicemen for 118 and 182 to win by an inning and 156 runs. Miller top-scored in both innings with 37 and 59.

The military men had another difficult time against New South Wales

New South Wales Blues

The New South Wales cricket team are an Australian first class cricket team based in Sydney, New South Wales...

, as their opponents made 7/551 declared, with Test batsman Sid Barnes

Sid Barnes

Sidney George Barnes was an Australian cricketer and cricket writer, who played 13 Test matches between 1938 and 1948. Able to open the innings or bat down the order, Barnes was regarded as one of Australia's finest batsmen in the period immediately following the Second World War...

scoring a century. Apart from Miller, the Services batsmen struggled. Miller reached 74 as Services limped to 9/171. Services had no batsmen left with Pettiford injured and retired hurt, so O'Reilly allowed the twelfth man to Workman to be substituted in and allowed to bat, in order to give Miller a chance of making a century. Miller attacked and scored 31 of the last 33 runs, ending with an unbeaten 105, with 11 fours in 172 minutes. He earned plaudits among cricket pundits on Australian soil. Former leading Test batsman Alan Kippax

Alan Kippax

Alan Falconer Kippax was a cricketer for New South Wales and Australia. Regarded as one of the great stylists of Australian cricket during the era between the two World Wars, Kippax overcame a late start to Test cricket to become a regular in the Australian team between the 1928–29 and...

opined that "Australia has unearthed a new champion", claiming that he was finer than Jack Gregory and saying that "few batsmen I have watched have had his ability to blend beauty and power". O'Reilly said that Miller's century was "one of the best hundreds ever got against me". The Services were forced to follow on and were bowled out for 339 to fall to another innings defeat. The Services struggled against the leg spin of Colin McCool

Colin McCool

, who took 11 wickets in a drawn match against Queensland

Queensland Bulls

. The hosts were 5/186 in pursuit of 190 for victory when time ran out and saved Hassett's team. In the final match against Tasmania

Tasmanian Tigers

, the Services came as close as they would to a victory on Australian soil. After taking a 97-run first innings lead, they set Tasmania 292 for victory and the hosts held on for a draw with only wicket in hand. They were 9/166 when time ran out.

Johnson was involved in another administrative dispute during the Australian leg of the campaign. Cec Pepper

Cec Pepper

, whom teammates Keith Miller

Keith Miller

and Dick Whitington regarded as one of the best all rounders in the world and a certainty for Australian Test selection, appealed for leg before wicket

Leg before wicket

In the sport of cricket, leg before wicket is one of the ways in which a batsman can be dismissed. An umpire will rule a batsman out LBW under a series of circumstances which primarily include the ball striking the batsman's body when it would otherwise have continued on to hit the batsman's...

against Australian captain Don Bradman in the match against South Australia. The appeal was turned down and Pepper complained to the umpire, prompting Bradman, who was also a member of the Australian Board, to lodge a complaint about Pepper. Pepper was subsequently never selected for Australia. Cricket historian Gideon Haigh

Gideon Haigh

Gideon Clifford Jeffrey Davidson Haigh is an English-born Australian journalist, who writes about sport and business. He was born in London of a Yorkshire father and an Australian mother, and was raised in Geelong, Victoria.- Career :Haigh has been writing about sport and business for over...

said that "Johnson was clearly upset by the affair, and also by the failure of the [national] selection panel [Bradman among them] ... to send Pepper, second only to Miller as a cricketer in the Services XI, to New Zealand". Johnson tried to intercede on Pepper's behalf to no avail, although the other board members claimed that no directive had been given to the selectors to exclude Pepper.

This capped a poor end to the long and taxing Australian Services campaign. As the military men played poorly in Australia, the national selectors concluded that their achievements against England must have been against weak opposition, and only Hassett and Miller were selected for the Australian tour of New Zealand.

External sources

http://www.ascacricket.net.au/Hassett_1945.htm
http://www.ausport.gov.au/fulltext/1997/sportsf/sf970425.htm
http://www.abc.net.au/stateline/sa/content/2006/s1627653.htm

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.