Harvey Brothers - Neil Harvey

Neil Harvey

Harvey represented the Australian cricket team between early 1948 and early 1963. He was the vice captain of the team from 1957 until his retirement. An attacking left-handed batsman, sharp fielder and occasional off-spin bowler, Harvey was the senior batsman in the Australian team for much of the 1950s and was regarded by Wisden as the finest fielder of his era. Harvey followed his elder brother Merv in making his Test debut in January 1948 aged 19 and three months. In his second match, he became the youngest Australian to score a Test century, a record that as of July 2010, still stands. He was then part of The Invincibles of Don Bradman who toured England without defeat and were acclaimed as one of the finest teams in history; Harvey was the youngest player in the team and scored a century on his Ashes debut in the Fourth Test at Headingley. The opening period of his Australian career was particularly fruitful, scoring six centuries in his first thirteen Test innings, at the end of which he averaged over 100. As Bradman's team broke up in the 1950s due to retirements, Harvey became Australia's senior batsman, and was named as one of the Wisden Cricketers of the Year in 1954. In 1957 he was passed over for the captaincy and was named as the deputy of Ian Craig who had played just six matches as Australia sought to rebuild the team with a youth policy. The following season, Craig had fallen ill, but Harvey moved interstate and Richie Benaud was promoted to the captaincy ahead of him as Benaud was higher in the New South Wales hierarchy. Harvey continued as vice-captain until the end of his career, and led the team in only one Test. In the Second Test at Lord's in 1961 when Benaud was injured, Harvey led the team in the "Battle of the Ridge", a match played on a surface with a visible ridge that caused erratic bounce, grinding out a hard fought victory. When Harvey retired, only Bradman, generally deemed as the finest batsman in history, had scored more runs or centuries for Australia. Harvey was best known for his extravagant footwork and flamboyant strokeplay. In retirement, he became a national selector for twelve years but in recent times is best known for his strident criticism of modern cricket. He was inducted into the Australian Cricket Hall of Fame in 2000, and also selected in the Australian Cricket Board's Test Team of the Century. In 2009, Harvey was one of the 55 inaugural inductees into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame. In 102 First XI matches for Fitzroy, he made 4044 runs at an average of 37.10, the highest average in the family.