Norman Gordon
Encyclopedia
Norman Gordon is a former South African cricket
er who played in five Tests
in the 1938–39 South African cricket season. He was born in Boksburg, Transvaal
. He is the oldest living Test cricketer, and the first to reach 100 years. Gordon became the oldest-ever Test Cricketer on 23 March 2011, when he surpassed New Zealander Eric Tindill
, who died on 1 August 2010, approximately four months before his 100th birthday.
for Transvaal
from 1933–34 as a right-handed fast bowler and a tail-end right-handed batsman.
He made his Test debut against England in December 1938, playing every Test of the five-match series. In the first Test, he took his best Test match figures of 7–162, including 5–103 in the first innings. He was stumped by Les Ames
off the bowling of Tom Goddard
for a first-ball duck in the drawn match. In the second match he took 5–157 in England's only innings, but was again stumped by Ames off the bowling of Goddard for 0 in another drawn match.
In the third match, Gordon took 2–127 in England's only innings and was out for 1 and 0, falling to Ken Farnes
and Hedley Verity
as England won by an innings and 13 runs. In the fourth match, he took 2–47 and 3–58 but did not bat in the drawn Test. In the final Test Gordon took match figures of 1–256 and was not out in each innings, scoring 0 and 7. This match was the famous Timeless Test, which took 10 days and was eventually drawn by agreement. This was Gordon's final Test match. He is the only survivor of the Timeless Test, and the last living person to have played Test cricket before World War II
.
He turned 100 in August 2011 and lives in Central Johannesburg.
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
er who played in five Tests
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 the 1938–39 South African cricket season. He was born in Boksburg, Transvaal
Transvaal Province
Transvaal Province was a province of the Union of South Africa from 1910 to 1961, and of its successor, the Republic of South Africa, from 1961 until the end of apartheid in 1994 when a new constitution subdivided it.-History:...
. He is the oldest living Test cricketer, and the first to reach 100 years. Gordon became the oldest-ever Test Cricketer on 23 March 2011, when he surpassed New Zealander Eric Tindill
Eric Tindill
Eric William Thomas Tindill was a New Zealand sportsman. Tindill held a number of unique records: he was the oldest ever Test cricketer at the time of his death, the only person to play Tests for New Zealand in both cricket and rugby union , and the only person ever to play Tests in both sports,...
, who died on 1 August 2010, approximately four months before his 100th birthday.
Cricket career
Gordon played 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...
for Transvaal
Transvaal cricket team
Gauteng cricket team is the first-class cricket team of the province of Gauteng in South Africa....
from 1933–34 as a right-handed fast bowler and a tail-end right-handed batsman.
He made his Test debut against England in December 1938, playing every Test of the five-match series. In the first Test, he took his best Test match figures of 7–162, including 5–103 in the first innings. He was stumped by Les Ames
Les Ames
Leslie Ethelbert George Ames, CBE was an outstanding wicket-keeper and batsman for the England cricket team and Kent County Cricket Club. In his obituary, the Wisden of 1991 described him as the greatest wicket-keeper-batsman of all time...
off the bowling of Tom Goddard
Tom Goddard
Tom Goddard was the fifth highest wicket taker in first-class cricket....
for a first-ball duck in the drawn match. In the second match he took 5–157 in England's only innings, but was again stumped by Ames off the bowling of Goddard for 0 in another drawn match.
In the third match, Gordon took 2–127 in England's only innings and was out for 1 and 0, falling to Ken Farnes
Ken Farnes
Kenneth Farnes was an English cricketer. He played in 15 Tests from 1934 to 1939.Farnes was born in Leytonstone, Essex, and was educated at the Royal Liberty School in Gidea Park. He made his first-class debut for Essex in 1930, aged only 19. He took 5-36 in his second county match against Kent...
and Hedley Verity
Hedley Verity
Hedley Verity was a professional cricketer who played first-class cricket for Yorkshire and England between 1930 and 1939. A slow left arm orthodox bowler, he took 1,956 wickets in first-class cricket at an average of 14.90 and in 40 Tests he took 144 wickets at an average of 24.37...
as England won by an innings and 13 runs. In the fourth match, he took 2–47 and 3–58 but did not bat in the drawn Test. In the final Test Gordon took match figures of 1–256 and was not out in each innings, scoring 0 and 7. This match was the famous Timeless Test, which took 10 days and was eventually drawn by agreement. This was Gordon's final Test match. He is the only survivor of the Timeless Test, and the last living person to have played Test cricket 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...
.
He turned 100 in August 2011 and lives in Central Johannesburg.