Bruce Pairaudeau
Encyclopedia
Bruce Hamilton Pairaudeau (born April 14, 1931, Georgetown
, British Guiana
(now Georgetown, Guyana) was a West Indian cricket
er who played in 13 Test
s between 1953 and 1957.
Bruce Pairaudeau was a bespectacled right-handed batsman, often used as an opener, whose career never quite fulfilled its early promise. Picked for his first first-class match for British Guiana before his 16th birthday, he scored a century in his third match aged 16 years and five months. But opportunities for first-class cricket were rare in West Indian cricket at this stage, and Pairaudeau came to England in 1950 to play Lancashire League cricket with Burnley.
In late 1952, he returned to Guyana and did well enough in two first-class matches to be drafted into the team for the first Test against India
in January 1953. Batting at No 6, Pairaudeau scored 115 and put on 219 for the fifth wicket with Everton Weekes
. For the remaining four Tests in the series he was promoted to open the innings and, though he made only one score of more than 50, he finished the series with 257 runs at an average of more than 32 runs per innings.
The following winter against the England tourists
, though, he was picked for only two of the Tests, scoring 71 in the second match but failing in the fourth, and when the Australians
toured in 1954-55, he was not chosen at all.
He was picked, however, for the somewhat makeshift West Indies side which made the first official tour of New Zealand in 1955-56. Lacking Clyde Walcott
and Frank Worrell
of the established West Indian batsman, the side often struggled for runs, and Pairaudeau scored just 101 runs in six innings in the four Tests. The fourth Test of the series at Auckland provided New Zealand
with its first-ever victory in Test cricket.
Pairaudeau's final Tests came on the tour of England in 1957, which was not a success for him. He hit 127 against Cambridge University
and a career-best 163 against Hampshire
, but in 31 other innings on the tour he managed fewer than 500 runs. He played in the first and fourth Tests, but failed to get into double figures in his four innings. Those matches were the end of his Test career, at the age of 26.
Pairaudeau then emigrated to New Zealand and began playing, in 1958-59, for Northern Districts. Consistent rather than spectacular – he scored only one century in eight years in New Zealand – he was a regular in the side for seven seasons and in 1962-63 he captained Northern Districts to its first-ever victory in the Plunket Shield competition.
Georgetown, Guyana
Georgetown, estimated population 239,227 , is the capital and largest city of Guyana, located in the Demerara-Mahaica region. It is situated on the Atlantic Ocean coast at the mouth of the Demerara River and it was nicknamed 'Garden City of the Caribbean.' Georgetown is located at . The city serves...
, British Guiana
British Guiana
British Guiana was the name of the British colony on the northern coast of South America, now the independent nation of Guyana.The area was originally settled by the Dutch at the start of the 17th century as the colonies of Essequibo, Demerara, and Berbice...
(now Georgetown, Guyana) was a West Indian 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...
er who played in 13 Test
Test cricket
Test cricket is the longest form of the sport of cricket. Test matches are played between national representative teams with "Test status", as determined by the International Cricket Council , with four innings played between two teams of 11 players over a period of up to a maximum five days...
s between 1953 and 1957.
Bruce Pairaudeau was a bespectacled right-handed batsman, often used as an opener, whose career never quite fulfilled its early promise. Picked for his first first-class match for British Guiana before his 16th birthday, he scored a century in his third match aged 16 years and five months. But opportunities for first-class cricket were rare in West Indian cricket at this stage, and Pairaudeau came to England in 1950 to play Lancashire League cricket with Burnley.
In late 1952, he returned to Guyana and did well enough in two first-class matches to be drafted into the team for the first Test against India
Indian cricket team
The Indian cricket team is the national cricket team of India. Governed by the Board of Control for Cricket in India , it is a full member of the International Cricket Council with Test and One Day International status....
in January 1953. Batting at No 6, Pairaudeau scored 115 and put on 219 for the fifth wicket with Everton Weekes
Everton Weekes
Sir Everton DeCourcy Weekes, KCMG, GCM, OBE is a leading former West Indian cricketer. Along with Frank Worrell and Clyde Walcott, he formed what was known as "The Three Ws" of West Indian cricket.-Youth and early career:...
. For the remaining four Tests in the series he was promoted to open the innings and, though he made only one score of more than 50, he finished the series with 257 runs at an average of more than 32 runs per innings.
The following winter against the England tourists
English cricket team
The England and Wales cricket team is a cricket team which represents England and Wales. Until 1992 it also represented Scotland. Since 1 January 1997 it has been governed by the England and Wales Cricket Board , having been previously governed by Marylebone Cricket Club from 1903 until the end...
, though, he was picked for only two of the Tests, scoring 71 in the second match but failing in the fourth, and when the Australians
Australian cricket team
The Australian cricket team is the national cricket team of Australia. It is the joint oldest team in Test cricket, having played in the first Test match in 1877...
toured in 1954-55, he was not chosen at all.
He was picked, however, for the somewhat makeshift West Indies side which made the first official tour of New Zealand in 1955-56. Lacking Clyde Walcott
Clyde Walcott
Sir Clyde Leopold Walcott, KA, GCM was a West Indian cricketer. Walcott was a member of the "three W's", the other two being Everton Weekes and Frank Worrell: all were very successful batsmen from Barbados, born within a short distance of each other in Bridgetown, Barbados in a period of 18...
and Frank Worrell
Frank Worrell
Sir Frank Mortimer Maglinne Worrell is sometimes referred to by his nickname of Tae and was a West Indies cricketer and Jamaican senator...
of the established West Indian batsman, the side often struggled for runs, and Pairaudeau scored just 101 runs in six innings in the four Tests. The fourth Test of the series at Auckland provided New Zealand
New Zealand cricket team
The New Zealand cricket team, nicknamed the Black Caps, are the national cricket team representing New Zealand. They played their first in 1930 against England in Christchurch, New Zealand, becoming the fifth country to play Test cricket. It took the team until 1955–56 to win a Test, against the...
with its first-ever victory in Test cricket.
Pairaudeau's final Tests came on the tour of England in 1957, which was not a success for him. He hit 127 against Cambridge University
Cambridge University Cricket Club
Cambridge University Cricket Club is a first-class cricket team. It now plays all but one of its first-class cricket matches as part of the Cambridge University Centre of Cricketing Excellence , which includes Anglia Ruskin University...
and a career-best 163 against Hampshire
Hampshire County Cricket Club
Hampshire County Cricket Club represents the historic county of Hampshire in cricket's County Championship. The club was founded in 1863 as a successor to the Hampshire county cricket teams and has played at the Antelope Ground from then until 1885, before moving to the County Ground where it...
, but in 31 other innings on the tour he managed fewer than 500 runs. He played in the first and fourth Tests, but failed to get into double figures in his four innings. Those matches were the end of his Test career, at the age of 26.
Pairaudeau then emigrated to New Zealand and began playing, in 1958-59, for Northern Districts. Consistent rather than spectacular – he scored only one century in eight years in New Zealand – he was a regular in the side for seven seasons and in 1962-63 he captained Northern Districts to its first-ever victory in the Plunket Shield competition.