Ernie Toshack with the Australian cricket team in England in 1948
Encyclopedia
Ernie Toshack
was a member of Donald Bradman
's famous Australian cricket team, which toured England in 1948 and was undefeated in their 34 matches. This unprecedented feat by a Test side touring England earned Bradman's men the sobriquet The Invincibles.
A left-arm medium-pace
seam bowler
, Toshack was a member of the first-choice team, and played in the first four Test matches
before succumbing to a persistent knee injury. Toshack contained the English batsmen with leg theory
in between the new ball
bursts of Keith Miller
and Ray Lindwall
. He took 11 wickets in the Tests; his most notable performance was the 5/40 he took in the second innings of the Second Test at Lord's
. However, his knee failed in the first innings of the Fourth Test when he took 1/112. He was unable to bowl in the second innings and missed the Fifth Test, marking the end of his Test career.
For the entire tour, Toshack took 50 first-class
wickets at a bowling average
of 21.12 with four five-wicket innings hauls, including a best of 7/81 against Yorkshire
at Bramall Lane
. He also took 6/51 in the first innings of the match against the Marylebone Cricket Club
, who were almost entirely represented by English Test cricketers, playing a key part in an innings victory. With little batting ability, Toshack usually batted last in Australia's line-up
and scored 78 runs at a batting average
of 8.66, the worst first-class aggregate and average among the tourists. However, in the Tests, he was dismissed
only once and averaged 51.00 with a series of tail-wagging performances, including his career best of 20 not out
.
debut in the 1945–46 upon the resumption of cricket after World War II. His performances were enough to ensure his selection for the tour of New Zealand
in early-1946, where Toshack made his Test debut in the one-off match against the hosts' national team. From then on, Toshack was a regular member of the national team and played in every Test over the next two summers, fitness permitting. Toshack played in eight of the 11 Tests during this period, taking 36 wickets. Towards the end of the Test series against India in 1947–48 in Australia, knee injuries began to hamper Toshack, and he was in doubt for the 1948 tour of England. He only made the trip after a 3–2 majority vote by a medical panel, despite being one of the first players chosen by the selectors on cricketing merit. Two Melbourne
doctors ruled him unfit, but three specialists from his home state of New South Wales
presented a more optimistic outlook; this allowed him to tour. As a member of Bradman's Invincibles, the tour was to immortalise him in cricketing history. He grew tired of signing autographs during the sea voyage to England, and entrusted a friend with the task. However, his friend was unaware of the correct spelling of his name; as a result, there are still sheets in circulation signed Toshak. The team manager Keith Johnson gave Toshack a talking to over this incident.
. Toshack was included, reinforcing the new ball attack of Lindwall and Miller and the off spin
and leg spin
of Ian Johnson
and Colin McCool
respectively. Australia bowled first, and Toshack took two quick wickets to reduce the hosts to 3/158 after a 137-run second wicket partnership
. Toshack ended with 2/39 as Australia dismissed Worcestershire for 233. He was not required to bat as Australia made 8/462 declared
, and then took 1/40 in the second innings as the tourists started their campaign with an innings victory, setting the tone for the summer.
Toshack was then rested for the second tour match against Leicestershire
, which Australia won by an innings. He then missed the next match against Yorkshire
, as Australia came closest to losing a match on the tour, scraping home by four wickets on a damp wicket
.
Toshack returned as the Australians travelled to London to play Surrey
at The Oval
, and he had his first outing with the bat on English soil, coming in last and scoring eight to help wicket-keeper Don Tallon
add 33 for the final wicket before Australia were bowled out for 632. Toshack bowled without success in the first innings and took one wicket in the second innings, that of Arthur McIntyre, to end with match figures of 1/54 as Surrey were defeated by an innings. Toshack then took 2/32 in the first innings against Cambridge University
, and did not bat as Australia declared at 4/414. He then took 0/9 from eight overs
in the second innings, as Australia completed another innings victory. He then played in the match against Essex
where Australia made 721 runs on the first day to set a new world record for the most runs scored in a day of first-class cricket. However, Toshack only contributed four runs batting at No. 11. In the first innings, Toshack took the last five wickets to fall, including the top-scorer Ray Smith for 25, ending with 5/31 from 10.5 overs as the hosts capitulated for 83, unable to cope with his swing. Australia enforced the follow on and Toshack took a further 2/50 in the second innings as Australia won by an innings and 451 runs, the largest margin of the tour. He then faced Oxford University
, scoring two runs in Australia's 431. Toshack then took three lower order wickets in the first innings to end with 3/34 from 22 overs, sending down more overs than any other Australian. He took 3/37 in the second innings as Australia completed another innings victory after enforcing the follow on. The Oxford batsmen had trouble with the seam movement of Toshack.
Toshack was retained for the match against the Marylebone Cricket Club
at Lord's. The MCC fielded seven players who would represent England in the Tests, and were basically a full strength Test team, while Australia fielded their first-choice team. It was a chance to gain a psychological advantage, with Len Hutton
, Denis Compton
and Bill Edrich
, three of England's first four batsmen in the Tests, all playing. Toshack was the last man in and made two, accompanying Lindwall in a 20-run final wicket stand as Australia totalled 552.
After the MCC had reached 2/91, Toshack broke through the middle order
. He had Compton caught behind by Don Tallon
for 26, before trapping the incoming batsman Martin Donnelly
—a New Zealand Test player—leg before wicket
for five, and then having Hutton caught by vice-captain Lindsay Hassett
for 52 a run later, leaving the hosts at 5/104. After the hosts recovered to 6/148, Toshack removed Test all rounder Ken Cranston
, Test wicket-keeper Billy Griffith and spinner Jack Young
to leave the MCC at 9/166. The MCC were eventually dismissed for 189, conceding a first innings lead of 363 runs. Toshack had taken 6/51 from 27 overs, and Bradman only allowed him four overs of rest. The Australian captain opted to enforce the follow on and allowed Toshack a lighter load in the second innings, bowling 15 overs and taking 1/43. He removed Edrich as the MCC fell for 205 in 60.2 overs to lose by an innings and 158 runs. Toshack had sent down the most overs by any Australian bowler in both innings. Bradman regarded Toshack's first innings performance as his best of the tour. Toshack again focused on the leg stump, which some English observers decried as being negative. However, former Australian Test batsman Jack Fingleton
said that Toshack's line was close enough to leg stump that most balls had to be played.
In the next match against Lancashire
, Toshack made four in Australia's 204, before claiming both openers
after they had put on 48, including Test batsman Cyril Washbrook
. Toshack ended with 2/40 as the match ended in a draw after the first day was washed out. It was Australia's first non-victory of the tour. After six consecutive matches in the space of 21 days, Toshack was rested for the next two matches against Nottinghamshire
at Trent Bridge
and Hampshire
; the matches ended in a draw and an eight-wicket Australian win respectively.
