Fifth Test, 1948 Ashes series - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The Fifth Test of the 1948 Ashes series, held 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...

in London, was the final 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...

in a cricket series

1948 Ashes series

The 1948 Ashes series was that year's edition of the long-standing cricket rivalry between England and Australia. Starting on 10 June 1948, England and Australia played five Tests. Australia had not lost a Test since the Second World War and were strong favourites...

between Australia and England. The match took place on 14–18 August, with a rest day on 15 August. Australia won the match by an innings and 149 run

Run (cricket)

In the sport of cricket, a run is the basic unit of scoring. Runs are scored by a batsman, and the aggregate of the scores of a team's batsmen constitutes the team's score. A batsman scoring 50 or 100 runs , or any higher multiple of 50 runs, is considered a particular achievement...

s to complete a 4–0 series win. It was the last Test in the career of Australian captain 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...

, generally regarded as the best batsman in the history of the sport. Going into the match, if Australia batted only once, Bradman needed only four runs from his final innings to have a Test 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 exactly 100, but he failed to score, 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...

second ball 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...

by 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 Eric Hollies

Eric Hollies

William Eric Hollies was an English cricketer, who is mainly remembered for taking the wicket of Donald Bradman for a duck in Bradman's final Test match innings, in which only four was needed for a Test average of 100...

.

With the series already lost, the England selectors continued to make many changes, on this occasion, four. In all, they had used 21 players for the series and were severely criticised for failing to maintain continuity. 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,...

won the toss, and elected to bat on a pitch affected by rain. After a delayed start due to inclement weather, the Australian pace attack, led by 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...

, dismissed England within the first day for just 52. Lindwall was the main destroyer, taking six wicket

Wicket

In the sport of cricket the word wicket has several distinct meanings:-Definitions of wicket:Most of the time, the wicket is one of the two sets of three stumps and two bails at either end of the pitch...

s for 20 runs (6/20). The English batsmen found it difficult to cope with his prodigious swing

Swing bowling

Swing bowling is a technique used for bowling in the sport of cricket. Practitioners are known as swing bowlers. Swing bowling is generally classed as a subtype of fast bowling.-Physics of swing bowling:...

and pace; four of his wickets were either bowled

Bowled

or 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...

. 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...

was the only batsman to resist, making 30 before being the final man dismissed. In reply, Australia's opening pair of 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...

and 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...

passed England's score on the same afternoon with no loss of wickets. The opening stand

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...

ended at 117 when Barnes fell for 61 and Bradman came to the crease to a standing ovation and three cheers from his opponents. He fell second ball, but Australia reached 153/2 at stumps on the first day.

On the second day, Australian batsmen fell regularly once 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 dismissed at 226/3, most of them being troubled by Hollies, who had been selected after taking 8/107 against Australia for 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...

. Morris was an exception and he made 196, more than half his team's total, before being run out

Run out

Run out is a method of dismissal in the sport of cricket. It is governed by Law 38 of the Laws of cricket.-The rules:A batsman is out Run out if at any time while the ball is in play no part of his bat or person is grounded behind the popping crease and his wicket is fairly put down by the opposing...

as Australia were dismissed for 389. Hollies took 5/131. England reached 54/1 at stumps and by lunch on the third day were 121/2, Hutton and Denis Compton

Denis Compton

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

batting steadily. However, they suffered a late collapse to be 178/7 when bad light and rain stopped the day's play. Hutton top-scored for the second time in the match for England, making 64. The next morning, Bill Johnston

Bill Johnston (cricketer)

William Arras Johnston was an Australian cricketer who played in forty Test matches from 1947 to 1955. A left arm pace bowler, as well as a left arm orthodox spinner, Johnston was best known as a spearhead of Don Bradman's undefeated 1948 touring team, well known as "The Invincibles"...

took the last three wickets as England were bowled out for 188, ending the match. Johnston ended with 4/40 and Lindwall 3/50.

The match was followed by speeches from both captains, after which the crowd sang For He's a Jolly Good Fellow
For He's a Jolly Good Fellow
"For He's A Jolly Good Fellow" is a song which is sung to congratulate a person on a significant event, such as, a promotion, a birthday, the birth of a child, or the winning of a championship sporting event. The melody originates from that of the French song "Marlbrough s'en va-t-en guerre...

in Bradman's honour. Having been undefeated in their matches up to this point, the Australians maintained their streak in the remaining fixtures, gaining them the sobriquet of The Invincibles.

Background

After the first four Tests, Australia led the series 3–0, having won all but the Third Test, which was rain-affected. They had taken an unlikely win in the Fourth Test

Fourth Test, 1948 Ashes series

The Fourth Test of the 1948 Ashes series was one of five Tests in a cricket series between Australia and England. The match was played at Headingley Stadium at Leeds from 22 to 27 July with a rest day on 25 July. Australia won the match by seven wickets to take an unassailable 3–0 series lead...

at Headingley

Headingley Stadium

Headingley Stadium is a sporting complex in the Leeds suburb of Headingley in West Yorkshire, England. It is the home of Yorkshire County Cricket Club, rugby league team Leeds Rhinos and rugby union team Leeds Carnegie ....

, scoring 404/3 in their second innings, the highest ever score in a successful Test runchase.

Australia had been unbeaten throughout the tour. Between the Fourth and Fifth Test, they played five tour matches. They defeated 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...

by an innings, before having a washout against 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...

. The Australians then defeated Warwickshire

Warwickshire County Cricket Club

by nine wickets, before drawing with 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...

, who hung on with three wickets in hand on the final day. Australia's final lead-in outing was a two-day non-first-class match against Durham

Durham County Cricket Club

Durham 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 Durham. Its limited overs team is called the Durham Dynamos. Their kit colours are blue with yellow trim and the shirt sponsor was...

