The 1954–55 Australians lost 3–1 to the touring England team in the 1954–55 Ashes series. The Australian teams of the 1940s and early 1950s were strong even after the retirement of Don Bradman as many of his great 1948 side remained. Australia had lost only one series since 1932–33, when they lost he Ashes to Len Hutton in the exceptionally close fought 1953 Ashes series, but had played no Test cricket since. They had thrashed John Goddard's West Indian team 4–1 in 1951–52 after his triumphant 3–1 win in England, but had surprisingly been held to a 2–2 series draw against Jack Cheetham's South Africans in 1952–53. The general opinion in Australia was that they would win the return series, especially after the great victory in the First Test. "Although Australian batting was unsound by the old standards the presence of more all-rounders gave them the slightly better chance"[1] wrote E.W. Swanton "all-rounders are said to hold the key to Test matches. Australia had four or five to England's one..."[2]
Ian Johnson, Australian Captain 1954–56Keith Miller, the cavalier alternative
When Lindsay Hassett retired after the 1953 Ashes Series his vice-captain Arthur Morris was not appointed to succeed him because he was not a state captain. In 1954–55 Australia had not played a Test series since and the selectors were divided as to who should be captain. As with everything else down under cricket was divided between the power centres of Sydney, New South Wales and Melbourne, Victoria. The fast bowling all-rounder Keith Miller was captain of New South Wales and the winner of the 1954–55 Sheffield Shield. He had the obvious advantage of being an automatic selection for the Australian team, and was a charismatic and inspirational leader on the field. Against him was his cavalier approach to the game and that he was little inclined to enforce discipline. His rival was the captain of Victoria, the off-spinner Ian Johnson. Johnson had been little used on the 1948 tour and was left behind in 1953 and was not an automatic selection for the Test team. However, he was the son of the Test selector William Johnson, had attended the elite Wesley College. Lindsay Hassett and the chairman of selectors Don Bradman favoured Johnson and he was appointed captain by the A.C.B. Unlike Miller he was seen as a safe pair of hands and he was an astute captain and a fine ambassador for Australian cricket, but not everybody was happy with the choice. Frank Tyson reckoned that his innings victory in the First Test cost Australia the series as it confirmed Johnson in the captaincy, whereas Miller might have won the next three vital Tests. As it was vice-captain Arthur Morris was blamed for the defeat in Sydney and (strangely) Melbourne and the selectors stuck by Johnson.[3] He went on to captain the successful Australian tour of the West Indies in 1954–55, where his diplomacy ensured that he did not suffer the same problems as Len Hutton in 1953–54, and his captaincy was considered to be equal to that of Richie Benaud.[4] He retired after the Australian tour of England, Pakistan and India in 1956, where he again failed to regain the Ashes after being 1–0 up in the series.
The Battingedit
The weakness of the Australian team was their batting, Don Bradman (99.94), Sid Barnes (63.05) and Lindsay Hassett (46.56) had all retired and had not been adequately replaced. Arthur Morris (46.48) and Neil Harvey (48.42) were still in the team and made centuries in the 1st Test, but Morris had been dropped off Alec Bedser on 0 then failed 6 times and before being dropped himself. Harvey made a brave, undefeated 92 at Sydney against the pace of Tyson and Statham and was the only specialist batsman to play in all five Tests, but he also failed at the end. Of the other batsmen only Colin McDonald in the last two Tests was able to stand up to the England attack. Australia did have strength in depth, Keith Miller (36.97), Alan Davidson (24.59), Ron Archer (24.58), Richie Benaud (24.45) and Ray Lindwall (21.15) were all-rounders of Test class, but lacked the skills to master high class pace and only Lindwall (64 not out at Brisbane) made fifty. Captain Ian Johnson topped the Australian batting averages (116 at 58.00) by dint of batting at number ten and being not out 4 times in 6 innings.