Toshack returned for the final county match against Sussex
before the First Test. He did not take a wicket but pinned down the local batsmen as Lindwall blasted them out with match figures of 11/59. Eight of Lindwall's victims had their stumps knocked over. Toshack bowled 15 overs for 23 runs in the first innings as the hosts were skittled for 86. He did not bat as Australia made 5/549 and then returned in the second innings for 17 overs that yielded only three scoring shots for a total of six runs. He finished the match with a total of 0/29 from 32 overs.
was a quiet one, taking a single wicket in each innings. England won the toss and elected to bat. Toshack trapped the home captain Norman Yardley
leg before wicket with a ball that straightened after pitching, ending with 1/28 as England were bowled out for 165. Toshack then came to the wicket at 9/476 and was involved in an aggressive final wicket partnership of 33 with Johnston, scoring 19 runs—his best at Test level to date—in just 18 minutes, batting in a carefree and freewheeling manner, before falling lbw to Alec Bedser
, ending Australia's innings on 509 with a 344-run lead.
During the second innings, Bradman thought that rain might come so he utilised Toshack to bowl defensive leg theory
. He did so to slow the scoring so that England would not have a lead by the time the rain came to create a sticky wicket
, otherwise Australia would have been forced to chase a target on a difficult pitch with irregular bounce and pace. As the umpires were obliged to not call off play unless the light was so poor as endanger the batsman, the lack of pace of Johnson and Toshack forced proceedings to continue as they posed no injury threat to the batsmen. Early on the fourth morning, Toshack were able to make the ball deviate regularly while bowling to Hutton and Denis Compton
, but Bradman opted to have Miller take the new ball in the fifth over of the day as soon as it was available, taking Toshack off. Later, Toshack was used defensively while Miller attacked from the other end. Bradman's response to a boundary being hit from Toshack was to further stack the leg side with fielders in defensive positions, and scoring was slow as Toshack bowled accurately. Toshack took the wicket of Joe Hardstaff junior
for 43, who holed out to Hassett on the leg side
, having supported Denis Compton
in a partnership of 93. The ball looped up in the air and travelled half-way to the square leg boundary, but Hassett managed to keep track of its trajectory through the fog. Toshack ended with 1/60 from 33 overs as Australia were one bowler short after an injury to Lindwall had prevented him from bowling since the first afternoon. England were bowled out for 441 and Australia reached the target of 98 with eight wickets in hand.
Toshack was rested for the first tour match after the First Test against Northamptonshire
, which Australia won by an innings. He returned against Yorkshire at Bramall Lane
, Sheffield
, making four as Australia batted first and scored 249. He then recorded the best innings analysis of his first-class career, taking 7/81 from 40 consecutive overs, bemusing the Yorkshire
spectators with his Australian accent and distinctive "Ow Wizz Ee" appealing
. He removed both openers, including Hutton, and then bowled Yorkshire and England captain Norman Yardley
to leave the hosts at 3/107. After Yorkshire reached 4/149, Toshack took four more wickets as the hosts collapsed to be all out for 206. Wicket-keeper Ron Saggers
stood up to the wickets and stumped Ted Lester
before Toshack removed three lower-order batsmen. Toshack did not bat or bowl again as the match petered into a draw. Bradman decided to bat until late on the third afternoon and secure a draw instead of pressing for a win; Yorkshire only batted for 27 overs in their second innings and the crowd booed Bradman for not pursuing a victory. With the match safe, Bradman elected to rely mainly on his second-choice bowlers to conserve his frontline bowlers' energy for the next Test.
. Australia regained the momentum, adding 92 runs in 66 minutes of hitting in the morning. One sequence of two overs from Edrich was taken for 28 runs, with many balls unintentionally spooned over the slips or the covers. Both players swung wildly at the ball, which often went in vastly different directions to where they had aimed their shots. Both made new Test best scores; Toshack scored 20 not out
. Both Johnston and Toshack—not known for their batting ability—played without inhibitions, joyfully revelling in their luck. England were then bowled out for 215. Toshack was wicketless, but was the most economical of the bowlers, conceding only 23 runs from his 18 overs. Toshack operated after the first new ball was taken, and as England had fallen to 4/46, they played him cautiously in an attempt to rebuild the innings. Australia then declared at 7/460 in their second innings with Toshack not required to bat, leaving England a target of 596.
England progressed to 1/52 in their run-chase before a double strike by Toshack. Edrich and Washbrook fell in quick succession to leave England at 3/65. Edrich edged to Johnson low down in the slips and Tallon took a difficult catch to remove Washbrook. Edrich decided to stand his ground after the catch was taken, thinking that he may have hit a bump ball into the ground before it flew to Johnson, but the umpire ruled otherwise and gave him out. Washbrook inside edged a Toshack full toss
directly downwards at Tallon's ankle. Bradman described the catch as "miraculous" because Tallon had to reach so low, so quickly, in order to complete the catch. English commentator John Arlott
speculated that Edrich and Washbrook may have lost concentration after Lindwall was replaced by Toshack, lulled into a false sense of security once Australia's leading bowler was no longer operating. England then recovered to be 3/106 at stumps on the fourth day.
Yardley and Tom Dollery
took the score to 4/133 on the final morning before Toshack bowled
the former for 11. He then trapped Alec Coxon
two balls later in the same over for a duck
, leaving England at 6/133. Coxon shuffled across his stumps and missed his first delivery, which hit him in front of the stumps and prompted a loud lbw appeal, and did the same thing to the next ball, and the umpire upheld the Australians' second appeal. During this spell, Toshack conceded only seven runs from eight overs, but was taken off as Bradman wanted to take the new ball and utilise Lindwall and Johnston. The match ended when Doug Wright
hit Toshack to Lindwall and England were bowled out for 186, sealing a 409-run win for Australia. Toshack ended with 5/40 from 20.1 overs with Miller unable to bowl due to injury. During the second innings performance, Toshack employed two short legs and a silly mid-off. Arlott said that while Toshack had the best figures, Lindwall was the pivotal figure, at the latter "so patently disturbed Hutton he struck a blow at the morale of the English batting that was never overcome."
A match against Surrey
started the day after the Second Test ended, but Bradman nevertheless asked Toshack to bowl 20 overs as Surrey batted first. He took 2/76 including opposition captain Errol Holmes
. In reply to the hosts' 221, Toshack made one in Australia's total of 389. He then removed Arthur McIntyre and Eric Bedser
in the second innings and ended with 2/29 as Australia won by ten wickets. Toshack was then rested after playing 12 days of cricket in two weeks, missing the innings victory over Gloucestershire
.
repeatedly defended a sequence of deliveries to Arthur Morris
at silly point. As the hosts were in trouble, they played cautiously and Toshack's first five overs were all maidens. Crapp then hit Toshack to Sid Barnes
at short leg, but the catch was dropped. However, Crapp did not capitalise as Toshack conceded only eight runs in a sequence of eight overs.