, which was drawn after rain washed out the second day.

With the series already lost, England made four changes to their team. 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:...

replaced 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...

—who broke his thumb in a match for Lancashire

Lancashire County Cricket Club

against the Australians—at the top of the order. Dewes had gained attention after scoring 51 for 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...

in the tour match against the Australians. In the three weeks between then and the Test, he had scored 105 and 89 against Lancashire and 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...

respectively. However, he had averaged less than 40 for the season and made three consecutive scores below 20 leading into the Tests. The journalist and former Australian Test cricketer Bill O'Reilly

Bill O'Reilly (cricketer)

William Joseph "Bill" O'Reilly , often known as Tiger O'Reilly, was an Australian cricketer, rated as one of the greatest bowlers in the history of the game. Following his retirement from playing, he became a well-respected cricket writer and broadcaster.O'Reilly was one of the best spin bowlers to...

condemned the decision, claiming that aside from defending the ball, Dewes was too reliant on slogging towards the leg side with a horizontal bat. O'Reilly claimed Dewes was not ready for Test cricket and that asking him to face the rampant Australians could have psychologically scarred him. He said the selection "was tantamount to asking a young first-year medical student to carry out an intricate operation with a butcher’s knife."

Allan Watkins

Allan Watkins

Allan Watkins Allan Watkins Allan Watkins (born Albert John Watkins (21 April 1922 – 3 August 2011) was a Welsh cricketer, who played for England in fifteen Tests from 1948 to 1952. He toured India and Pakistan in 1951-2 with the MCC, and also participated in the 1955-6 'A' Tour to Pakistan...

replaced 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....

as the middle order batsman and pace bowler. Both Dewes and Watkins were making their Test debut, and the latter became the second Welshman

Wales

Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...

to play in an Ashes Test. Watkins had scored 19 and taken 1/47 for Glamorgan in their match against Australia two weeks earlier, but had only scored 168 runs at 18.66 and taken 11 wickets in his last six matches. Cranston had made a duck and 10, and taken 1/79 on his debut in the previous Test. While acknowledging Cranston's poor performances and concluding that he had not been of international quality, O'Reilly said Watkins' performance in Glamorgan's match against the Australians "had not inspired anyone with his ability" to counter the tourists' bowling.

England played two spinners; left arm orthodox 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....

replaced fellow finger spin

Finger spin

Finger spin is a type of bowling in the sport of cricket. It refers to the cricket technique and specific hand movements associated with imparting a particular direction of spin to the cricket ball. The other spinning technique, generally used to spin the ball in the opposite direction, is wrist spin...

ner Jim Laker

Jim Laker

James "Jim" Charles Laker was a cricketer who played for England in the 1950s, known for "Laker's match" in 1956 at Old Trafford, when he took nineteen wickets in England's victory against Australia...

, while the leg spin

Leg spin

of Eric Hollies

Eric Hollies

replaced the pace bowling of Dick Pollard

Dick Pollard

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

. Hollies was brought into the team because he had caused the Australian batsmen difficulty in the tour match against Warwickshire

Warwickshire County Cricket Club

. He took 8/107 in the first innings, the best innings figures against the Australians for the summer. His performance included bowling Bradman with a topspinner

Topspinner

A top-spinner is a type of delivery bowled by a cricketer bowling either wrist spin or finger spin. In either case, the bowler imparts the ball with top spin by twisting it with his or her fingers prior to delivery...

that went between bat and pad. It was part of a month-long run in which he took 52 wickets in seven matches, including two ten-wicket match hauls. Young had taken 12 and 14 wickets in consecutive matches against Northamptonshire and Surrey since his omission following the Third Test

Third Test, 1948 Ashes series

The Third Test of the 1948 Ashes series was one of five Tests in a cricket series between teams representing Australia and England. The match was played at Old Trafford in Manchester from 8–13 July, with a rest day on 11 July...

, while Pollard and Laker had managed totals of only 2/159 and 3/206 respectively in the Headingley Test.

Having made only 5 and 18 in the previous Test, 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....

was originally dropped from the team but was reprieved by Washbrook's injury. The England selectors were widely condemned for their decisions, which were seen as an investment in youth rather than necessarily picking the best players available at the time. Their frequent changes meant the home team had used a total of 21 players for the five Tests.

Australia made three changes. Having taken only seven wickets in the first four Tests at an average of 61.00, 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...

ner 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...

was replaced by leg spin

Leg spin

ner Doug Ring

Doug Ring

Douglas Thomas Ring was an Australian cricketer who played for Victoria and Australia in 13 Tests from 1948 to 1953...

. Australia's second change was forced on them; the injured medium pacer Ernie Toshack

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 replaced by the opening batsman Sid Barnes

Sid Barnes

, who had missed the Fourth Test with a rib injury. This meant Australia were playing with one extra batsman and one less frontline bowler. The final change was the return of first-choice 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...

from injury and the omission of his deputy 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...

.

The two nations had last met at The Oval

The Oval

in the Fifth Test of the 1938 Ashes series, during Australia’s previous tour of England. On that occasion, England made a Test world record score of 903/7 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 Len Hutton

Len Hutton

made 364, an individual Test world record. Australia batted in both innings with only nine men because of injuries sustained by Bradman and 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...

during Hutton’s 13-hour marathon effort. They collapsed to the heaviest defeat in Test history, by an innings and 579 runs. It was Australia's last Test before 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...

and they had not lost a Test since then.

