Alan Davidson (cricketer) - Career

Career

Davidson made his first-class debut for New South Wales during the 1949–50 season while the Test players were overseas, and took 26 wickets for the summer, earning him selection in an Australian Second XI tour of New Zealand at the season's end. During a non-first-class match on tour, he took 10/29 in an innings and made 157 not out. Over the next two seasons, Davidson was unable to gain a regular position in the state team due to the presence of the Test players, but in 1952–53 he secured a position in the full-strength team and took 41 wickets at 26.75 and scored 418 runs at 34.83 to earn national selection for the 1953 tour of England. He played in all five Tests in the Ashes series, finishing the series with a modest return of 182 runs at 22.75 and eight wickets at 26.50. He also scored his maiden first-class century during the tour. His fledgling international career stagnated over the next three years. Although Davidson was selected in the squad for the next four series, he suffered several injuries and inconsistent form, playing in only 7 of 19 Tests during this time, and taking only 8 wickets. Up to this point, he had played 12 Tests, none of them Australian victories. His individual performances were also unimpressive despite his first-class success, producing only 317 runs at 18.64 and 16 wickets at 34.06.

Davidson's career was then transformed after Australia's veteran fast bowling spearheads Keith Miller and Ray Lindwall retired and were dropped respectively after the tour. Davidson led an inexperienced pace attack on the tour of South Africa in 1957–58—his new ball partner Ian Meckiff was making his debut. In the First Test, he took 6/34, his maiden Test five-wicket haul, after narrowly evading being expelled for breaking a curfew. Davidson went on to take a total of 9/82 in the Fifth Test and end the career-transforming series with 25 wickets at 17.00 as Australia won 3–0. Although he scored few runs in the Tests, Davidson scored four of his nine career first-class centuries during the tour. During the 1958–59 home series against England, Davidson took 24 wickets at 19.00, including a total of 9/95 in the Second Test as Australia won 4–0. During the 1959–60 eight-Test tour of the Indian subcontinent, Davidson overcame conditions unfavourable to fast bowling to take 41 wickets at 17.78 as Australia won four matches and lost one. In the Second Test against India in Kanpur, Davidson took his career-best match and innings bowling figures with 5/31 and 7/93. In the second innings, he bowled for an entire day's play without interruption and lost 11 kg during the match. In a career total of six Tests in India, Davidson took 30 wickets at an average of 15.77.

Davidson reached his all round peak during the 1960–61 home series against West Indies and was regarded as the key player in Australia's victory. In the First Test in Brisbane, Davidson became the first player to take ten wickets and accumulate more than a hundred runs in a match despite a broken finger on bowling hand. He took 5/135 and 6/87 and after scoring 44 in the first innings, made 80 in a counter-attacking seventh-wicket partnership of 134 with captain Richie Benaud as Australia sought victory in the run-chase rather than attempt to survive for a draw. Davidson was run out for 80 as Australia lost their way in the final minutes, causing the first Tied Test in history. He took five-wicket hauls in the three other Tests that he played, including Australia's victory in the Fifth Test to take the series 2–1. Despite missing a Test due to injury, he scored 212 runs at 30.28 and took 33 wickets at 18.55, almost half the average of the next best bowler. He ended the first-class season with 551 runs at 55.10 and 45 wickets at 20.62.

After having limited success on the previous two tours of England, Davidson took 23 wickets at 24.87 in 1961 as Australia prevailed 2–1. He took 5/42 in the Second Test at Lord's and then hit a counter-attacking 77 not out in the Fourth Test after the hosts looked set to take the series lead. Davidson's innings gave Australia a defendable total and they sealed the Ashes with a late comeback and victory. During the 1961–62 Australian domestic season, Davidson scored 521 runs at 40.07 including two centuries, and took 42 wickets at 13.62, playing a leading role as his state won the Sheffield Shield for the ninth time in a row. Davidson retired from cricket after the 1962–63 series against England, having taken 24 wickets despite injuring himself despite bowling in just over four Tests. The series was drawn, the only non-victory for Australia since Davidson had become their leading bowler. During the last five years of his career, Davidson took 170 Test wickets at 19.25 in 32 Tests, only four of which were lost. After his departure, Australia struggled, winning only one Test series in four years.

In retirement, Davidson served on the boards of various organisations across fields as varying as charity, medicine, industry and sport. He was a national cricket selector for five years and was the President of the New South Wales Cricket Association from 1970 to 2003. Davidson was inducted into the Australian Cricket Hall of Fame in 2004.