Halfway through the day, England fell to 5/119, and captain Yardley came in. He hit Toshack in the air, but Barnes was unable to complete the reflex catch at short leg. However, this error did not cost many runs. Yardley lofted Toshack into the on-side and the hands of Johnson at forward square leg to fall for 22 with the score at 6/141. Toshack’s defensive bowling had caused the English skipper to lose patience and his departure for 22 left the score on 141/6. Toshack bowled Dick Pollard
late in the innings to finish with 2/75 from 41 overs—including 20 maidens
—as England ended with 363. Toshack was unbeaten on zero and was only at the crease for one minute as Australia replied with 221. In the second innings, Toshack removed Compton for a duck, caught in the slips by Miller, and ended with 1/26 as the rain-affected match ended in a draw. He also had Washbrook dropped in the slips cordon by Johnson, one of several times that the batsman was reprieved during the innings.
After bowling 53 overs in the Third Test, Toshack was rested for the match against Middlesex
. It was the only tour match before the Fourth Test, and Australia won by ten wickets.
edged Toshack through the slips and was then dropped on 25. Hutton eventually reached 81 as the opening pair put on 168. Toshack was wicketless as the hosts closed the first day at 2/268. The following morning, he was removed from the attack after night-watchman Bedser hit him for three consecutive fours. After the lunch break, Toshack bowled Jack Crapp
with an inside-edged half volley for five to leave England at 5/447. Toshack ended with an ineffective 1/112 from 35 overs as England made 496. He was the most expensive and uneconomical of the frontline bowlers and it was his most uneconomical performance in the Tests. He aggravated his knee injury and was later taken to London
for cartilage surgery, ending his bowling duties for the match and his Test career.
Late on the third day, Toshack was part of a rearguard Australian action that minimised England's first innings lead. He came to the crease at 9/403 to accompany Lindwall, featuring in a 55-run stand and lasting the final 50 minutes until stumps, with Johnston running for him
. Australia were 9/457 at stumps, with Lindwall on 76 and Toshack on 12. Lindwall farmed the strike by trying to hit boundaries and twos during the over, but Yardley did not resort to the tactic of setting a deep field to yield a single to Lindwall to get Toshack on strike. Despite Toshack and Johnston’s lack of familiarity with having and acting as a runner respectively, and the resulting disorders in running between the wickets, Lindwall was able to manipulate the strike so that he faced most of the balls. On the next morning of play, Toshack did not add to his score before Lindwall was dismissed and Australia ended at 458 in the third over of the day, leaving the tourists 38 runs in arrears on the first innings. Toshack did not bowl in the second innings as England made 8/365 and set Australia a target of 404 for victory on the last day. Australia achieved the runs with seven wickets in hand, setting a new world record for the highest successful run-chase in Tests.
After the injury at Headingley, Toshack was out of action for two weeks, missing the matches against Derbyshire
, Glamorgan
and Warwickshire
. These fixtures ended in an innings victory, a rain-affected draw and a nine-wicket win respectively. He returned against Lancashire
and scored two in Australia's 321. He then bowled seven overs in the first innings, taking 0/17. He aggravated his injury and did not bowl in the second innings and did not play again for the tour. As a result, Toshack missed the last Test and eight further tour matches, three of which were not first-class. Australia won the Fifth Test by an innings in Toshack's absence to win the series 4–0, and proceeded through the remaining tour matches undefeated.
A left-arm medium-pace
seamer
, Toshack was a member of Bradman's first-choice team and he played in the first four Tests before being struck down by a persistent knee injury. Toshack contained the English batsmen using leg theory in between the new ball bursts of Miller and Lindwall, usually bowling second change after Miller, Lindwall and Johnston. The English press decried Toshack's style of bowling as negative, but Jack Fingleton
said that "he is generally so close to the stumps that nearly every ball has to be played".
During the Tests, Toshack took 11 wickets at 33.09; his most notable performance was his 5/40 in the second innings of the Second Test at Lord's. Of the four frontline pacemen, Toshack had the second best economy rate, although with his leg stump bowling, he also had a strike rate
of 94.45, while the other three fast bowlers all had strike rates below 70. It was a similar tale in the first-class statistics, with the second best economy among the seven frontline bowlers, but the worst strike rate. For the entire tour, Toshack took 50 wickets at 21.12 with four five-wicket innings hauls, including a best of 7/81 against Yorkshire at Bramall Lane. He also took 6/51 in the first innings of the match against the Marylebone Cricket Club
, which was almost entirely represented by English Test cricketers. Toshack took two catches on tour, none of them in the Tests.
An inept batsman with an average
of 5.78 in his first-class career, Toshack managed a Test average of 51.00 on the 1948 tour after being dismissed only once, behind only Arthur Morris
, Sid Barnes
, Bradman and Neil Harvey
. The unbeaten 20 he managed in the Lord's Test was his best first-class score, made in a freewheeling tenth-wicket stand with Johnston.
During the tour, Toshack had few opportunities with the bat, invariably being placed at either No. 10 and No. 11 in the order alongside Johnston, another tailender with little batting ability.N- Neither player ever passed 30 in their career, and they were the only two players who failed to make a half-century during the tour. As Australia's other specialist bowlers were Lindwall, McCool, Johnson and Doug Ring
, all of whom made centuries and more than 18 fifties each during their first-class career, Toshack and Johnston were invariably rooted at the bottom of the order. As Australia often won by an innings, and declared in the first innings many times due to their batting strength, Toshack only had 12 innings in his 15 first-class fixtures, never batted in the second innings, and scored 78 runs at 8.66. Of the 78 runs, 51 came from four Test innings in Toshack's four Tests.
Due to the fragility of his knee, Toshack was used sparingly in the tour games, playing in only 11 of the 29 non-Test matches on the tour, the least of any player. Toshack was unable to play in the last nine matches of the tour, having injured himself in the second match against Lancashire.
Ernie Toshack
Ernest Raymond Herbert Toshack was an Australian cricketer who played in 12 Tests from 1946 to 1948. A left arm medium paced bowler who was known for his accuracy and stamina in his application of leg theory, Toshack was best known for being as member of Don Bradman's Invincibles that toured...
was a member of Donald Bradman
Donald Bradman
Sir Donald George Bradman, AC , often referred to as "The Don", was an Australian cricketer, widely acknowledged as the greatest batsman of all time...
's famous Australian cricket team, which toured England in 1948 and was undefeated in their 34 matches. This unprecedented feat by a Test side touring England earned Bradman's men the sobriquet The Invincibles.
A left-arm medium-pace
Fast bowling
Fast bowling, sometimes known as pace bowling, is one of the two main approaches to bowling in the sport of cricket. The other is spin bowling...
seam bowler
Seam bowling
Seam bowling is a phrase used for a bowling technique in cricket whereby the ball is deliberately bowled on to its seam, to cause a random deviation. Practitioners are known as seam bowlers or seamers....
, Toshack was a member of the first-choice team, and played in the first four Test matches
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...
before succumbing to a persistent knee injury. Toshack contained the English batsmen with leg theory
Leg theory
Leg theory is a bowling tactic in the sport of cricket. The term leg theory is somewhat archaic and seldom used any more, but the basic tactic still plays a part in modern cricket....
in between the new ball
Cricket ball
A cricket ball is a hard, solid leather ball used to play cricket. Constructed of cork and leather, a cricket ball is heavily regulated by cricket law at first class level...
bursts of 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...
