Famous Cricketers No 65 - Len Hutton

1949 In what was a most magnificent summer Len Hutton had what was to be his most successful season in terms of runs scored and also of catches taken. His wonderful tour of South Africa was to be the prelude to his scoring over 3,000 runs in a season for the only time in his career with many innings memorable for the beauty of his stroke-play, the sureness of his technique and the total domination of the bowling. He began the season on a high note when he “batted delightfully” in scoring 167 for his county against the visiting New Zealanders in just over four hours and rarely looked back from then on. In the Whitsun Roses match at Old Trafford in a majestic innings of 201 he became only the second Yorkshireman (after Maurice Leyland) to score a double century in this fixture. He followed this with a quick 91* in the second innings as Yorkshire went for a declaration and also managed to discover some of his neglected bowling skills by taking five wickets in the match. In the following game against Northamptonshire at Bradford he took his total of runs in his last three completed innings to 618. In the process he scored 1,000 runs for the season at an earlier stage than any previous Yorkshire player. He was obviously in prime form for the Test series which began at Headingley immediately after the Bradford game. He did not let down his adoring Yorkshire crowd and although his century took over four hours as a result of accurate bowling to a packed off-side field, its technical perfection was apparent. His second innings was something of an anti-climax as he failed to score. Worse was to follow, however, as in the next game at Worcester Reg Perks dismissed him for a “pair”, the second time that this had happened to him against that county. In spite of his three consecutive “ducks” June turned out to be a wonderful month for him as by scoring 1,294 runs he broke the record number of runs in a month previously held by Wally Hammond. For the second time in his career, as though to make up for his Worcester “pair” (no pun intended), he made a century in each innings, this time against Sussex at Hove. July was a rather moderate month with just over 350 runs, but in August they began to flow once more with 269* at Wellingborough, the second highest score of the season, and 206 at the Oval in the final Test of the season during which innings he reached 25,000 runs in his career. He took part in an opening partnership of 168 with Reg. Simpson after the surprise dropping of Cyril Washbrook. “Few people in England had seen him drive with such power, grace and certainty as in his second hundred which took only eighty-five minutes.” His technique on unfavourable batting pitches was shown in a very low-scoring game at Huddersfield with Gloucestershire with “Hutton alone showing sufficient skills to withstand the strong attacks”. He joined a very select group that month in scoring 1,000 runs in two separate months in the same season. He finished the season as he had started when in the Scarborough Festival he scored two centuries and four fifties in six innings. His final aggregate for the season of 3,429 was the fourth highest ever recorded. He and John Langridge, who was having an Indian summer, were the season’s leading century makers with twelve apiece and Joe Hardstaff just beat him to the top position in the season’s batting averages. His wonderful season received a suitable special tribute in the 1950 Wisden from Vivian Jenkins. He looked upon Hutton as “an England opener fit to wear the mantle handed down by men like Hobbs and Hayward, MacLaren and Grace, and, from long ago, Arthur Shrewsbury”. As the forties ended he was many people’s choice as the best batsman in the world. Own Team O M R W Opp Ct Total Total 298. Yorkshire v New Zealanders, Bradford, April 30, May 2, 3 (Match drawn) c G.F.Cresswell b G.O.Rabone 167 346 370-7d did not bat - 101-3 244-6d 40