The Bowlingedit
The home side were still able to call on the great bowlers of Don Bradman'sGreat 1948 Team; the hostile pace of Ray Lindwall (23.03) and Keith Miller (22.97), the left-arm swing and left arm spin of Bill Johnston (23.91) and the flighted off-spinners of Ian Johnson. Ray Lindwall was regarded as the finest fast bowler after the war, with a perfectly controlled action, Frank Tyson writing "he appears to be just jogging his fifteen yards up to the stumps – until the last couple of strides of his approach, when he suddenly explodes into his delivery stride...when he releases the ball, his bowling arm is so low that it borders on the round-arm".[5] Particularly dangerous was his late in-swinging yorker and "who is not 'Lindy's bunny' when he slots his yorker in the right spot?".[6]Keith Miller was a batsman who had developed his bowling at the request of Don Bradman, famously mercurial he usually bowled fast seamers, but liked to mix in off-spin and leg-spin and sometimes when returning to his mark would suddenly turn and bowl off a couple of paces to see if he could catch the batsmen by surprise. "Big Bill" Johnston was a powerful left arm swing bowler who had been Australia's best wicket-taker three series in a row. He would do so again with 19 wickets at 22.26 and was the only Australian to take 5 wickets in a single innings (5/85 at Melbourne), but this was a testament to the strength of the Australian bowling as the wickets were usually shared around. Like Miller he could bowl spin, but instead of mixing his bowling he saved his slow left arm spinners for when the opposition were caught on a sticky wicket. The captain Ian Johnson was an off-spinner, a rarity in Australian cricket which tended to prefer leg-spinners. He was not a big spinner of the ball, and one of the slowest bowlers in cricket, but he used flight to deceive the batsmen and tied down one end while the fast bowlers rested. To these veterans could be added the exceptional promise of three talented young all-rounders; the fast seam bowler Ron Archer (27.45), who topped the bowling averages (13 wickets at 16.53), the fast-medium left-arm swing bowler of Alan Davidson (20.53) and the leg-spinner Richie Benaud (27.03). Unfortunately for the Australians Davidson and Benaud had yet to mature as bowlers, Lindwall, Miller, Johnson and Davidson all carried injuries and only Benaud played in all five Tests.
The Fieldingedit
Australians regard fielding as a love, not a task. Every aspiring young Australian knows he must be a fielding specialist to get into a Test team and so he goes to work accordingly.
Gil Langley of South Australia had taken over from the great Don Tallon as Australia's wicket-keeper, but he was injured and replaced by Len Maddocks of Victoria, who was kept due to his superior batsmanship. They were good keepers and few chances went begging when they were behind the stumps. In the field the Australians were far superior to the England side – the 1953 Australians were considered to be the best fielding team ever to tour England.[8] – and they trained hard to improve their performance. Neil Harvey in the covers and "the Claw" Alan Davidson in any close catching position were outstanding, Ian Johnson was a good slip fielder and Richie Benaud an excellent gully fieldsman.
The Australian Teamedit
Below are the Test statistics of the Australian Test team. All Australian cricketers were amateurs who were only paid expenses until World Series Cricket in 1977–79.
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The 1954 55 Australians lost 3 1 to the touring England team in the 1954 55 Ashes series The Australian teams of the 1940s and early 1950s were strong even after the retirement of Don Bradman as many of his great 1948 side remained Australia had lost only one series since 1932 33 when they lost he Ashes to Len Hutton in the exceptionally close fought 1953 Ashes series but had played no Test cricket since They had thrashed John Goddard s West Indian team 4 1 in 1951 52 after his triumphant 3 1 win in England but had surprisingly been held to a 2 2 series draw against Jack Cheetham s South Africans in 1952 53 The general opinion in Australia was that they would win the return series especially after the great victory in the First Test Although Australian batting was unsound by the old standards the presence of more all rounders gave them the slightly better chance 1 wrote E W