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...
. He took 11 wickets in the Tests; his most notable performance was the 5/40 he took in the second innings of the Second Test at Lord's
Lord's Cricket Ground
Lord's Cricket Ground is a cricket venue in St John's Wood, London. Named after its founder, Thomas Lord, it is owned by Marylebone Cricket Club and is the home of Middlesex County Cricket Club, the England and Wales Cricket Board , the European Cricket Council and, until August 2005, the...
. However, his knee failed in the first innings of the Fourth Test when he took 1/112. He was unable to bowl in the second innings and missed the Fifth Test, marking the end of his Test career.
For the entire tour, Toshack took 50 first-class
First-class cricket
First-class cricket is a class of cricket that consists of matches of three or more days' scheduled duration, that are between two sides of eleven players and are officially adjudged first-class by virtue of the standard of the competing teams...
wickets at a bowling average
Bowling average
Bowling average is a statistic measuring the performance of bowlers in the sport of cricket.A bowler's bowling average is defined as the total number of runs conceded by the bowlers divided by the number of wickets taken by the bowler, so the lower the average the better. It is similar to earned...
of 21.12 with four five-wicket innings hauls, including a best of 7/81 against Yorkshire
Yorkshire County Cricket Club
Yorkshire County Cricket Club represents the historic county of Yorkshire as one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure....
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...
. He also took 6/51 in the first innings of the match against the Marylebone Cricket Club
Marylebone Cricket Club
Marylebone Cricket Club is a cricket club in London founded in 1787. Its influence and longevity now witness it as a private members' club dedicated to the development of cricket. It owns, and is based at, Lord's Cricket Ground in St John's Wood, London NW8. MCC was formerly the governing body of...
, who were almost entirely represented by English Test cricketers, playing a key part in an innings victory. With little batting ability, Toshack usually batted last in Australia's line-up
Batting order (cricket)
In cricket, the batting order is the sequence in which batsmen play through their team's innings, there always being two batsmen taking part at any one time...
and scored 78 runs at a batting average
Batting average
Batting average is a statistic in both cricket and baseball that measures the performance of cricket batsmen and baseball hitters. The two statistics are related in that baseball averages are directly descended from the concept of cricket averages.- Cricket :...
of 8.66, the worst first-class aggregate and average among the tourists. However, in the Tests, he was dismissed
Dismissal (cricket)
In the sport of cricket, a dismissal occurs when the batsman is out . Colloquially, the fielding team is also said to have snared, bagged or captured a wicket. At this point a batsman must discontinue batting and leave the field permanently for the innings...
only once and averaged 51.00 with a series of tail-wagging performances, including his career best of 20 not out
Not out
In cricket, a batsman will be not out if he comes out to bat in an innings and has not been dismissed by the end of the innings. One may similarly describe a batsman as not out while the innings is still in progress...
.
Background
A left-arm medium-pacer, Toshack made his first-class cricketFirst-class cricket
First-class cricket is a class of cricket that consists of matches of three or more days' scheduled duration, that are between two sides of eleven players and are officially adjudged first-class by virtue of the standard of the competing teams...
debut in the 1945–46 upon the resumption of cricket after World War II. His performances were enough to ensure his selection for the tour of 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 early-1946, where Toshack made his Test debut in the one-off match against the hosts' national team. From then on, Toshack was a regular member of the national team and played in every Test over the next two summers, fitness permitting. Toshack played in eight of the 11 Tests during this period, taking 36 wickets. Towards the end of the Test series against India in 1947–48 in Australia, knee injuries began to hamper Toshack, and he was in doubt for the 1948 tour of England. He only made the trip after a 3–2 majority vote by a medical panel, despite being one of the first players chosen by the selectors on cricketing merit. Two Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
doctors ruled him unfit, but three specialists from his home state of New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
presented a more optimistic outlook; this allowed him to tour. As a member of Bradman's Invincibles, the tour was to immortalise him in cricketing history. He grew tired of signing autographs during the sea voyage to England, and entrusted a friend with the task. However, his friend was unaware of the correct spelling of his name; as a result, there are still sheets in circulation signed Toshak. The team manager Keith Johnson gave Toshack a talking to over this incident.
Early tour matches
Australia traditionally fielded its first-choice team in the tour opener, which was customarily against WorcestershireWorcestershire County Cricket Club
Worcestershire County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Worcestershire...
. Toshack was included, reinforcing the new ball attack of Lindwall and Miller and the off spin
Off spin
Off spin is a type of bowling in the sport of cricket which is bowled by an off spinner, a right-handed spin bowler who uses his or her fingers and/or wrist to spin the ball from a right-handed batsman's off side to the leg side...
and 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...
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 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...
respectively. Australia bowled first, and Toshack took two quick wickets to reduce the hosts to 3/158 after a 137-run second wicket partnership
Partnership (cricket)
In the sport of cricket, two batsmen always bat in partnership, although only one is on strike at any time. The partnership between two batsmen will come to an end when one of them is dismissed or retires, or the innings comes to a close In the sport of cricket, two batsmen always bat in...
. Toshack ended with 2/39 as Australia dismissed Worcestershire for 233. He was not required to bat as Australia made 8/462 declared
Declaration and forfeiture
In the sport of cricket a declaration occurs when a captain declares his team's innings closed and a forfeiture is when a captain chooses to forfeit an innings. Declaration and forfeiture are covered in Law 14 of the Laws of cricket...
, and then took 1/40 in the second innings as the tourists started their campaign with an innings victory, setting the tone for the summer.
Toshack was then rested for the second tour match against Leicestershire
Leicestershire County Cricket Club
Leicestershire County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh national cricket structure, representing the historic county of Leicestershire. It has also been representative of the county of Rutland....
, which Australia won by an innings. He then missed the next match against Yorkshire
Yorkshire County Cricket Club
Yorkshire County Cricket Club represents the historic county of Yorkshire as one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure....
, as Australia came closest to losing a match on the tour, scraping home by four wickets on a damp wicket
Sticky wicket
Sticky wicket is a metaphor used to describe a difficult circumstance; it originates from difficult circumstances in the sport of cricket.-Origins:...
.
Toshack returned as the Australians travelled to London to play Surrey
Surrey County Cricket Club
Surrey County Cricket Club is one of the 18 professional county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Surrey. Its limited overs team is called the Surrey Lions...
at The Oval
The Oval
The Kia Oval, still commonly referred to by its original name of The Oval, is an international cricket ground in Kennington, in the London Borough of Lambeth. In the past it was also sometimes called the Kennington Oval...
