Ron Hamence with the Australian cricket team in England in 1948

Ron Hamence was a member of Donald Bradman’s famous Australian cricket team of 1948, which toured England and was undefeated in its 34 matches. Hamence scored 582 runs at a batting average of 32. 33, with a top-score of 99. His selection for the 1948 tour of England under Bradman was the subject of considerable controversy, as many other batsmen were overlooked.

About Ron Hamence with the Australian cricket team in England in 1948 in brief

Summary Ron Hamence with the Australian cricket team in England in 1948 Ron Hamence was a member of Donald Bradman’s famous Australian cricket team of 1948, which toured England and was undefeated in its 34 matches. As a result of this unprecedented feat by a Test side touring England, the team earned the nickname The Invincibles. Hamence scored 582 runs at a batting average of 32. 33, with a top-score of 99. He was the only frontline Australian batsman not to score a century. His selection for the 1948 tour of England under Bradman was the subject of considerable controversy, as many other batsmen were overlooked despite being more productive during the Australian summer. In a 2008 interview, Hamence emphasised that he felt no resentment over his omission. His roommate during the tour was the seamer Ernie Toshack. His cheerful nature and splendid tenor voice added to the good spirits of the team. He also occasionally opened the bowling in the tour matches with his gentle medium pace, allowing the team’s leading bowlers to recuperate between Tests. In the first Test against Worcestershire, he made 12 in the first innings as Australia replied to Yorkshire’s 71 with 101. He batted slowly, coming in at 224 before departing at 774. Australia scraped home by four wickets after a counterattack by Neil Harvey and Don Tallon. The next match against Yorkshire, on a damp pitch that suited slower bowling, was the closest Australia came to defeat on the tour. He came in and scored one before he was run out after being slow to set off for a quick single; Australia collapsed to 631.

The remaining eight frontline batsmen each scored at least 973 runs and all averaged no less than 47. 30. He played sporadically in the Test team, being selected in three of the ten matches in the previous two seasons. In those three Tests he scored a total of 81 runs at an average of 27. 00. He made his debut on English soil in the second tour match against Leicestershire and made only seven. He scored 85 and 66 against Queensland, a performance which kept him in the running for a place in the national team. The Australians travelled to London to defeat Surrey by an innings and it was mainly from the back foot, Jack Fleton, Jack Hassett and Jack Fingleton opined that it was a nice foot and opined it was nice to have Hamence at No. 3 to No. 4. He did not play a Test on tour and was used in non-Test tour matches so that the leading batsmen could conserve energy for the Tests, as play was scheduled for six days a week. He had made only sporadic Test appearances in previous seasons, and had played only three wickets for Sam Loxton and Sam Lo Loxton in their first match. In his last Test match against Cambridge, he scored one in an innings against the University of Cambridge. He returned for the next game against Cambridge and scored 12 in a stand-in captain Lindsay Hassett.