Hundreds of spectators had slept on wet pavements outside the stadium in rainy weather on the eve of the Test to queue for tickets. Bradman had announced his forthcoming retirement at the end of the season, so the public were anxious to witness his last appearance at Test level.

Scorecard


Umpires	D Davies Dai Davies (cricketer) David Davies was a first-class cricketer and Test match umpire.Davies was born in Llanelli, Carmarthenshire. He worked in the steelworks in his home town, playing club cricket for Llanelli and some cricket for Carmarthenshire.... HG Baldwin
Toss	elected to bat first
Result	won by an innings and 149 runs
Series impact	won 5-match series 4–0

England innings

	First innings		Second innings
Batsman	Method of dismissal 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...	Runs Run (cricket) In the sport of cricket, a run is the basic unit of scoring. Runs are scored by a batsman, and the aggregate of the scores of a team's batsmen constitutes the team's score. A batsman scoring 50 or 100 runs , or any higher multiple of 50 runs, is considered a particular achievement...	Method of dismissal 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...	Runs Run (cricket) In the sport of cricket, a run is the basic unit of scoring. Runs are scored by a batsman, and the aggregate of the scores of a team's batsmen constitutes the team's score. A batsman scoring 50 or 100 runs , or any higher multiple of 50 runs, is considered a particular achievement...
L. 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...	c Tallon Don Tallon Donald "Don" Tallon was an Australian cricketer who played 21 Test matches as a wicket-keeper between 1946 and 1953... b Bowling (cricket) In the sport of cricket, bowling is the action of propelling the ball toward the wicket defended by a batsman. A player skilled at bowling is called a bowler; a bowler who is also a competent batsman is known as an all-rounder... 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...	30	c Tallon Don Tallon Donald "Don" Tallon was an Australian cricketer who played 21 Test matches as a wicket-keeper between 1946 and 1953... b 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...	64
J. G. 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:...	b 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...	1	b 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...	10
W. J. 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...	c 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... b Johnston Bill Johnston (cricketer) William Arras Johnston was an Australian cricketer who played in forty Test matches from 1947 to 1955. A left arm pace bowler, as well as a left arm orthodox spinner, Johnston was best known as a spearhead of Don Bradman's undefeated 1948 touring team, well known as "The Invincibles"...	3	b 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...	28
D. C. S. Compton Denis Compton Denis Charles Scott Compton CBE was an English cricketer who played in 78 Test matches, and a footballer...	c 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... b 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...	4	c 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... b Johnston Bill Johnston (cricketer) William Arras Johnston was an Australian cricketer who played in forty Test matches from 1947 to 1955. A left arm pace bowler, as well as a left arm orthodox spinner, Johnston was best known as a spearhead of Don Bradman's undefeated 1948 touring team, well known as "The Invincibles"...	39
J. F. 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....	c Tallon Don Tallon Donald "Don" Tallon was an Australian cricketer who played 21 Test matches as a wicket-keeper between 1946 and 1953... b 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...	0	b 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...	9
* Captain (cricket) The captain of a cricket team often referred to as the skipper is the appointed leader, having several additional roles and responsibilities over and above those of a regular player... N. W. D. 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,...	b 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...	7	c 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... b Johnston Bill Johnston (cricketer) William Arras Johnston was an Australian cricketer who played in forty Test matches from 1947 to 1955. A left arm pace bowler, as well as a left arm orthodox spinner, Johnston was best known as a spearhead of Don Bradman's undefeated 1948 touring team, well known as "The Invincibles"...	9
A. J. Watkins Allan Watkins Allan Watkins Allan Watkins Allan Watkins (born Albert John Watkins (21 April 1922 – 3 August 2011) was a Welsh cricketer, who played for England in fifteen Tests from 1948 to 1952. He toured India and Pakistan in 1951-2 with the MCC, and also participated in the 1955-6 'A' Tour to Pakistan...	lbw 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... b Johnston Bill Johnston (cricketer) William Arras Johnston was an Australian cricketer who played in forty Test matches from 1947 to 1955. A left arm pace bowler, as well as a left arm orthodox spinner, Johnston was best known as a spearhead of Don Bradman's undefeated 1948 touring team, well known as "The Invincibles"...	0	c 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... b Ring Doug Ring Douglas Thomas Ring was an Australian cricketer who played for Victoria and Australia in 13 Tests from 1948 to 1953...	2
+ 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... T. G. Evans Godfrey Evans Thomas Godfrey Evans CBE was an English cricketer who played for Kent and England.Described by Wisden as 'arguably the best wicket-keeper the game has ever seen', Evans collected 219 dismissals in 91 Test match appearances between 1946 and 1959 and a total of 1066 in all first-class matches...	b 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...	1	b 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...	8
A. V. 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...	b 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...	0	b Johnston Bill Johnston (cricketer) William Arras Johnston was an Australian cricketer who played in forty Test matches from 1947 to 1955. A left arm pace bowler, as well as a left arm orthodox spinner, Johnston was best known as a spearhead of Don Bradman's undefeated 1948 touring team, well known as "The Invincibles"...	0
J. A. 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....	b 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...	0	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...	3
E. W. Hollies Eric Hollies William Eric Hollies was an English cricketer, who is mainly remembered for taking the wicket of Donald Bradman for a duck in Bradman's final Test match innings, in which only four was needed for a Test average of 100...	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...	0	c 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... b Johnston Bill Johnston (cricketer) William Arras Johnston was an Australian cricketer who played in forty Test matches from 1947 to 1955. A left arm pace bowler, as well as a left arm orthodox spinner, Johnston was best known as a spearhead of Don Bradman's undefeated 1948 touring team, well known as "The Invincibles"...	0
Extras Extra (cricket) In the sport of cricket, an extra is a run scored by a means other than a batsman hitting the ball.Other than runs scored off the bat from a no ball, a batsman is not given credit for extras and the extras are tallied separately on the scorecard and count only towards the team's score...		6		16
Total	(42.1 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.... )	52	(105.3 overs)	188