, and he had his first outing with the bat on English soil, coming in last and scoring eight to help wicket-keeper Don Tallon
Don Tallon
Donald "Don" Tallon was an Australian cricketer who played 21 Test matches as a wicket-keeper between 1946 and 1953...
add 33 for the final wicket before Australia were bowled out for 632. Toshack bowled without success in the first innings and took one wicket in the second innings, that of Arthur McIntyre, to end with match figures of 1/54 as Surrey were defeated by an innings. Toshack then took 2/32 in the first innings 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 did not bat as Australia declared at 4/414. He then took 0/9 from eight overs
Over (cricket)
In the sport of cricket, an over is a set of six consecutive balls bowled in succession. An over is normally bowled by a single bowler. However, in the event of injury preventing a bowler from completing an over, it is completed by a teammate....
in the second innings, as Australia completed another innings victory. He then played in the match against Essex
Essex County Cricket Club
Essex County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh national cricket structure, representing the historic county of Essex. Its limited overs team is called the Essex Eagles, their team colours this season are blue.The club plays most of its home games...
where Australia made 721 runs on the first day to set a new world record for the most runs scored in a day of first-class cricket. However, Toshack only contributed four runs batting at No. 11. In the first innings, Toshack took the last five wickets to fall, including the top-scorer Ray Smith for 25, ending with 5/31 from 10.5 overs as the hosts capitulated for 83, unable to cope with his swing. Australia enforced the follow on and Toshack took a further 2/50 in the second innings as Australia won by an innings and 451 runs, the largest margin of the tour. He then faced 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...
, scoring two runs in Australia's 431. Toshack then took three lower order wickets in the first innings to end with 3/34 from 22 overs, sending down more overs than any other Australian. He took 3/37 in the second innings as Australia completed another innings victory after enforcing the follow on. The Oxford batsmen had trouble with the seam movement of Toshack.
Toshack was retained for the match against the Marylebone Cricket Club
Marylebone Cricket Club
Marylebone Cricket Club is a cricket club in London founded in 1787. Its influence and longevity now witness it as a private members' club dedicated to the development of cricket. It owns, and is based at, Lord's Cricket Ground in St John's Wood, London NW8. MCC was formerly the governing body of...
at Lord's. The MCC fielded seven players who would represent England in the Tests, and were basically a full strength Test team, while Australia fielded their first-choice team. It was a chance to gain a psychological advantage, with 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...
, Denis Compton
Denis Compton
Denis Charles Scott Compton CBE was an English cricketer who played in 78 Test matches, and a footballer...
and 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...
, three of England's first four batsmen in the Tests, all playing. Toshack was the last man in and made two, accompanying Lindwall in a 20-run final wicket stand as Australia totalled 552.
After the MCC had reached 2/91, Toshack broke through the middle order
Batting order (cricket)
In cricket, the batting order is the sequence in which batsmen play through their team's innings, there always being two batsmen taking part at any one time...
. He had Compton caught behind by Don Tallon
Don Tallon
Donald "Don" Tallon was an Australian cricketer who played 21 Test matches as a wicket-keeper between 1946 and 1953...
for 26, before trapping the incoming batsman Martin Donnelly
Martin Donnelly (cricketer)
Martin Paterson Donnelly was a New Zealand Test cricketer and England Rugby Union player.Born in Ngaruawahia, New Zealand, Donnelly's twin brother Maurice died in the Spanish flu epidemic in 1918. His sporting talent emerged quickly and Donnelly became known for his batting and fielding skills, as...
—a New Zealand Test player—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...
for five, and then having Hutton caught by vice-captain 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...
for 52 a run later, leaving the hosts at 5/104. After the hosts recovered to 6/148, Toshack removed Test all rounder Ken Cranston
Ken Cranston
Kenneth "Ken" Cranston was an English cricketer, who played first-class cricket for Lancashire and eight times for England, in 1947 and 1948. He retired from playing cricket to concentrate on his career as a dentist....
, Test wicket-keeper Billy Griffith and spinner Jack Young
Jack Young (cricketer)
John Albert "Jack" Young was an English cricketer, who played for Middlesex and England. His first-class cricket career lasted from 1933 to 1956....
to leave the MCC at 9/166. The MCC were eventually dismissed for 189, conceding a first innings lead of 363 runs. Toshack had taken 6/51 from 27 overs, and Bradman only allowed him four overs of rest. The Australian captain opted to enforce the follow on and allowed Toshack a lighter load in the second innings, bowling 15 overs and taking 1/43. He removed Edrich as the MCC fell for 205 in 60.2 overs to lose by an innings and 158 runs. Toshack had sent down the most overs by any Australian bowler in both innings. Bradman regarded Toshack's first innings performance as his best of the tour. Toshack again focused on the leg stump, which some English observers decried as being negative. However, former Australian Test batsman Jack Fingleton
Jack Fingleton
John "Jack" Henry Webb Fingleton OBE was an Australian cricketer who was trained as a journalist and became a political and cricket commentator after the end of his playing career...
said that Toshack's line was close enough to leg stump that most balls had to be played.
In the next match against Lancashire
Lancashire County Cricket Club
Lancashire County Cricket Club represents the historic county of Lancashire in cricket's County Championship. The club was founded in 1864 as a successor to Manchester Cricket Club and has played at Old Trafford since then...
, Toshack made four in Australia's 204, before claiming both openers
Batting order (cricket)
In cricket, the batting order is the sequence in which batsmen play through their team's innings, there always being two batsmen taking part at any one time...
after they had put on 48, including Test batsman 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...
. Toshack ended with 2/40 as the match ended in a draw after the first day was washed out. It was Australia's first non-victory of the tour. After six consecutive matches in the space of 21 days, Toshack was rested for the next two matches against Nottinghamshire
Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club
Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Nottinghamshire, and the current county champions. Its limited overs team is called the Nottinghamshire Outlaws...
at Trent Bridge
Trent Bridge
Trent Bridge is a Test, One-day international and County cricket ground located in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, England and is also the headquarters of Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club. As well as International cricket and Nottinghamshire's home games, the ground has hosted the Finals Day of...
and 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...
; the matches ended in a draw and an eight-wicket Australian win respectively.
Toshack returned for the final county match against Sussex
Sussex County Cricket Club
Sussex County Cricket Club is the oldest of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Sussex. The club was founded as a successor to Brighton Cricket Club which was a representative of the county of Sussex as a...
before the First Test. He did not take a wicket but pinned down the local batsmen as Lindwall blasted them out with match figures of 11/59. Eight of Lindwall's victims had their stumps knocked over. Toshack bowled 15 overs for 23 runs in the first innings as the hosts were skittled for 86. He did not bat as Australia made 5/549 and then returned in the second innings for 17 overs that yielded only three scoring shots for a total of six runs. He finished the match with a total of 0/29 from 32 overs.
