1931
Frederick Trueman, regarded as the greatest fast bowler of England, was born on this day. Fred was the first man from any country to take 300 Test wickets with a fiery average of 21.57, a landmark he reached at The Oval in 1964. His debut series was against India and at Headingley Fred’s 3 for 0 in eight balls is still etched in memory. He eventually finished with 307 wickets, but could have achieved more if he had not missed many matches due to disciplinary breaches.
1948
Don Bradman played his last Test innings on his home soil. He had to retire hurt on 57 against India in Melbourne.
1953
Ian Craig became Australia’s youngest male cricketer to play Test cricket when he debuted at 17 years, 239 days against South Africa in Melbourne. Craig started well with 53 and 47 in the two innings.
1971
Brad Hogg, Australia’s china man bowler, was born on this day. He made his debut in the one-off Test against India in the 1996-97 season. Hogg made 1 and 4, took 1 wicket for 69 and lost his place in the national side for the next seven years and 78 games. No other Australian has waited so long between his first and second Tests. However, he made a satisfying comeback into the national side for the 2003 World Cup when he surprised the world with a stupendous flipper to Zimbabwe’s Andy Flower. In the 2007 World Cup he took 21 wickets at 15.80.
1989
Darren Bravo, the left-hand batsman for West Indies was born on this day. is one of the few young stars in world cricket who seems more at home as the length of the format increases. His first century (a big one) arrived in Bangladesh, in his tenth Test. He scored two more in the series in India immediately after. 1995
Graham Gooch and Mike Gatting, the magnificent pair of England batting, bid adieu to cricket on this day in Perth. Both were dismissed by Craig McDermott in their last innings. Between them Gooch and Gatting played 197 Tests, in which they scored over 13,000 runs.
1997
Daniel Vettori made his Test debut against England in Wellington at 18 years 10 days. He had played only two first-class games. Vettori took the wicket of Nasser Hussain as his first victim.