	First innings				Second innings
Bowler	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....	Maidens	Runs Run (cricket) In the sport of cricket, a run is the basic unit of scoring. Runs are scored by a batsman, and the aggregate of the scores of a team's batsmen constitutes the team's score. A batsman scoring 50 or 100 runs , or any higher multiple of 50 runs, is considered a particular achievement...	Wicket Wicket In the sport of cricket the word wicket has several distinct meanings:-Definitions of wicket:Most of the time, the wicket is one of the two sets of three stumps and two bails at either end of the pitch... s	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....	Maidens	Runs Run (cricket) In the sport of cricket, a run is the basic unit of scoring. Runs are scored by a batsman, and the aggregate of the scores of a team's batsmen constitutes the team's score. A batsman scoring 50 or 100 runs , or any higher multiple of 50 runs, is considered a particular achievement...	Wicket Wicket In the sport of cricket the word wicket has several distinct meanings:-Definitions of wicket:Most of the time, the wicket is one of the two sets of three stumps and two bails at either end of the pitch... s
R. R. 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...	16.1	5	20	6	25	3	50	3
K. R. 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...	8	5	5	2	15	6	22	2
W. A. Johnston Bill Johnston (cricketer) William Arras Johnston was an Australian cricketer who played in forty Test matches from 1947 to 1955. A left arm pace bowler, as well as a left arm orthodox spinner, Johnston was best known as a spearhead of Don Bradman's undefeated 1948 touring team, well known as "The Invincibles"...	16	4	20	2	27.3	12	40	4
S. J. E. Loxton Sam Loxton Samuel John Everett "Sam" Loxton OBE is a former Australian cricketer, footballer and politician. Among these three pursuits, his greatest achievements were attained on the cricket field; he played in 12 Tests for Australia from 1948 to 1951...	2	1	1	0	10	2	16	0
D. T. Ring Doug Ring Douglas Thomas Ring was an Australian cricketer who played for Victoria and Australia in 13 Tests from 1948 to 1953...	–	–	–	–	28	13	44	1

Australia innings

	First innings		Second innings
Batsman	Method of dismissal 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...	Runs Run (cricket) In the sport of cricket, a run is the basic unit of scoring. Runs are scored by a batsman, and the aggregate of the scores of a team's batsmen constitutes the team's score. A batsman scoring 50 or 100 runs , or any higher multiple of 50 runs, is considered a particular achievement...	Method of dismissal 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...	Runs Run (cricket) In the sport of cricket, a run is the basic unit of scoring. Runs are scored by a batsman, and the aggregate of the scores of a team's batsmen constitutes the team's score. A batsman scoring 50 or 100 runs , or any higher multiple of 50 runs, is considered a particular achievement...
S. G. 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...	c Evans Godfrey Evans Thomas Godfrey Evans CBE was an English cricketer who played for Kent and England.Described by Wisden as 'arguably the best wicket-keeper the game has ever seen', Evans collected 219 dismissals in 91 Test match appearances between 1946 and 1959 and a total of 1066 in all first-class matches... b Bowling (cricket) In the sport of cricket, bowling is the action of propelling the ball toward the wicket defended by a batsman. A player skilled at bowling is called a bowler; a bowler who is also a competent batsman is known as an all-rounder... Hollies Eric Hollies William Eric Hollies was an English cricketer, who is mainly remembered for taking the wicket of Donald Bradman for a duck in Bradman's final Test match innings, in which only four was needed for a Test average of 100...	61
A. R. 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...	run out Run out Run out is a method of dismissal in the sport of cricket. It is governed by Law 38 of the Laws of cricket.-The rules:A batsman is out Run out if at any time while the ball is in play no part of his bat or person is grounded behind the popping crease and his wicket is fairly put down by the opposing...	196
* Captain (cricket) The captain of a cricket team often referred to as the skipper is the appointed leader, having several additional roles and responsibilities over and above those of a regular player... D. G. 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...	b Hollies Eric Hollies William Eric Hollies was an English cricketer, who is mainly remembered for taking the wicket of Donald Bradman for a duck in Bradman's final Test match innings, in which only four was needed for a Test average of 100...	0
A. L. 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...	lbw 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... b 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....	37
K. R. 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...	st Evans Godfrey Evans Thomas Godfrey Evans CBE was an English cricketer who played for Kent and England.Described by Wisden as 'arguably the best wicket-keeper the game has ever seen', Evans collected 219 dismissals in 91 Test match appearances between 1946 and 1959 and a total of 1066 in all first-class matches... b Hollies Eric Hollies William Eric Hollies was an English cricketer, who is mainly remembered for taking the wicket of Donald Bradman for a duck in Bradman's final Test match innings, in which only four was needed for a Test average of 100...	5
R. N. 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...	c 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.... b Hollies Eric Hollies William Eric Hollies was an English cricketer, who is mainly remembered for taking the wicket of Donald Bradman for a duck in Bradman's final Test match innings, in which only four was needed for a Test average of 100...	17
S. J. E. Loxton Sam Loxton Samuel John Everett "Sam" Loxton OBE is a former Australian cricketer, footballer and politician. Among these three pursuits, his greatest achievements were attained on the cricket field; he played in 12 Tests for Australia from 1948 to 1951...	c Evans Godfrey Evans Thomas Godfrey Evans CBE was an English cricketer who played for Kent and England.Described by Wisden as 'arguably the best wicket-keeper the game has ever seen', Evans collected 219 dismissals in 91 Test match appearances between 1946 and 1959 and a total of 1066 in all first-class matches... b 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...	15
R. R. 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...	c 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... b 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....	9
+ 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... D. Tallon Don Tallon Donald "Don" Tallon was an Australian cricketer who played 21 Test matches as a wicket-keeper between 1946 and 1953...	c 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.... b Hollies Eric Hollies William Eric Hollies was an English cricketer, who is mainly remembered for taking the wicket of Donald Bradman for a duck in Bradman's final Test match innings, in which only four was needed for a Test average of 100...	31
D. T. Ring Doug Ring Douglas Thomas Ring was an Australian cricketer who played for Victoria and Australia in 13 Tests from 1948 to 1953...	c 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.... b 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...	9
W. A. Johnston Bill Johnston (cricketer) William Arras Johnston was an Australian cricketer who played in forty Test matches from 1947 to 1955. A left arm pace bowler, as well as a left arm orthodox spinner, Johnston was best known as a spearhead of Don Bradman's undefeated 1948 touring team, well known as "The Invincibles"...	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...	0
Extras Extra (cricket) In the sport of cricket, an extra is a run scored by a means other than a batsman hitting the ball.Other than runs scored off the bat from a no ball, a batsman is not given credit for extras and the extras are tallied separately on the scorecard and count only towards the team's score...		9
Total	(158.2 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.... )	389