First Test
Toshack's performance in the First Test at Trent BridgeTrent Bridge
Trent Bridge is a Test, One-day international and County cricket ground located in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, England and is also the headquarters of Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club. As well as International cricket and Nottinghamshire's home games, the ground has hosted the Finals Day of...
was a quiet one, taking a single wicket in each innings. England won the toss and elected to bat. Toshack trapped the home captain Norman Yardley
Norman Yardley
Norman Walter Dransfield Yardley was an English cricketer who played for Cambridge University, Yorkshire County Cricket Club and England, as a right-handed batsman and occasional bowler. An amateur, he captained Yorkshire from 1948 to 1955 and England on fourteen occasions between 1947 and 1950,...
leg before wicket with a ball that straightened after pitching, ending with 1/28 as England were bowled out for 165. Toshack then came to the wicket at 9/476 and was involved in an aggressive final wicket partnership of 33 with Johnston, scoring 19 runs—his best at Test level to date—in just 18 minutes, batting in a carefree and freewheeling manner, before falling lbw to Alec Bedser
Alec Bedser
Sir Alec Victor Bedser, CBE was a professional English cricketer. He was the chairman of selectors for the English national cricket team, and the president of Surrey County Cricket Club...
, ending Australia's innings on 509 with a 344-run lead.
During the second innings, Bradman thought that rain might come so he utilised Toshack to bowl defensive leg theory
Leg theory
Leg theory is a bowling tactic in the sport of cricket. The term leg theory is somewhat archaic and seldom used any more, but the basic tactic still plays a part in modern cricket....
. He did so to slow the scoring so that England would not have a lead by the time the rain came to create a sticky wicket
Sticky wicket
Sticky wicket is a metaphor used to describe a difficult circumstance; it originates from difficult circumstances in the sport of cricket.-Origins:...
, otherwise Australia would have been forced to chase a target on a difficult pitch with irregular bounce and pace. As the umpires were obliged to not call off play unless the light was so poor as endanger the batsman, the lack of pace of Johnson and Toshack forced proceedings to continue as they posed no injury threat to the batsmen. Early on the fourth morning, Toshack were able to make the ball deviate regularly while bowling to Hutton and Denis Compton
Denis Compton
Denis Charles Scott Compton CBE was an English cricketer who played in 78 Test matches, and a footballer...
, but Bradman opted to have Miller take the new ball in the fifth over of the day as soon as it was available, taking Toshack off. Later, Toshack was used defensively while Miller attacked from the other end. Bradman's response to a boundary being hit from Toshack was to further stack the leg side with fielders in defensive positions, and scoring was slow as Toshack bowled accurately. Toshack took the wicket of Joe Hardstaff junior
Joe Hardstaff junior
Joseph Hardstaff junior was an English cricketer, who played in twenty three Tests for England from 1935 to 1948...
for 43, who holed out to Hassett on the leg side
Leg side
The leg side, or on side, is defined to be a particular half of the field used to play the sport of cricket.From the point of view of a right-handed batsman facing the bowler, it is the left hand side of the cricket field...
, having supported Denis Compton
Denis Compton
Denis Charles Scott Compton CBE was an English cricketer who played in 78 Test matches, and a footballer...
in a partnership of 93. The ball looped up in the air and travelled half-way to the square leg boundary, but Hassett managed to keep track of its trajectory through the fog. Toshack ended with 1/60 from 33 overs as Australia were one bowler short after an injury to Lindwall had prevented him from bowling since the first afternoon. England were bowled out for 441 and Australia reached the target of 98 with eight wickets in hand.
Toshack was rested for the first tour match after the First Test against Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire County Cricket Club
Northamptonshire County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Northamptonshire. Its limited overs team is called the Northants Steelbacks. The traditional club colour is Maroon. During the...
, which Australia won by an innings. He returned against Yorkshire 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...
, 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...
, making four as Australia batted first and scored 249. He then recorded the best innings analysis of his first-class career, taking 7/81 from 40 consecutive overs, bemusing the Yorkshire
Yorkshire
Yorkshire is a historic county of northern England and the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its great size in comparison to other English counties, functions have been increasingly undertaken over time by its subdivisions, which have also been subject to periodic reform...
spectators with his Australian accent and distinctive "Ow Wizz Ee" appealing
Appeal (cricket)
In the sport of cricket, an appeal is the act of a player on the fielding team asking an umpire for a decision regarding whether a batsman is out or not. According to the Laws of Cricket, an umpire may not rule a batsman out unless the fielding side appeals...
. He removed both openers, including Hutton, and then bowled Yorkshire and England captain Norman Yardley
Norman Yardley
Norman Walter Dransfield Yardley was an English cricketer who played for Cambridge University, Yorkshire County Cricket Club and England, as a right-handed batsman and occasional bowler. An amateur, he captained Yorkshire from 1948 to 1955 and England on fourteen occasions between 1947 and 1950,...
to leave the hosts at 3/107. After Yorkshire reached 4/149, Toshack took four more wickets as the hosts collapsed to be all out for 206. Wicket-keeper Ron Saggers
Ron Saggers
Ronald Arthur Saggers was an Australian cricketer who played for New South Wales. He played briefly for the Australian team, playing six Tests between 1948 and 1950...
stood up to the wickets and stumped Ted Lester
Ted Lester
Edward Ibson Lester is an English first-class cricketer, who played for Yorkshire County Cricket Club....
before Toshack removed three lower-order batsmen. Toshack did not bat or bowl again as the match petered into a draw. Bradman decided to bat until late on the third afternoon and secure a draw instead of pressing for a win; Yorkshire only batted for 27 overs in their second innings and the crowd booed Bradman for not pursuing a victory. With the match safe, Bradman elected to rely mainly on his second-choice bowlers to conserve his frontline bowlers' energy for the next Test.
Second Test
Australia won the toss and batted first in the Second Test at Lord's. They were on the back foot at 7/258 at stumps on the first day. On the second morning, the Australian lower order counter-attacked; Toshack joined Johnston with the score at 9/320 and they put on 30 runs before Johnston was stumpedStump (cricket)
Stump is a term used in the sport of cricket where it has three different meanings:# part of the wicket# a manner of dismissing a batsman# the end of the day's play .-Part of the wicket:...
. Australia regained the momentum, adding 92 runs in 66 minutes of hitting in the morning. One sequence of two overs from Edrich was taken for 28 runs, with many balls unintentionally spooned over the slips or the covers. Both players swung wildly at the ball, which often went in vastly different directions to where they had aimed their shots. Both made new Test best scores; Toshack scored 20 not out
Not out
In cricket, a batsman will be not out if he comes out to bat in an innings and has not been dismissed by the end of the innings. One may similarly describe a batsman as not out while the innings is still in progress...
. Both Johnston and Toshack—not known for their batting ability—played without inhibitions, joyfully revelling in their luck. England were then bowled out for 215. Toshack was wicketless, but was the most economical of the bowlers, conceding only 23 runs from his 18 overs. Toshack operated after the first new ball was taken, and as England had fallen to 4/46, they played him cautiously in an attempt to rebuild the innings. Australia then declared at 7/460 in their second innings with Toshack not required to bat, leaving England a target of 596.
