Heading For South Africa
There were no Tests during the 1948–49 season in Australia, with only domestic matches scheduled. Loxton played regularly for Victoria, scoring 500 runs in the Sheffield Shield, compiling 135 against South Australia and 84 against Queensland. He scored 60 and took a total of 5/77 in one match against New South Wales, but Victoria was unable to win either match against their arch-rivals, who took the title.
Two big set-piece matches, a testimonial match for Bradman and a joint benefit for Alan Kippax and Bert Oldfield, were used by the selectors as a trial for the 1949–50 South African tour. Loxton played in both testimonial matches; he failed to pass 21 in the first match but took a total of 4/100. In the latter match he scored 93. The Victorian all-rounder ended the season with 634 runs at 42.26 and 16 wickets at 24.31 and was selected for the South African tour under the leadership of the newly appointed captain Lindsay Hassett.
Like the Invincibles tour, the 1949–50 Test series in South Africa was another triumph for the Australians. They won four of the five Tests and were undefeated in 21 first-class matches. Loxton started the tour strongly, making 117 in the opening match against Zululand, which was not first-class. He continued his productivity in the succeeding games, never failing to pass 40 in any completed innings in the first five first-class matches of the tour. This included an all-round effort of 76 not out and a total of 4/10 in an innings victory over Orange Free State. However, the Victorian's form slumped just before the Tests. He made single figure scores in his last three innings, including in the last match against a South African XI in what was effectively a dry run for the Tests. However, he did take 4/32 for the match.
Loxton played in all five Tests, and in the First Test at the Wanderers in Johannesburg, he scored his first Test century. He compiled 101 in 150 minutes, helping Australia to a total of 413 after both opening batsmen were out without scoring. Hassett’s men went on to win the match by an innings. The Second Test was an eight-wicket victory for the Australians, this time dominated by Harvey's 178, with whom Loxton shared a 140-run stand for the fifth wicket, contributing 35 himself. He also took a wicket. The Third Test at Kingsmead in Durban was dramatic; batting first, South Africa made 311 and Hugh Tayfield then took 7/23 as Australia collapsed to 75 all out after the rain and sun had baked the playing surface into a sticky wicket. During the first innings, Hassett changed his batting order so that his better batsmen were low down in the order so that they could bat in better conditions as the pitch stabilised. Loxton batted at No. 10 and Harvey at No. 9, but the Australians collapsed before the pitch had changed measurably. Not enforcing the follow-on, the South Africans batted again and were themselves bowled out for 99, losing their last seven wickets for 14 runs. This left Australia to chase 336 runs for victory, highly unlikely as the last 28 wickets had fallen for only 245. The tourists were still more than 200 runs in arrears when Loxton came in to join Harvey. On Loxton’s first ball, a delivery from Tayfield narrowly missed his edge. He survived to lunch after being caught from a no ball on the long on boundary from a lofted drive. With an unbeaten 151, Harvey took Australia to an improbable five-wicket victory, supported by his fellow Victorian, who scored 54 in a century partnership.
The Fourth Test of the series was a high-scoring draw, Loxton making six in his only innings. His 43 in the final Test of the series was overshadowed by centuries for three of his team-mates, in an innings win that sealed the series 4–0. In the Test series as a whole, the Victorian all-rounder made 255 runs at an average of 42.50, but bowled only 34 overs in taking two wickets. He made little impact on the tour matches after the start of the Tests, passing fifty twice and taking two wickets from 13 overs in five matches. For the entire tour, Loxton totaled 809 first-class runs at 40.45 and took 12 wickets.
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