Famous Cricketers No 91 - J.C.Laker

281. Surrey v Sussex, Kennington Oval, August 24, 25, 26 (Surrey won by an innings and 8 runs) not out 78 343-9d 28 7 77 2 G.H.G.Doggart b 245 G.Cox c M.J.Stewart 1 0 7 1 G.Cox b 90 282. Surrey v Hampshire, Bournemouth, August 27, 29, 30 (Hampshire won by 129 runs) c A.W.H.Rayment b M.D.Burden 43 245 26 8 52 2 J.R.Gray c W.S.Surridge 368-7d 1 R.E.Marshall c and b lbw b P.J.Sainsbury 0 174 13 0 65 1 H.Horton c M.J.Stewart 180-7d 283. Surrey v Derbyshire, Kennington Oval, August 31, September 1 (Surrey won by eight wickets) c D.B.Carr b D.Hall 38 101 5 2 13 2 H.L.Johnson b 103 1 C.Gladwin st A.J.W.McIntyre did not bat - 133-2 3.3 1 6 2 E.Smith c A.J.W.McIntyre 130 D.Hall c K.F.Barrington 284. England XI v Commonwealth XI, Hastings, September 3, 5, 6 (England XI won by 56 runs) b F.M.M.Worrell 4 329 11 1 52 1 A.P.Arnold b 272 not out 4 255-7d 13 0 59 1 L.F.Outschoorn c and b 256 2 285. Surrey (Champion County) v The Rest, Kennington Oval, September 10, 12, 13, 14 (The Rest won by two wickets) c D.Shackleton b J.H.Wardle10 165 23 5 63 1 J.H.Wardle c G.A.R.Lock 299 c R.T.Spooner b J.H.Wardle 10 297 5 1 23 0 164-8 SEASON’S AVERAGES Batting and Fielding M I NO Runs HS Ave 100 50 Ct Test match 1 2 0 14 12 7.00 - - - Championship 24 28 5 613 78* 26.65 - 4 20 Other Surrey matches 4 6 0 71 44 11.83 - - 4 Other match 1 2 1 8 4* 8.00 - - 2 Season 30 38 6 706 78* 22.06 - 4 26 Career 285 366 61 5708 113 18.71 2 17 210 Bowling O M R W BB Ave 5i 10m Strike RunR Test match 60.4 31 84 7 5/56 12.00 1 - 52.00 23.07 Championship 846.4 274 1850 102 7/95 18.13 5 2 49.80 36.42 Other Surrey matches 159.5 56 337 22 6/28 15.31 3 1 43.59 35.14 Other match 24 1 111 2 1/52 55.50 - - 72.00 77.08 Season 1091.1 362 2382 133 7/95 17.90 9 3 49.22 36.38 Career 11158.2 3590 23841 1274 8/2 18.71 89 22 52.55 35.65 1956 It is probably safe to say that some of Jim Laker’s feats in 1956 will never be equalled. To take nineteen wickets for 90 runs in a Test match, as Laker did that year against Australia at Old Trafford, was one astonishing achievement and to twice take all ten wickets in a season against the same opposition is another feat without equal. It is true that S.F.Barnes bettered his series total of wickets when he took forty-nine against South Africa in 1913/14 but Laker’s figures of forty-six has never been equalled in an Anglo-Australian series. He also took eleven wickets for 113 in the Headingley Test and altogether took sixty-three Australian wickets during the season. This was six more than he took for Surrey in the Championship where he took fifty-seven wickets at a cost of 18.17 each. He took five wickets or more in a Championship innings three times. In all matches in 1956 he took 132 wickets at 14.43 and was sixth in the national averages. As a batsman he made only 320 runs at an average of 11.03 but he did play a very important innings of 43 in the first Surrey match against the Australians at Kennington Oval which, together with his ten for 88 in the first Australian innings, helped Surrey to become the first County side to beat the Australians since Hampshire did it in 1912. He took eight catches in all matches. 42