	First Innings				Second Innings
Bowler	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....	Maidens	Runs Run (cricket) In the sport of cricket, a run is the basic unit of scoring. Runs are scored by a batsman, and the aggregate of the scores of a team's batsmen constitutes the team's score. A batsman scoring 50 or 100 runs , or any higher multiple of 50 runs, is considered a particular achievement...	Wicket Wicket In the sport of cricket the word wicket has several distinct meanings:-Definitions of wicket:Most of the time, the wicket is one of the two sets of three stumps and two bails at either end of the pitch... s	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....	Maidens	Runs Run (cricket) In the sport of cricket, a run is the basic unit of scoring. Runs are scored by a batsman, and the aggregate of the scores of a team's batsmen constitutes the team's score. A batsman scoring 50 or 100 runs , or any higher multiple of 50 runs, is considered a particular achievement...	Wicket Wicket In the sport of cricket the word wicket has several distinct meanings:-Definitions of wicket:Most of the time, the wicket is one of the two sets of three stumps and two bails at either end of the pitch... s
A. V. 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...	31.2	9	61	1
A. J. Watkins Allan Watkins Allan Watkins Allan Watkins Allan Watkins (born Albert John Watkins (21 April 1922 – 3 August 2011) was a Welsh cricketer, who played for England in fifteen Tests from 1948 to 1952. He toured India and Pakistan in 1951-2 with the MCC, and also participated in the 1955-6 'A' Tour to Pakistan...	4	1	19	0
J. A. 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....	51	16	118	2
E. W. Hollies Eric Hollies William Eric Hollies was an English cricketer, who is mainly remembered for taking the wicket of Donald Bradman for a duck in Bradman's final Test match innings, in which only four was needed for a Test average of 100...	56	14	131	5
D. C. S. Compton Denis Compton Denis Charles Scott Compton CBE was an English cricketer who played in 78 Test matches, and a footballer...	2	0	6	0
W. J. 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...	9	1	38	1
N. W. D. 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,...	5	1	7	0

14 August: Day One

English skipper Norman Yardley

Norman Yardley

won the toss and elected to bat on a rain-affected pitch. Precipitation in the week leading up to the match meant the Test could not start until after midday. Yardley’s decision was regarded as a surprise. Although The Oval had a reputation as a batting paradise, weather conditions suggested that bowlers would be at an advantage. 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...

, a former Test team-mate of Bradman who was covering the tour as a journalist, thought the Australians would have bowled had they won the toss. However, O’Reilly disagreed, saying the pitch was so wet it should have favoured the batsmen because the ball would bounce slowly from the surface. He further thought the slippery run-up areas would have forced the faster bowlers to operate less vigorously to avoid injuring themselves. The damp conditions necessitated the addition of large amounts of sawdust to allow the bowlers to keep their footing, because parts of the pitch were muddy. The humidity, along with the rain, assisted the bowlers; Lindwall in particular managed to make the ball bounce at variable heights.

Dewes and Len Hutton

Len Hutton

opened for England, a move that attracted criticism of Yardley for exposing the debutant Dewes to the new ball bowling of Lindwall and 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...

. After Hutton opened the scoring with a single from the second ball of the day, Dewes was on strike. The single had almost turned into a five when Sam Loxton

Sam Loxton

Samuel John Everett "Sam" Loxton OBE is a former Australian cricketer, footballer and politician. Among these three pursuits, his greatest achievements were attained on the cricket field; he played in 12 Tests for Australia from 1948 to 1951...

fired in a wide return, but Sid Barnes

Sid Barnes

managed to prevent from going for four overthrows. Dewes took a single from the opening over—bowled by Lindwall—and thus faced the start of the second over, which was delivered by Miller. Dewes had been troubled by Miller in the past. During 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...

in 1945, Miller had repeatedly dismissed the batsman, and during a match for 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...

against the Australians earlier in the tour, Dewes had used towels to pad his torso against Miller's short balls

Bouncer (cricket)

In the sport of cricket, a bouncer is a type of delivery, usually bowled by a fast bowler. It is pitched short so that it bounces on the pitch well short of the batsman and rears up to chest or head height as it reaches the batsman.Bouncers are used tactically to drive the batsman back on to his...