Swanton all rounders are said to hold the key to Test matches Australia had four or five to England s one 2 Contents 1 The Captain 2 The Batting 3 The Bowling 4 The Fielding 5 The Australian Team 6 First Test Brisbane 7 Second Test Sydney 8 Third Test Melbourne 9 Fourth Test Adelaide 10 Fifth Test Sydney 11 References 12 Bibliography 13 Further readingThe Captain edit nbsp Ian Johnson Australian Captain 1954 56 nbsp Keith Miller the cavalier alternative When Lindsay Hassett retired after the 1953 Ashes Series his vice captain Arthur Morris was not appointed to succeed him because he was not a state captain In 1954 55 Australia had not played a Test series since and the selectors were divided as to who should be captain As with everything else down under cricket was divided between the power centres of Sydney New South Wales and Melbourne Victoria The fast bowling all rounder Keith Miller was captain of New South Wales and the winner of the 1954 55 Sheffield Shield He had the obvious advantage of being an automatic selection for the Australian team and was a charismatic and inspirational leader on the field Against him was his cavalier approach to the game and that he was little inclined to enforce discipline His rival was the captain of Victoria the off spinner Ian Johnson Johnson had been little used on the 1948 tour and was left behind in 1953 and was not an automatic selection for the Test team However he was the son of the Test selector William Johnson had attended the elite Wesley College Lindsay Hassett and the chairman of selectors Don Bradman favoured Johnson and he was appointed captain by the A C B Unlike Miller he was seen as a safe pair of hands and he was an astute captain and a fine ambassador for Australian cricket but not everybody was happy with the choice Frank Tyson reckoned that his innings victory in the First Test cost Australia the series as it confirmed Johnson in the captaincy whereas Miller might have won the next three vital Tests As it was vice captain Arthur Morris was blamed for the defeat in Sydney and strangely Melbourne and the selectors stuck by Johnson 3 He went on to captain the successful Australian tour of the West Indies in 1954 55 where his diplomacy ensured that he did not suffer the same problems as Len Hutton in 1953 54 and his captaincy was considered to be equal to that of Richie Benaud 4 He retired after the Australian tour of England Pakistan and India in 1956 where he again failed to regain the Ashes after being 1 0 up in the series The Batting editThe weakness of the Australian team was their batting Don Bradman 99 94 Sid Barnes 63 05 and Lindsay Hassett 46 56 had all retired and had not been adequately replaced Arthur Morris 46 48 and Neil Harvey 48 42 were still in the team and made centuries in the 1st Test but Morris had been dropped off Alec Bedser on 0 then failed 6 times and before being dropped himself Harvey made a brave undefeated 92 at Sydney against the pace of Tyson and Statham and was the only specialist batsman to play in all five Tests but he also failed at the end Of the other batsmen only Colin McDonald in the last two Tests was able to stand up to the England attack Australia did have strength in depth Keith Miller 36 97 Alan Davidson 24 59 Ron Archer 24 58 Richie Benaud 24 45 and Ray Lindwall 21 15 were all rounders of Test class but lacked the skills to master high class pace and only Lindwall 64 not out at Brisbane made fifty Captain Ian Johnson topped the Australian batting averages 116 at 58 00 by dint of batting at number ten and being not out 4 times in 6 innings The Bowling editThe home side were still able to call on the great bowlers of Don Bradman s Great 1948 Team the hostile pace of Ray Lindwall 23 03 and Keith Miller 22 97 the left arm swing and left arm spin of Bill Johnston 23 91 and the flighted off spinners of Ian Johnson Ray Lindwall was regarded as the finest fast bowler after the war with a perfectly controlled action Frank Tyson writing he appears to be just jogging his fifteen yards up to the stumps until the last couple of strides of his approach when he suddenly explodes into his delivery stride when he releases the ball his bowling arm is so low that it borders on the round arm 5 Particularly dangerous was his late in swinging yorker and who is not Lindy s bunny when he slots his yorker in the right spot 6 Keith Miller was a batsman who had developed his bowling at the request