Famous Cricketers No 77 - W.L.Murdoch

15. Australians v Sussex, Hove, August 29, 30 (Australians won by seven wickets) † c W.B.Weighell b F.J.Greenfield 0 75 80 - 1 not out 5 53-3 47 - 3 16. Australians v Players of England, Kennington Oval, September 2, 3 (Australians won by 8 runs) † st H.Phillips b E.Barratt 0 77 82 1 1 c G.G.Hearne b W.McIntyre 0 89 76 17. Australians v Gloucestershire, Clifton, September 5, 6 (Australians won by ten wickets) run out 0 183 112 1 did not bat - 17-0 85 18. Australians v Gentlemen of England, Scarborough, September 9, 10 (Match drawn) not out 44 157 109 b C.I.Thornton 49 249-8 19. Australians v Players of England, Prince’s, September 11, 12 (Match drawn) c A.Shaw b Barratt 14 236 160 20. Australians v Philadelphia, Germantown, October 3, 4, 5 (Match drawn) b D.S.Newhall 37 150 - - - - 196 1 not out 0 56-4 10 2 10 0 53 SEASON’S AVERAGES Batting and Fielding M I NO Runs HS Ave 100 50 Ct St Tour (England) 15 25 4 274 49 13.04 - - 11 7 Tour (USA) 1 2 1 37 37 37.00 - - 1 - Tour 16 27 5 311 49 14.13 - - 12 7 Career 20 34 6 350 49 12.50 - - 16 8 Bowling O M R W BB Ave Tour England (4 ball) 22 6 46 2 2-46 23.00 Tour USA (4 ball) 10 2 10 0 - - Career (4 ball) 32 8 56 2 2-46 28.00 1878/79 His technique refined by experience on English wickets, Murdoch now began to emerge as a major batsman. On the final leg of the tour he hit 153 against 15 of Victoria and after an undistinguished Test Match against just about the least representative England side ever to take the field against Australia, he hit his maiden fifty (8 fours) in first-class cricket on his first appearance as State captain. His 82* (11 fours) in the second New South Wales match was the first instance in Australia of a batsman carrying his bat through a complete innings. In the home team’s second innings umpire Coulthard’s run out decision against Murdoch sparked the infamous Sydney riot. There is no evidence that the batsman showed dissent or did anything to encourage the pitch invasion. Quite the opposite. Judging by his speech at the Mansion House at the conclusion of the 1880 tour of England, he held his own captain David Gregory at least partially responsible for the trouble. Certainly nobody did more to smooth things over. Own Team O M R W Opp Ct St Total Total 21. AUSTRALIA v ENGLAND, Melbourne, January 2, 3, 4 (Australia won by ten wickets) c A.J.Webbe b G.Ulyett 4 256 113 not out 4 19-0 160 22. New South Wales v Lord Harris’s XI, Sydney, January 24, 25, 27, 28 (New South Wales won by five wickets) *† c A.J.Webbe b G.Ulyett 70 240 248 b A.P.Lucas 49 226-5 217 - 1 23. New South Wales v Lord Harris’s XI, Sydney, February 7, 8, 10 (Lord Harris’s XI won by an innings and 41 runs) † not out 82 177 267 run out 10 49 13