England progressed to 1/52 in their run-chase before a double strike by Toshack. Edrich and Washbrook fell in quick succession to leave England at 3/65. Edrich edged to Johnson low down in the slips and Tallon took a difficult catch to remove Washbrook. Edrich decided to stand his ground after the catch was taken, thinking that he may have hit a bump ball into the ground before it flew to Johnson, but the umpire ruled otherwise and gave him out. Washbrook inside edged a Toshack full toss
Full toss
A full toss is a type of delivery in the sport of cricket. It describes any delivery that reaches the batsman without bouncing on the pitch first....
directly downwards at Tallon's ankle. Bradman described the catch as "miraculous" because Tallon had to reach so low, so quickly, in order to complete the catch. English commentator John Arlott
John Arlott
Leslie Thomas John Arlott OBE was an English journalist, author and cricket commentator for the BBC's Test Match Special. He was also a poet, wine connoisseur and former police officer in Hampshire...
speculated that Edrich and Washbrook may have lost concentration after Lindwall was replaced by Toshack, lulled into a false sense of security once Australia's leading bowler was no longer operating. England then recovered to be 3/106 at stumps on the fourth day.
Yardley and Tom Dollery
Tom Dollery
Tom Dollery was an English cricketer, who played for England and Warwickshire.-Life and career:Born Horace Edgar Dollery in Reading, Berkshire, and playing Minor counties cricket for Berkshire at the age of 15, Dollery joined Warwickshire in 1934, and was a mainstay of the team until retirement in...
took the score to 4/133 on the final morning before Toshack bowled
Bowled
Bowled is a method of dismissing a batsman in the sport of cricket. This method of dismissal is covered by Law 30 of the Laws of cricket.A batsman is out bowled if his wicket is put down by a ball delivered by the bowler...
the former for 11. He then trapped Alec Coxon
Alec Coxon
Alexander "Alec" Coxon is a former English cricketer who played for Yorkshire. He also played one Test match for England in 1948. Cricket writer, Colin Bateman stated, "Coxon's Test career was abrupt - much like the man himself...
two balls later in the same over for a duck
Duck (cricket)
In the sport of cricket, a duck refers to a batsman's dismissal for a score of zero.-Origin of the term:The term is a shortening of the term "duck's egg", the latter being used long before Test cricket began...
, leaving England at 6/133. Coxon shuffled across his stumps and missed his first delivery, which hit him in front of the stumps and prompted a loud lbw appeal, and did the same thing to the next ball, and the umpire upheld the Australians' second appeal. During this spell, Toshack conceded only seven runs from eight overs, but was taken off as Bradman wanted to take the new ball and utilise Lindwall and Johnston. The match ended when Doug Wright
Doug Wright (cricketer)
Douglas Vivian Parson Wright, better known as Doug Wright was an English cricketer. A leg-spinner for Kent and England from 1932 to 1957 he took a record seven hat-tricks in first class cricket. He played for Kent for 25 years and was their first professional captain from late 1953 to 1956...
hit Toshack to Lindwall and England were bowled out for 186, sealing a 409-run win for Australia. Toshack ended with 5/40 from 20.1 overs with Miller unable to bowl due to injury. During the second innings performance, Toshack employed two short legs and a silly mid-off. Arlott said that while Toshack had the best figures, Lindwall was the pivotal figure, at the latter "so patently disturbed Hutton he struck a blow at the morale of the English batting that was never overcome."
A match against Surrey
Surrey County Cricket Club
Surrey County Cricket Club is one of the 18 professional county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Surrey. Its limited overs team is called the Surrey Lions...
started the day after the Second Test ended, but Bradman nevertheless asked Toshack to bowl 20 overs as Surrey batted first. He took 2/76 including opposition captain Errol Holmes
Errol Holmes
Errol Reginald Thorold Holmes, born at Calcutta on 21 August 1905 and died in London on 16 August 1960, was a cricketer who played for Oxford University, Surrey and England....
. In reply to the hosts' 221, Toshack made one in Australia's total of 389. He then removed Arthur McIntyre and Eric Bedser
Eric Bedser
Eric Arthur Bedser was a cricket player for Surrey County Cricket Club. He was the elder identical twin brother of Sir Alec , widely regarded as one of England's top bowlers of the 20th century...
in the second innings and ended with 2/29 as Australia won by ten wickets. Toshack was then rested after playing 12 days of cricket in two weeks, missing the innings victory over Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire County Cricket Club
Gloucestershire County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh national cricket structure, representing the historic county of Gloucestershire. Its limited overs team is called the Gloucestershire Gladiators....
.
Third Test
Toshack had a moderately successful Third Test, in which England elected to bat first. England lost two early wickets, and when Toshack came on, Jack CrappJack Crapp
John "Jack" Frederick Crapp was an English cricketer, who played first-class cricket for Gloucestershire between 1936 and 1956, and played for England on tour in the winter of 1948-49....
repeatedly defended a sequence of deliveries to 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...
at silly point. As the hosts were in trouble, they played cautiously and Toshack's first five overs were all maidens. Crapp then hit Toshack to 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...
at short leg, but the catch was dropped. However, Crapp did not capitalise as Toshack conceded only eight runs in a sequence of eight overs.
Halfway through the day, England fell to 5/119, and captain Yardley came in. He hit Toshack in the air, but Barnes was unable to complete the reflex catch at short leg. However, this error did not cost many runs. Yardley lofted Toshack into the on-side and the hands of Johnson at forward square leg to fall for 22 with the score at 6/141. Toshack’s defensive bowling had caused the English skipper to lose patience and his departure for 22 left the score on 141/6. Toshack bowled Dick Pollard
Dick Pollard
Richard "Dick" Pollard was an English cricketer born in Westhoughton, Lancashire, who played in four Tests between 1946 and 1948...
late in the innings to finish with 2/75 from 41 overs—including 20 maidens
Over (cricket)
In the sport of cricket, an over is a set of six consecutive balls bowled in succession. An over is normally bowled by a single bowler. However, in the event of injury preventing a bowler from completing an over, it is completed by a teammate....
—as England ended with 363. Toshack was unbeaten on zero and was only at the crease for one minute as Australia replied with 221. In the second innings, Toshack removed Compton for a duck, caught in the slips by Miller, and ended with 1/26 as the rain-affected match ended in a draw. He also had Washbrook dropped in the slips cordon by Johnson, one of several times that the batsman was reprieved during the innings.
After bowling 53 overs in the Third Test, Toshack was rested for the match against Middlesex
Middlesex County Cricket Club
Middlesex County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Middlesex. It was announced in February 2009 that Middlesex changed their limited overs name from the Middlesex Crusaders, to the...
. It was the only tour match before the Fourth Test, and Australia won by ten wickets.
Fourth Test
Toshack's knee injury flared again in the Fourth Test at Headingley after England elected to bat. On the first morning, England opener Len HuttonLen 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...
edged Toshack through the slips and was then dropped on 25. Hutton eventually reached 81 as the opening pair put on 168. Toshack was wicketless as the hosts closed the first day at 2/268. The following morning, he was removed from the attack after night-watchman Bedser hit him for three consecutive fours. After the lunch break, Toshack bowled Jack Crapp
Jack Crapp
John "Jack" Frederick Crapp was an English cricketer, who played first-class cricket for Gloucestershire between 1936 and 1956, and played for England on tour in the winter of 1948-49....
with an inside-edged half volley for five to leave England at 5/447. Toshack ended with an ineffective 1/112 from 35 overs as England made 496. He was the most expensive and uneconomical of the frontline bowlers and it was his most uneconomical performance in the Tests. He aggravated his knee injury and was later taken to London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
for cartilage surgery, ending his bowling duties for the match and his Test career.