of Don Bradman famously mercurial he usually bowled fast seamers but liked to mix in off spin and leg spin and sometimes when returning to his mark would suddenly turn and bowl off a couple of paces to see if he could catch the batsmen by surprise Big Bill Johnston was a powerful left arm swing bowler who had been Australia s best wicket taker three series in a row He would do so again with 19 wickets at 22 26 and was the only Australian to take 5 wickets in a single innings 5 85 at Melbourne but this was a testament to the strength of the Australian bowling as the wickets were usually shared around Like Miller he could bowl spin but instead of mixing his bowling he saved his slow left arm spinners for when the opposition were caught on a sticky wicket The captain Ian Johnson was an off spinner a rarity in Australian cricket which tended to prefer leg spinners He was not a big spinner of the ball and one of the slowest bowlers in cricket but he used flight to deceive the batsmen and tied down one end while the fast bowlers rested To these veterans could be added the exceptional promise of three talented young all rounders the fast seam bowler Ron Archer 27 45 who topped the bowling averages 13 wickets at 16 53 the fast medium left arm swing bowler of Alan Davidson 20 53 and the leg spinner Richie Benaud 27 03 Unfortunately for the Australians Davidson and Benaud had yet to mature as bowlers Lindwall Miller Johnson and Davidson all carried injuries and only Benaud played in all five Tests The Fielding editAustralians regard fielding as a love not a task Every aspiring young Australian knows he must be a fielding specialist to get into a Test team and so he goes to work accordingly Jack Fingleton 7 Gil Langley of South Australia had taken over from the great Don Tallon as Australia s wicket keeper but he was injured and replaced by Len Maddocks of Victoria who was kept due to his superior batsmanship They were good keepers and few chances went begging when they were behind the stumps In the field the Australians were far superior to the England side the 1953 Australians were considered to be the best fielding team ever to tour England 8 and they trained hard to improve their performance Neil Harvey in the covers and the Claw Alan Davidson in any close catching position were outstanding Ian Johnson was a good slip fielder and Richie Benaud an excellent gully fieldsman The Australian Team editBelow are the Test statistics of the Australian Test team All Australian cricketers were amateurs who were only paid expenses until World Series Cricket in 1977 79 Test Statistics of Australian Team 1954 55 Name State Age Role Tests Runs Highest Average 100s 50s Ct St Wickets Best Average 5 Wt 10 Wt A R Morris vc New South Wales 32 Left Handed Opening Batsman 46 3353 206 46 48 12 12 15 2 1 5 25 00 J W Burke New South Wales 24 Right Handed Opening Batsman 24 1280 189 34 59 3 5 18 12 4 37 28 75 L E Favell South Australia 25 Right Handed Opening Batsman 19 757 101 27 03 1 5 21 C C McDonald Victoria 26 Right Handed Opening Batsman 47 3107 170 39 32 5 17 14 0 3 R N Harvey Victoria 26 Left Handed Top Order Batsman 79 6145 205 48 41 21 24 64 3 1 8 40 00 P J P Burge Queensland 22 Right Handed Top Order Batsman 42 2290 181 38 16 4 12 23 G B Hole South Australia 24 Right Handed Top Order Batsman 18 789 66 25 45 5 6 3 1 9 42 00 W J Watson New South Wales 25 Right Handed Top Order Batsman 4 106 30 17 66 2 G R A Langley South Australia 25 Wicket Keeper 26 374 53 14 96 1 83 15 L V Maddocks Victoria 28 Wicket Keeper 7 177 69 17 70 1 18 1 R G Archer New South Wales 21 Right Arm Fast Bowler 19 713 128 24 58 1 2 20 48 5 53 27 45 1 R R Lindwall Queensland 33 Right Arm Fast Bowler 61 1502 118 21 15 2 5 26 228 7 38 23 03 12 K R Miller New South Wales 35 Right Arm Fast Bowler Leg Spin Bowler Off Spin Bowler 55 2958 147 36 97 7 13 38 170 7 60 22 97 7 1 A K Davidson New South Wales 25 Left Arm Fast Medium Bowler 44 1328 80 24 59 5 42 186 7 93 20 53 14 2 W A Johnston Victoria 32 Left Arm Fast Medium Bowler Slow Left Arm Bowler 40 273 29 11 37 16 160 6 44 23 91 7 R Benaud New South Wales 24 Leg Spin Bowler 63 2201 122 24 45 3 9 65 248 7 72 27 03 16 1 I W G Johnson c Victoria 37 Off Spin Bowler 45 1000 77 18 51 6 33 109 7 44 29 19 6First Test Brisbane edit26 November 1 December 1954 scorecard nbsp Australia v nbsp England 601 8 dec R N Harvey 162A R Morris 153R R Lindwall 62 G B Hole 57 T E Bailey 3 140 190T E