. During his short innings, Dewes was also visibly nervous and kept on moving around, unable to stand still.

Miller caused a stoppage after his first ball in order to sprinkle sawdust on the crease. With the second ball, he bowled Dewes—who was playing across the line—middle stump for one with an inswinger to leave England at 2/1. However, despite the early wicket, the bowlers appeared to lack confidence in their run-up on the soggy ground. Bradman made an early bowling change and brought Johnston into the attack to replace Miller after the latter had bowled three overs for the concession of two runs. At this time, Bradman adopted relatively defensive field settings despite the early breakthrough. 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...

joined Hutton and they played cautiously until the former attempted to hook a short ball from Johnston. He failed to get the ball in the middle of the bat and it looped up and travelled around 10 metres (32.8 ft). Lindsay Hassett

Lindsay Hassett

took the catch just behind square leg, diving sideways and getting two hands to the ball. This left England at 10/2 as Denis Compton

Denis Compton

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

came to the crease. Lindwall bounced Compton, drawing an edge that flew towards the slips cordon. However, the ball continued to rise and cleared the ring of Australian fielders. Hutton called Compton for a run, but his surprised partner was watching the ball narrowly evade the slips catchers and dropped his bat in panic. Luckily for Compton, the ball went to Hassett at third man, who stopped the ball and waited for Compton to regain his bat and his composure before returning the ball, thereby forfeiting the opportunity to run him out

Run out

. However, this sporting gesture did not cost Australia many runs because when Compton was on three, Lindwall bowled another bouncer. Compton went for a hook shot and Arthur Morris

Arthur Morris

ran from his position at short square leg to take a difficult catch. Bradman later said he had remembered how Compton had been out in exactly the same position in the corresponding match at the same ground during the 1938 series. Fingleton described Morris’s effort as "one of the catches of the season". England were 17/3, and Crapp came in to join Hutton. At this point, Bradman began to put in place more attacking field settings. Johnston then hit Hutton on the fingers with a ball that rose sharply after pitching. Bradman took Lindwall off after 50 minutes and replaced him with Miller, who then removed Crapp, caught behind from an outside edge for a 23-ball duck

Duck (cricket)

, leaving England at 23/4. When play was adjourned for lunch with England on 29/4, Hutton was 17 while Yardley was on four. According to Fingleton, Hutton "had never been in the slightest difficulty". He had played cautiously but did not seem hurried by the bowling. Miller had taken 2/3 from six overs.

After the lunch break, England added six runs to be 35/4, before Lindwall bowled Yardley with a swinging yorker

Yorker

Yorker is a term used in cricket that describes a ball bowled which hits the cricket pitch around the batsman's feet. When a batsman assumes a normal stance this generally means that the cricket ball bounces on the cricket pitch on or near the batsman's popping crease...

. The debutant Watkins came in, having earned a reputation in Glamorgan’s match against Australia for hooking. He made several attempts at the shot in his innings of 16 balls. He attempted a hook shot from a short ball and missed before being hit on the shoulder by another Lindwall bouncer, having tried to hook the ball downwards in an unorthodox manner akin to a tennis serve. He was then dismissed without scoring after playing across the line and being trapped leg before wicket

Leg before wicket

by Johnston for a duck to leave England at 42/6. For his troubles, Watkins also collected a bruise from the hit to the shoulder, which inhibited his bowling later in the match. Lindwall then removed Godfrey Evans

Godfrey Evans

Thomas Godfrey Evans CBE was an English cricketer who played for Kent and England.Described by Wisden as 'arguably the best wicket-keeper the game has ever seen', Evans collected 219 dismissals in 91 Test match appearances between 1946 and 1959 and a total of 1066 in all first-class matches...

, 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...

and Young, all yorked by swinging deliveries in the space of two runs, as England fell from 45/6 to 47/9. This brought Hollies in at No. 11 to accompany Hutton, who then hit the only boundary

Boundary (cricket)

Boundary has two distinct meanings in the sport of cricket:# the edge or boundary of the playing field, and# a manner of scoring runs.-Edge of the field:...

of the innings, lofting Lindwall for a straight drive back over his head. The ball almost went for six, landing just short of the boundary. The innings ended at 52 when Hutton—who never appeared troubled by the bowling—leg glanced Lindwall and was caught by 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...

, who caught the ball one-handed at full stretch to his left. Lindwall described the catch as one of the best he had ever seen, while O’Reilly called it "extraordinarily good".

The match saw Lindwall at his best. In his post-lunch spell, Lindwall bowled 8.1 overs, taking five wickets for eight runs, and finishing with 6/20 from 16.1 overs. Bradman described the spell as "the most devastating and one of the fastest I ever saw in Test cricket". Fingleton, who played against 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...

attack in 1932–33, said "I was watching a man almost the equal of 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....

[the Bodyline spearhead] in pace ... Truly a great bowler". O’Reilly wrote Lindwall’s "magnificent performance must go down as one of the greatest bowling efforts in Anglo-Australian Tests. He had two gruelingly long sessions in the innings and overcame each so well that he set the seal on his well-earned reputation as one of the best bowlers ever." Hutton was the only batsman to resist the Lindwall-led attack, scoring 30 in 124 minutes and surviving 147 deliveries. The next most resilient display was from Yardley, who scored seven runs in 31 minutes of resistance, facing 33 balls. Miller and Johnston took 2/5 and 2/20 respectively, and Australia's pace trio removed all the batsmen without Bradman having to call upon Ring’s leg spin

Leg spin

.

