Tom Graveney

Tom Graveney

OBE
Tom Graveney in 1954
Personal information
Full name
Thomas William Graveney
Born(1927-06-16)16 June 1927
Riding Mill, Hexham, Northumberland, England
Died3 November 2015(2015-11-03) (aged 88)
NicknameLong Tom
BattingRight-handed
BowlingRight-arm leg break
RoleBatsman
Relations
International information
National side
Test debut (cap 358)5 July 1951 v South Africa
Last Test12 June 1969 v West Indies
Domestic team information
YearsTeam
1948–1960Gloucestershire
1961–1970Worcestershire
1969/70–1971/72Queensland
Career statistics
Competition Test FC LA
Matches 79 732 45
Runs scored 4,882 47,793 1,147
Batting average 44.38 44.91 31.86
100s/50s 11/20 122/233 0/6
Top score 258 258 98
Balls bowled 260 5,479
Wickets 1 80
Bowling average 167.00 37.96
5 wickets in innings 0 1
10 wickets in match 0 0
Best bowling 1/34 5/28
Catches/stumpings 80/– 553/1 15/–
Source: CricketArchive, 25 January 2009

Thomas William Graveney OBE (16 June 1927 – 3 November 2015) was an English first-class cricketer, representing his country in 79 Test matches and scoring over 4,800 runs. In a career lasting from 1948 to 1972, he became the 15th player to score one hundred first-class centuries; he was the first batsman beginning his career after the Second World War to reach this milestone. He played for Gloucestershire and Worcestershire, and helped Worcestershire win the county championship for the first time in their history. His achievements for England after being recalled in 1966 have been described as "the stuff of legend."[1] Graveney was a Wisden Cricketer of the Year in 1953, captained England on one occasion and was awarded the OBE while still playing.

His international career ended at the age of 42 when he played in a benefit match on the rest day of a Test match. He was banned for three matches, and was never selected for England again. In later life he worked as a cricket commentator for BBC Television and was the first former professional to be President of the Marylebone Cricket Club. He was one of the first 55 players inducted to the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame in 2009.

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference Independent2 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).