Herbert Sutcliffe

Herbert Sutcliffe (born November 24, 1894, Summerbridge, Harrogate, Yorkshire, England; died January 22 1978, Cross Hills, Yorkshire, England) was arguably the greatest opening batsman in cricket history and undoubtedly one of the greatest players of any type the game has known. His Test batting average of 60.73 is the fourth highest of any player, and only Don Bradman's is more than a fraction higher. Uniquely, his average never dropped below 60 throughout his entire Test career — Javed Miandad is the only other man whose average never dropped below 50 in a career of at least 20 innings. Sutcliffe's first-class career batting average of 51.95 (according to Wisden, though Cricinfo claim 52.02) is bettered among batsmen who finished their careers with over 30,000 runs only by Hammond.

Back to earth

In 1934, Sutcliffe scarcely improved upon his record of 1933 in county matches, but in four Tests, whilst obviously suffering from having to stand comparison with himself, his 304 runs at an average of 50.66 showed him still of Test quality. His inability to play a very long innings, though, suggested his body was suffering the strain of years of continuous cricket. This may explain why, despite top-scoring with 38 on a very difficult pitch (due to the infamous "leatherjackets" attacking the grass) at Lord's against South Africa in 1935, he was never picked for a Test match again. Yet, despite the new lbw rule — which Sutcliffe was to remain a vigorous opponent of all his life — making life more difficult for batsmen even in another dry summer, Sutcliffe finished second in the first-class averages and looked as if he were recovering some of his once-incomparable form.

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