83: Ray Lindwall

61 matches. 228 wickets @ 23.03. Strike rate: 59.87. 12x 5wi.

13 years. 4x good. 2x excellent. 5x outstanding.

The discussion

I never saw Ray Lindwall play. He was well before my time. But fortunately, my grandfather did. In fact, he got a fairly close look. ‘The first I knew about it was the ball thumping into the back of the net,’ is how he described the encounter.

My grandfather was a handy wicketkeeper/bat in his day, prior to World War II, and was once invited to a net session with some of the New South Wales players in Sydney as part of either a Combined Services XI or a NSW Country XI (here’s where my recollection of the story gets a fraction hazy; there are a couple of different variations). My grandfather told me he was ‘seeing them okay’, with the exception of Lindwall, who was just far too quick, even from the next net! He described the sound of the ball thudding past the batters as ‘unnerving and more than a little intimidating’.

My grandfather wasn’t the first, and certainly wasn’t the last to have been unnerved by Ray Lindwall. When playing for Queensland and Australia, Lindwall was fond of running on the spot in the changing room for a minute or so before going out to bowl. Fair enough, whatever gets you ready to go from ball one. Extended warm-ups featuring a football, rounders, cornhole or whatever non-cricketing activity de jour certainly weren’t part of the routine then. However, in those days, the facilities at the ’Gabba in Brisbane were, ahem, more modest than the present day. The combination of a wooden floor and a tin roof combined to make the noise almost deafening, and it certainly carried very clearly to the visitors’ rooms!

He caused batters a few problems out in the middle, too. His partnership with fellow quick Keith Miller in the post-World War II era formed one of the more potent combinations Australia had seen up until that time. Australia did have quality fast bowlers before then, but never really two on the same team for an extended period. The return of ‘the bumper’ in the 1950s (and subsequently its regular use later in cricket history) was in part due to Lindwall’s use of the bumper as an infrequent, but decisive, attacking weapon. With that in mind, it surprised me to learn that ‘bowled’ was Lindwall’s most common method of dismissal, at over 40 per cent. The old two-card trick, perhaps? Maybe Lindwall combined a little movement with his unerring accuracy and sharp pace to sneak through defences.

The stats also tell an impressive story. Lindwall averaged under 20 across all three of his peak series, with a very good strike rate. His career average of 23.03 sneaks him inside the top 20 bowlers who qualified for the Hall of Fame. Also, don’t sleep on his batting. Keith Miller is known as the premier allrounder of that era, but Lindwall was also handy with the bat — he has two Test hundreds and 15 half-centuries to his name.

The verdict

Lindwall’s record, and his reputation as a premier fast bowler of his time, speak for themselves. As one half of the first of Australia’s legendary duos, he leaves a legacy (in Australian cricket history at least) as one of the great fast bowlers post-World War II.

His average is excellent, and his AARP (Average Above Replacement Player), ranks inside the top 30 Hall of Fame candidate bowlers. This is significant, because it tells us that Lindwall’s ranks well against his peers, even when you account for the lower overall bowling averages during the 1950s. Perhaps the only blemish on his record is the fact he never took a 10-wicket haul, but otherwise his case is very impressive. With even one or two 10wm to his name, I would have been very tempted to push Lindwall a few places higher on this list.

Statistics are fun, but it’s the little stories that I enjoyed most when researching Ray Lindwall. The ’Gabba story, and of course my memories of the tales my grandfather told me. It’s those stories that get lost in history, and I am honoured to be able to share these ones with you all.

In one word

Intimidating

Notes

Bio

Record

Source: ESPN CricInfo

career peak

Sources: ESPN CricInfo