Bailey 88 R R Lindwall 3 27I W G Johnson 3 46 257 follow on W J Edrich 88 R Benaud 3 43 nbsp Australia won by an innings and 154 runsBrisbane Cricket Ground Woolloongabba Australia Umpires C Hoy AUS amp M J McInnes AUS See Main Article 1954 55 Ashes seriesSecond Test Sydney edit17 22 December 1954 scorecard nbsp England v nbsp Australia 154Wardle J H 35 R G Archer 3 12W A Johnston 3 56 228R G Archer 49 Tyson F H 4 45T E Bailey 4 59 296P B H May vc 104M C Cowdrey 54 R G Archer 3 53R R Lindwall 3 69W A Johnston 3 70 184R N Harvey 92 Tyson F H 6 85Statham J B 3 45 nbsp England won by 38 runsSydney Cricket Ground Sydney Australia Umpires M J McInnes AUS amp R J J Wight AUS See Main Article 1954 55 Ashes seriesThird Test Melbourne edit31 December 1954 5 January 1955 scorecard nbsp England v nbsp Australia 191M C Cowdrey 102 R G Archer 4 33K R Miller 3 14 231L V Maddocks 47 Staham J B 5 60Tyson F H 2 68 296P B H May 91 W A Johnston 5 85 111L E Favell 30 Tyson F H 7 27Staham J B 2 38 Evans T G wk 3 Ct nbsp England won by 128 runsMelbourne Cricket Ground Melbourne Australia Umpires C Hoy AUS amp M J McInnes AUS See Main Article 1954 55 Ashes seriesFourth Test Adelaide edit28 January 2 February 1955 scorecard nbsp Australia v nbsp England 323L V Maddocks wk 69 T E Bailey 3 39 Appleyard R 3 58Tyson F H 3 85 341Hutton L c 80M C Cowdrey 79 R Benaud 4 120 L V Maddocks wk 3 Ct 111C C McDonald 29 Appleyard R 3 13Statham J B 3 38Tyson F H 3 47 97 5Compton D C S 34 K R Miller 3 40 nbsp England won by 5 wicketsAdelaide Oval Adelaide Australia Umpires M J McInnes AUS amp R J J Wright AUS See Main Article 1954 55 Ashes seriesFifth Test Sydney edit25 February 3 March 1955 scorecard nbsp England v nbsp Australia 371 7 dec Graveney T W 111Compton D C S 84P B H May 79T E Bailey 72 I W G Johnson 3 68R R Lindwall 3 77 221C C McDonald 72 Wardle J H 5 79 118 6 follow on C C McDonald 37 Wardle J H 3 51 Match drawnSydney Cricket Ground Sydney Australia Umpires M J McInnes AUS amp R J J Wright AUS 25 28 February See Main Article 1954 55 Ashes seriesReferences edit p89 Swanton 1977 p100 Swanton 1977 p 180 Tyson pp182 183 Richard Whitington Captains Outrageous Cricket in the seventies Stanley Paul 1973 p104 105 Tyson p212 Tyson p58 Jack Fingleton Brown and Company Collins 1951 p294 E W Swanton 1986Bibliography editE W Swanton Swanton in Australia with MCC 1946 1975 Fontana Collins 1975 Frank Tyson In the Eye of the Typhoon The Inside Story of the MCC Tour of Australia and New Zealand 1954 55 Parrs Wood Press 2004Further reading editJohn Arlott Australian Test Journal A Diary of the Test Matches Australia v England 1954 55 The Sportsman s Book Club 1956 John Arlott John Arlott s 100 Greatest Batsmen MacDonald Queen Anne Press 1986 Peter Arnold The Illustrated Encyclopedia of World Cricket W H Smith 1985 Sidney Barnes The Ashes Ablaze The M C C Australian tour 1954 55 Kimber 1955 Ashley Brown The Pictorial History of Cricket Bison 1988 Bill Frindall The Wisden Book of Test Cricket 1877 1978 Wisden 1979 Arthur Gilligan The Urn Returns A Diary of the 1954 55 M C C Tour of Australia Deutsch 1955 Tom Graveney and Norman Miller The Ten Greatest Test Teams Sidgewick and Jackson 1988 Chris Harte A History of Australian Cricket Andre Deutsch 1993 Alan Hill Daring Young Men MCC Tour to Australia 1954 55 Methuen Publishing Ltd 2004 Ken Kelly and David Lemmon Cricket Reflections Five Decades of Cricket Photographs Heinemann 1985 Keith Miller Cricket Crossfire Oldbourne Press 1956 Ian Peebles The Ashes 1954 55 Hodder and Stoughton 1955 Playfair Cricket Annual 1955 Ray Robinson On Top Down Under Cassell 1975 Alan Ross Australia 55 A Journal of the M C C Tour Joseph 1955 E W Swanton and C B Fry Test Matches of 1954 55 Victory in Australia The Daily Telegraph 1955 E W Swanton ed Barclay s World of Cricket Willow 1986 Roy Webber The Australians in England A Record of the 21 Australian Cricket Tours of England 1878 1953 Hodder amp Stoughton 1953 Crawford White England Keep the Ashes The Record of the England and M C C Tour of Australia 1954 55 News Chronicle 1955 Bob Willis and Patrick Murphy Starting With Grace A Pictorial Celebration of Cricket 1864 1986 Stanley Paul 1986 Wisden Cricketers Almanack 1956 MCC in Australia and New Zealand 1954 55 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Australian cricket team in Australia in 1954 55 amp oldid 1072065319, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