In contrast, Australia batted with apparent ease, as the overcast skies cleared and sun came out. The debutant Watkins sent down four overs for 19 runs with his bruised shoulder and did not bowl again. He was in much pain and his limp bowling did little to trouble the Australian openers. Morris and Barnes batted comfortably and passed England's first innings total by themselves, taking less than an hour to push the Australians into the lead. O’Reilly felt the Australian openers wanted to prove "the pitch itself had nothing whatever to do with the English batting debacle". Australia reached 100 at 17:30 with Barnes on 52 and Morris on 47. The only chance came when Barnes powerfully square cut Bedser low to point, where Young spilled the catch. When Young came on to bowl, his finger spin was expected to trouble the batsmen on a rain-affected surface, but he delivered little variation in pace and trajectory and Barnes in particular hit him repeatedly through the off side field. The score had reached 117 after only 126 minutes, when Barnes was caught behind from Hollies for 61. The right-handed Australian opener stumbled forward to a fast-turning leg break that caught his outside edge. He had overbalanced and would have been stumped if he had failed to make contact with the leather. This brought Bradman to the crease shortly before 18:00, late on the first day. As Bradman had already announced the tour would be his last at international level, the innings would be his last at Test level if Australia batted only once. The crowd gave him a standing ovation as he walked out to bat; Yardley led the Englishmen and the crowd in giving his Australian counterpart three cheers, before shaking Bradman's hand. With 6,996 Test career runs, Bradman needed only four runs to average exactly 100 in Test cricket. Bradman took guard and played the first ball from Hollies, a leg break, from the back foot. The leg spinner pitched the next ball up, bowling Bradman for a duck

Duck (cricket)

with a googly

Googly

In cricket, a googly is a type of delivery bowled by a right-arm leg spin bowler. It is occasionally referred to as a Bosie , an eponym in honour of its inventor Bernard Bosanquet.- Explanation :...

that went between bat and pad as the Australian skipper leaned forward. Bradman appeared stunned by what had happened and slowly turned around and walked back to the pavilion, receiving another large round of applause. It was claimed by many, including Hollies, that Bradman became emotional and had tears in his eyes at the ovation given to him by the crowd and the English players, and that this hampered his ability to see and hit the ball. Bradman admitted to being moved by the applause, but always denied shedding tears, saying "to suggest I got out, as some people did, because I had tears in my eyes while I was looking at the bowler was quite untrue. Eric Hollies deceived me and he deserves full credit."

Hassett came in at 117/2 and together with Morris saw Australia to the close at 153/2. Morris was unbeaten on 77, having hit two hook shots from Hollies for four. Hassett was on 10.

16 August: Day Two

15 August was a Sunday, and thus a rest day. Play resumed on Monday, the second morning, and Morris registered his third century

Century (cricket)

In the sport of cricket, a batsman reaches his century when he scores 100 or more runs in a single innings. The term is also included in "century partnership" which occurs when two batsmen add 100 runs to the team total when they are batting together. A century is regarded as a landmark score for...

of the Test series and his sixth in ten Ashes matches. Overall, it was his seventh century in 14 Tests. It had taken him 208 minutes and he had hit four fours. Hassett and Morris took the score to 226 before their 109-run stand was broken when Young trapped Hassett lbw for 37 after 134 minutes of batting. As the Australians had dismissed their hosts cheaply on the first day and were already well in the lead, they had plenty of time to complete a victory, so Hassett and Morris had no need to take undue risks and scored at a sedate pace. The following batsmen were unable to establish themselves at the crease. Miller came in and tried to attack, but made only five before overbalancing and stumbling forward out of his crease, allowing Evans to stump

Stump (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:...

him from the bowling of Hollies. Harvey, the youngest player in the Australian squad at the age of 19, came to the crease at 243/4 and quickly displayed the exuberance of youth. He hit Young for a straight-driven four and then pulled him for another boundary, but the attacking strokeplay did not last. Harvey succumbed to Hollies, hitting him to Young. The young batsman was having trouble against the turning ball, so he decided to use his feet and step towards the pitch of the ball. The Warwickshire spinner noticed this, and delivered a topspinner

Topspinner

that dipped more than usual, and the batsman mistimed his off-drive, which went in the air towards mid-off. Hollies’ success against the middle-order prompted Yardley to opt to continue with the older ball even when a replacement was available, a move that was rarely made throughout the series as the pacemen dominated the bowling. Hollies did not spin the ball significantly but relied on variations in flight to defeat his opponents.

Loxton came in with the score at 265/5 and accompanied Morris for 39 further runs before he fell to the new ball. He appeared uncomfortable with the outswingers and leg cutter

Leg cutter

A leg cutter is a type of delivery in the sport of cricket. It is bowled by fast bowlers.A bowler releases a normal fast delivery with the wrist locked in position and the first two fingers positioned on top of the cricket ball, giving it spin about a horizontal axis perpendicular to the length of...

s of Bedser, and was beaten several times, before Edrich had him caught behind for 15. Lindwall came in and attacked immediately, scoring two fours before falling for nine. He played a cover drive from the bowling of Young, but hit the ball too early and thus launched it into the air, and it was caught by Edrich at cover point to leave the score at 332/7. Morris was then finally removed for 196, ending an innings noted for its numerous hooks and off-drives. It took a run out

Run out

to remove Morris; he attempted a quick run to third man after being called through from the non-striker’s end by Tallon, but was too slow for the substitute fielder Reg Simpson

Reg Simpson

Reginald Thomas Simpson is an English former cricketer, who played in twentry seven Tests from 1948 to 1955.-Life and career:...