Late on the third day, Toshack was part of a rearguard Australian action that minimised England's first innings lead. He came to the crease at 9/403 to accompany Lindwall, featuring in a 55-run stand and lasting the final 50 minutes until stumps, with Johnston running for him
Runner (cricket)
In cricket, a runner is a team member who runs between the wickets for an injured batsman.When a runner is used, the batsman stands in position and plays shots as normal, but does not attempt to run between the wickets: the runner runs for him...
. Australia were 9/457 at stumps, with Lindwall on 76 and Toshack on 12. Lindwall farmed the strike by trying to hit boundaries and twos during the over, but Yardley did not resort to the tactic of setting a deep field to yield a single to Lindwall to get Toshack on strike. Despite Toshack and Johnston’s lack of familiarity with having and acting as a runner respectively, and the resulting disorders in running between the wickets, Lindwall was able to manipulate the strike so that he faced most of the balls. On the next morning of play, Toshack did not add to his score before Lindwall was dismissed and Australia ended at 458 in the third over of the day, leaving the tourists 38 runs in arrears on the first innings. Toshack did not bowl in the second innings as England made 8/365 and set Australia a target of 404 for victory on the last day. Australia achieved the runs with seven wickets in hand, setting a new world record for the highest successful run-chase in Tests.
After the injury at Headingley, Toshack was out of action for two weeks, missing the matches against Derbyshire
Derbyshire County Cricket Club
Derbyshire County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the England and Wales domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Derbyshire...
, Glamorgan
Glamorgan County Cricket Club
Glamorgan County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh national cricket structure, representing the historic county of Glamorgan aka Glamorganshire . Glamorgan CCC is the only Welsh first-class cricket club. Glamorgan CCC have won the English County...
and Warwickshire
Warwickshire County Cricket Club
Warwickshire County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Warwickshire. Its limited overs team is called the Warwickshire Bears. Their kit colours are black and gold and the shirt sponsor...
. These fixtures ended in an innings victory, a rain-affected draw and a nine-wicket win respectively. He returned against Lancashire
Lancashire County Cricket Club
Lancashire County Cricket Club represents the historic county of Lancashire in cricket's County Championship. The club was founded in 1864 as a successor to Manchester Cricket Club and has played at Old Trafford since then...
and scored two in Australia's 321. He then bowled seven overs in the first innings, taking 0/17. He aggravated his injury and did not bowl in the second innings and did not play again for the tour. As a result, Toshack missed the last Test and eight further tour matches, three of which were not first-class. Australia won the Fifth Test by an innings in Toshack's absence to win the series 4–0, and proceeded through the remaining tour matches undefeated.
Role
Fast bowling
Fast bowling, sometimes known as pace bowling, is one of the two main approaches to bowling in the sport of cricket. The other is spin bowling...
seamer
Seam bowling
Seam bowling is a phrase used for a bowling technique in cricket whereby the ball is deliberately bowled on to its seam, to cause a random deviation. Practitioners are known as seam bowlers or seamers....
, Toshack was a member of Bradman's first-choice team and he played in the first four Tests before being struck down by a persistent knee injury. Toshack contained the English batsmen using leg theory in between the new ball bursts of Miller and Lindwall, usually bowling second change after Miller, Lindwall and Johnston. The English press decried Toshack's style of bowling as negative, but Jack Fingleton
Jack Fingleton
John "Jack" Henry Webb Fingleton OBE was an Australian cricketer who was trained as a journalist and became a political and cricket commentator after the end of his playing career...
said that "he is generally so close to the stumps that nearly every ball has to be played".
During the Tests, Toshack took 11 wickets at 33.09; his most notable performance was his 5/40 in the second innings of the Second Test at Lord's. Of the four frontline pacemen, Toshack had the second best economy rate, although with his leg stump bowling, he also had a strike rate
Strike rate
Strike rate refers to two different statistics in the sport of cricket. Batting strike rate is a measure of how frequently a batsman achieves the primary goal of batting, namely scoring runs. Bowling strike rate is a measure of how frequently a bowler achieves the primary goal of bowling, namely...
of 94.45, while the other three fast bowlers all had strike rates below 70. It was a similar tale in the first-class statistics, with the second best economy among the seven frontline bowlers, but the worst strike rate. For the entire tour, Toshack took 50 wickets at 21.12 with four five-wicket innings hauls, including a best of 7/81 against Yorkshire at Bramall Lane. He also took 6/51 in the first innings of the match against the Marylebone Cricket Club
Marylebone Cricket Club
Marylebone Cricket Club is a cricket club in London founded in 1787. Its influence and longevity now witness it as a private members' club dedicated to the development of cricket. It owns, and is based at, Lord's Cricket Ground in St John's Wood, London NW8. MCC was formerly the governing body of...
, which was almost entirely represented by English Test cricketers. Toshack took two catches on tour, none of them in the Tests.
An inept batsman with an average
Batting average
Batting average is a statistic in both cricket and baseball that measures the performance of cricket batsmen and baseball hitters. The two statistics are related in that baseball averages are directly descended from the concept of cricket averages.- Cricket :...
of 5.78 in his first-class career, Toshack managed a Test average of 51.00 on the 1948 tour after being dismissed only once, behind only 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...
, 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...
, Bradman and Neil Harvey
Neil Harvey
Robert Neil Harvey MBE is a former Australian cricketer who represented the Australian cricket team between 1948 and 1963, playing in 79 Test matches. He was the vice-captain of the team from 1957 until his retirement...
. The unbeaten 20 he managed in the Lord's Test was his best first-class score, made in a freewheeling tenth-wicket stand with Johnston.
During the tour, Toshack had few opportunities with the bat, invariably being placed at either No. 10 and No. 11 in the order alongside Johnston, another tailender with little batting ability.N- Neither player ever passed 30 in their career, and they were the only two players who failed to make a half-century during the tour. As Australia's other specialist bowlers were Lindwall, McCool, Johnson and Doug Ring
Doug Ring
Douglas Thomas Ring was an Australian cricketer who played for Victoria and Australia in 13 Tests from 1948 to 1953...
, all of whom made centuries and more than 18 fifties each during their first-class career, Toshack and Johnston were invariably rooted at the bottom of the order. As Australia often won by an innings, and declared in the first innings many times due to their batting strength, Toshack only had 12 innings in his 15 first-class fixtures, never batted in the second innings, and scored 78 runs at 8.66. Of the 78 runs, 51 came from four Test innings in Toshack's four Tests.
Due to the fragility of his knee, Toshack was used sparingly in the tour games, playing in only 11 of the 29 non-Test matches on the tour, the least of any player. Toshack was unable to play in the last nine matches of the tour, having injured himself in the second match against Lancashire.