Fourth Test, 1948 Ashes Series - Background

Background

See also: Australian cricket team in England in 1948, First Test, 1948 Ashes series, Second Test, 1948 Ashes series, and Third Test, 1948 Ashes series

Australia had proceeded through the first two months of their tour of England undefeated. After winning 10 of the first 12 games—the other two being drawn—eight of these by an innings, they won the First Test by eight wickets. Between the Tests, they defeated Northamptonshire by an innings before drawing against Yorkshire. They crushed England by 409 runs in the Second Test at Lord's, Abefore defeating Surrey by ten wickets and crushing Gloucestershire by an innings and 363 runs, after amassing 774/7 declared, their highest score of the season. The Third Test was drawn amid rain interruptions that cost a day and a half of play; England had been in a strong position, having been 316 runs ahead with seven wickets in hand in their second innings when rain came at the end of the third day. Australia proceeded to claim a ten-wicket triumph over Middlesex in their only county game before the Fourth Test.

Australia made two changes for the Test at Headingley. Middle-order batsman Neil Harvey replaced the injured opener Sid Barnes, who had collapsed while fielding during the Third Test after being hit in the ribs by a Dick Pollard pull shot. Australia declined to replace Barnes with the reserve opener Bill Brown, instead opting to use vice-captain Lindsay Hassett as a makeshift opener rather than in his customary position in the middle-order. Harvey had scored an unbeaten 73 and a 95 in the recent tour matches against Surrey and Gloucestershire respectively. Ron Saggers replaced first-choice wicket-keeper Don Tallon behind the stumps. Tallon's little left finger had swelled up after the Third Test, and he exacerbated the injury during the match against Middlesex. Former Australian Test leg spinner Bill O'Reilly criticised the Australians for opting to use only one spinner, pointing out that he and Chuck Fleetwood-Smith, a left-arm wrist spinner, had taken 17 wickets between them during the last Anglo-Australian Test at Headingley in 1938. O'Reilly cited a further instance of an Ashes Test at the same venue in 1934 in which he and Clarrie Grimmett had significant success for Australia. He wanted at least one of the two leg spinners, Colin McCool or Doug Ring, to have played alongside off spinner Ian Johnson, the only specialist spinner to have played in the three preceding Tests.

England made three changes. George Emmett was dropped after making 10 and a duck on his debut, and Len Hutton was recalled to take his opening position after being controversially omitted after the Second Test. England's leading batsman, Hutton had scored 74 in the First Test and made 52 and 64 for the Marylebone Cricket Club against Australia in the lead-up matches, when none of his teammates passed 26. O'Reilly praised the decision and the England selectors for stopping "all nonsense and phoney tactics". He further speculated that they would have done so irrespective of Hutton's form to avoid the wrath of the parochial Yorkshire spectators at Headingley, but in any case he regarded the original axing as scapegoating for England's two losses. O'Reilly believed the English administrators were penalising Hutton for angering them rather than poor performance. The decision to recall Hutton was met with wide approval from the cricketing public.

Jim Laker, the off spinner, replaced his left arm finger-spinning colleague Jack Young, who had taken 1/78 in the previous match against Australia for Middlesex, and totalled 3/174 in his two Tests in the series. Since his omission after the Second Test, Laker had taken 15 wickets in four matches for Surrey.

Middle-order batsman Tom Dollery, who had made only 38 in three innings in the Second and Third Tests, was replaced by all-rounder Ken Cranston. Playing mainly for Lancashire, Cranston had scored a century and four fifties, and taken 37 wickets in his last ten matches, but his previous outings against the tourists had not been successful. In two matches for the MCC and Lancashire against Australia, he had managed only 47 runs in three innings and a total of 2/109. English commentator John Arlott said Cranston's selection was an "indication that the selectors were again hankering after the non-existent Test all-rounder". O'Reilly regarded it as "the best team that the English selectors chose during the season" but felt they would be largely incapable of stopping an Australian series victory.