's arm. Tallon, who scored 31, put on another 30 runs with Ring, before both were out with Australia’s score on 389, ending the tourists' innings. Both were caught by Crapp in slips from the bowling of Hollies and Bedser respectively. Morris had scored more than half the runs as the rest of the team struggled against the leg spin of Hollies, who took 5/131. England had relied heavily on spin bowling

Spin bowling

Spin bowling is a technique used for bowling in the sport of cricket. Practitioners are known as spinners or spin bowlers.-Purpose:The main aim of spin bowling is to bowl the cricket ball with rapid rotation so that when it bounces on the pitch it will deviate, thus making it difficult for the...

; Young took 2/118 and of the 158.2 overs bowled, 107 were delivered by the two slow men. Hollies pitched the ball up repeatedly, coaxing the Australians into playing front-foot shots from balls that spun after pitching on off stump.

England started their second innings 337 runs in arrears. Dewes took strike and got off the mark from Lindwall when he aimed a hook shot and was credited with a boundary when the ball came off his shoulder. Lindwall’s steepling bouncer rose over his bat and narrowly missed his head. Soon after, Lindwall made the early breakthrough, bowling Dewes—who offered no shot—for 10 to leave England 20/1. Dewes had often committed to playing the ball from the front foot before the bowler delivered the ball, thereby putting himself into difficulty. This was because of his habit of leaning his weight onto his back foot as the ball was being bowled, which meant that a forward lean would instinctively result. Edrich joined Hutton and the pair consolidated the England innings, which reached 54/1 at the close at the second day’s play, which was hastened by bad light.

17 August: Day Three

Early on the third day, Lindwall bowled Edrich—who was playing across the line—between bat and pad for 28, hitting the off stump with a ball that cut inwards, leaving the score at 64/2, before Compton and Hutton consolidated the innings and took the score to 121 at lunch without further loss. Hutton and Compton were 42 and 37 respectively. Compton started slowly but had accelerated as the adjournment approached. The morning’s batting had been relatively slow, with only 67 runs scored in 100 minutes, of which Hutton added only 23. The morning session also featured a tight spell of 13 overs by Ring. The leg spinner did not bowl consistently or accurately, and although the batsman hit him regularly, they did not place their shots, which often went to the fielders. At the other end, Johnston bowled his finger spin from around the wicket with a well-protected off side. There were four men in the off side ring and they had much work to do as Hutton hit the ball there repeatedly. The English batsmen progressed steadily and both Johnston and Ring had one confident appeal for lbw against Compton¸ but there were no other scares. Towards the end of the morning session, the second new ball became available but Bradman decided to bide his time. He allowed Johnston to rest after his morning spell and used Lindwall and Miller—delivering off spinners—to bowl with the old ball for the last half hour before lunch break so that the trio could use the adjournment to recuperate before attacking with the new ball.

After lunch, Lindwall and Johnston took the new ball, and the partnership progressed only four further runs to 61 in 110 minutes. On 39, Compton aimed a hard cut shot from Johnston's bowling, which flew into Lindwall's left hand at second slip for a "freak slip catch". Hutton managed to continue resisting the Australians before Miller struck Crapp in the neck with a bouncer. The batsman did not react to the blow and did not bother to rub the point of impact. After hitting a series of cover drives for boundaries, Hutton edged Miller to Tallon and was out for 64, having top-scored in both innings. He had batted for over four hours and left England at 153/4. Thereafter, the home side collapsed. Crapp was bowled by Miller for nine, and two runs later, Ring dismissed debutant Watkins for two, his only wicket for the match. Watkins swung Ring to 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...

and the ball went straight into the hands of Hassett, who did not need to move from his position on the boundary, leaving England at 167/6. Lindwall returned and yorked Evans, who appeared to not detect the delivery in the poor light, for eight. The umpires thus called off play after Yardley appealed against the light. The ground was then hit by rain, resulting in a premature end to the day's play with England at 178/7, having lost 4/25.

18 August: Day Four

England resumed on the fourth morning with only three wickets in hand and they were still 159 runs in arrears. Johnston quickly removed the last three wickets to seal an Australian victory by an innings and 149 runs. Only ten runs were added; the match ended when Hollies fell for a golden duck

Duck (cricket)

after skying a ball to Morris, immediately after Yardley’s departure. Johnston ended with 4/40 from 27.3 overs while Lindwall took 3/50 from 25 overs. Miller claimed 2/22 while Ring bowled the most overs, 28, to finish with 1/44. Given the time lost to inclement weather on the first day, Australia had won the match in less than three days of playing time.

Aftermath

This result sealed the series 4–0 in favour of Australia. The match was followed by a series of congratulatory speeches. Bradman began with:
Yardley spoke after Bradman:
Bradman was then given three cheers and the crowd sang For He's a Jolly Good Fellow
For He's a Jolly Good Fellow
"For He's A Jolly Good Fellow" is a song which is sung to congratulate a person on a significant event, such as, a promotion, a birthday, the birth of a child, or the winning of a championship sporting event. The melody originates from that of the French song "Marlbrough s'en va-t-en guerre...

before dispersing.

The win brought Australia closer to Bradman's aim of going through the tour undefeated. The Fifth Test was the last international match, and Australia only had seven further matches to negotiate. They secured three consecutive innings victories against Kent

Kent County Cricket Club

Kent County Cricket Club is one of the 18 first class county county cricket clubs which make up the English and Welsh national cricket structure, representing the county of Kent...

, the Gentlemen of England and Somerset

Somerset County Cricket Club

Somerset 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 Somerset...

. They then took first innings leads of more than 200 against the South of England

South of England cricket team

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

and Leveson-Gower's XI

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...

, but both matches were washed out. The last two matches were two-day non-first-class matches against Scotland, both won by an innings. Bradman's men thus completed the tour undefeated, earning themselves the sobriquet The Invincibles.

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