First Test
Lindwall lined up for the First Test at Trent Bridge, a venue where he had taken six wickets in the tour game against Nottinghamshire. Australia bowled first, and Lindwall delivered the first ball of the match at a moderate pace; Hutton pushed it square of the wicket on the off side for a single to start proceedings. Lindwall gradually increased his speed and rhythm, and took the wicket of Cyril Washbrook, caught on the run by Bill Brown on the fine leg boundary after the batsman had attempted a hook shot. However, he was forced to leave the field with a groin strain midway through the first day, ending with figures of 1/30. After England were out for 165, Lindwall came out to bat at 7/365 without a runner on the third day, and appeared to be able to run twos and threes without significant difficulty. He added 107 runs for the eighth wicket with vice-captain Lindsay Hassett. Hassett reached his century and proceeded to 137 in almost six hours of batting before Bedser struck his off stump. Four runs later, Lindwall was caught by wicket-keeper Godfrey Evans down the leg side to leave the total at 6/469, but some free hitting by Australia’s last pair allowed them to advance to 509, giving them a 344-run lead.
Although Lindwall was able to jog between the wickets, he did not take the field in the second innings and the 12th man Neil Harvey replaced him. This gave Australia a marked fielding advantage—Fingleton described Harvey as "by far the most brilliant fieldsman of both sides". Yardley was sceptical as to whether Lindwall was sufficiently injured to be forced from the field, but he did not formally object to Harvey’s presence on the field. Journalist, former Australian Test cricketer and Lindwall mentor Bill O'Reilly, said that as Lindwall demonstrated his mobility during his innings, he was in no way "incapacitated" and that the English captain "must be condemned for carrying his concepts of sportsmanship too far" when no substitute was justified. O'Reilly decried the benefit Australia derived through the substitution, agreeing with Fingleton that Harvey was the tourists' best fielder by far. English commentator John Arlott went further, calling Harvey the best fielder in the world.
However, the gains provided by Harvey were outweighed by Lindwall's absence, which severely hampered Australia's bowling and made their eventual victory much more difficult. England made 441 and Australia reached their target of 98 on the final afternoon to complete an eight-wicket victory. Due to his injury, Lindwall was omitted from the team for the two matches leading up to the Second Test. Australia proceeded to defeat Northamptonshire by an innings before drawing with Yorkshire.
Read more about this topic: Ray Lindwall With The Australian Cricket Team In England In 1948
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