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| Sunday, 6 February 2005 |
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| News Business Features Editorial
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Don Bradman scored 100 in 3 overs! by A. C. de Silva Sir Donald Bradman - the mercurial Australian cricketer has many records to his credit which are known to the cricketing world. His batting held centre stage whenever he went into bat in Australia and elsewhere as well, be it in Test matches, county matches or side games.
Born in New South Wales, it was and he practised all by himself. He was a natural cricketer. Many are the records that stand to the credit of this great player and recalling all would be a hazardous task but, some of them, however, are not known even now to the many followers of the game. Can any cricketer or the staunchest follower of the game think that a batsman can score a century in just three overs? Don Bradman achieved this feat in a club fixture in Australia for Blachheath against Lithgow Pottery in the Sydney area. His hundred was posted in just 20 minutes. Here's the breakdown: First over (eight balls): 6, 6, 4, 2, 4, 4, 6, 1 (33 runs). 2nd over: 6, 4, 4, 6, 6, 4, 6, 4 (40 runs). 3rd over: 1, 6, 6, 1, 1, 4, 4, 6 (29 runs). That gives a total of 102 runs of which Bradman's share was 100! Two runs (both singles) were taken by Wendell-Bill, Bradman's partner in the third over. Bradman went on to score 256 and it included fourteen 6s and twenty nine 4s. Sri Lankan cricket fans (Ceylon as we were then known) also had the opportunity of witnessing the much talked of Donald Bradman in action on our shores. He first played here long ago - on April 3 in 1930 at the Colombo Cricket Club grounds and he made 40 in the 'whistle stop' one-dayer and then 18-years later in 1948, he made 20 in another one-dayer. In the first match, Bradman was hit-wicket to Lankan bowler Joseph and in the 1948 match, he was caught by De Kretser off the bowling of Russel Heyn whose two sons Richard and David also played top grade cricket with David also donning the Sri Lankan cap later on. Then in July 1932, Bradman not satisfied with his performances with the bat alone tried his hand at bowling and was an instant success here too. Playing for the Australian tourists at Victoria, Bradman outshone his teammates, Mailey Richardson, McCabe an Kippax. It was batting first for him and he made 94 in Australia's total of 303 for 6 wickets declared. Then he claimed six British Columbia wickets in an eight-ball over. Scores: Australia 303 for 6 wkts dec. British Columbia 122 and 99 for 7 wkts. The Don, as he was popularly known, made his state debut for New South Wales, when he was just 19. The match was against Queensland. He started off in cavalier fashion with a century. A year later at the age of 20 years, he played against the M.C.C. visiting side led by A.P.F. Chapman and in that game too, he fared prominently, scoring 219 runs. Then later on, the great batsman made history in 1938 when in the English season, he made the eye-catching aggregate of 2,429 runs for the highest batting average of 115.66. That was not all, he hit the highest number of double centuries. He did not reserve his batting prowess only for use against the England bowlers. In his first match against South Africa, he hit 226 and against the West Indies 223. In Inter-State matches, he hit Queensland for what was then the world's highest first-class score of 452 not out in 415 minutes - a rate of 70 an hour. His name appeared in the record books for 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th wicket partnership. He ended his cricket as he started it - with a century. It was in a testimonial match that netted him 10,000 sterling pounds. To be continued |
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| Produced by Lake House |
He started like an ordinary lad on the road in 1914 to 1918', following
the war. A boy with a golf ball, a gum tree branch for a bat, a wall to
bowl against and a round pailing for a wicket and thus he trained just
like any boy trying his hand at cricket. From this humble beginning, this
boy was to become the world's finest batsman.
