Famous Cricketers No 40 - Neil Harvey

SEASON’S AVERAGES Batting and Fielding M I NO Runs HS Ave 100 50 Ct Tests 5 10 0 261 83 26.10 - 1 2 Sheffield Shield 2 3 0 97 50 32.33 - 1 - Other matches 2 3 0 119 88 39.66 - 1 1 1951/52 9 16 0 477 88 29.81 - 3 3 Career 89 131 14 5807 178 49.63 17 26 50 Bowling O M R W BB Ave Sheffield Shield 5 0 24 0 - - Other matches 10 1 48 0 - - 1951/52 (8-ball) 15 1 72 0 - - Career (8-ball) 72.7 4 } 316 8 2/11 39.50 (6-ball) 10 3 1951/52 - Commonwealth XI in Ceylon Against the M.C.C. tourists Harvey gave a brilliant display of straight driving and hitting to leg to score his 74 (thirteen fours) out of 118 in eighty minutes. Own Team O M R W Opp Ct Total Total 90. Commonwealth XI v M.C.C., Colombo Oval, February 16, 17, 18 (Commonwealth XI won by an innings and 259 runs) c and b F.Ridgway 74 517 103 1 155 SEASON’S AVERAGES Batting and Fielding M I NO Runs HS Ave 100 50 Ct 1951/52 1 1 0 74 74 74.00 - 1 1 Career 90 132 14 5881 178 49.83 17 27 51 1952/53 The South Africans were making their third tour to Australia and their first since 1931/32. During the Test series Harvey exceeded his deeds in South Africa. He made 834 runs in the series, the third highest number for a series after D.G.Bradman’s 974 against England in 1930 and W.R.Hammond’s 905 against Australia in 1928/29 (M.A.Taylor’s 839 against England in 1989 has since pushed him down to fourth place). At Brisbane he made a chanceless 109 in 155 minutes with sixteen fours while adding 155 for the third wicket with A.L.Hassett (55), and after being dropped at 19 made a dazzling 52 in the second innings. South Africa recorded their first victory against Australia for forty-two years in the Second Test at Melbourne; Harvey stood out again as the best Australian batsman with 60 in the second innings. Australia came back at Sydney. They dismissed South Africa for 173 and after losing two wickets cheaply, C.C.McDonald (67) joined Harvey in a stand of 113 in 100 minutes for the third wicket. K.R.Miller (55) then joined him in a stand of 168 in 185 minutes, which beat the previous best for the Australian fourth wicket stand against South Africa (154 by W.W.Armstrong and C.Hill at Melbourne in 1910/11) and now increased to 169 by M.A.Taylor and S.R.Waugh at Melbourne in 1993/94. Reaching his hundred in 166 minutes Harvey gave a difficult stumping chance at 118 and was dropped off Tayfield when on 133 in the first over of the third day. Batting for 361 minutes his 190 took him past 1000 runs against South Africa; still the only Australian batsman to do this. C.C.McDonald (154) and A.L.Hassett (163) shared a record breaking stand of 275 in the Adelaide Test and Harvey pressed home the advantage with a fine innings of 84. In the second innings he and A.R.Morris (77) shared a second wicket stand of 157 with Harvey reaching his century in 104 minutes, the fastest Test century in Australia at that time since the Second World War. To end the Test 15