Denis Warburton Begbie was a South Africa

South Africa

The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...

n cricket

Cricket

Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...

er who played in five Tests

Test cricket

Test cricket is the longest form of the sport of cricket. Test matches are played between national representative teams with "Test status", as determined by the International Cricket Council , with four innings played between two teams of 11 players over a period of up to a maximum five days...

 from 1948 to 1950. He was born in Middelburg, Transvaal. At the time of his death he was the third oldest Test cricketer still living after New Zealand's Eric Tindill

Eric Tindill

Eric William Thomas Tindill was a New Zealand sportsman. Tindill held a number of unique records: he was the oldest ever Test cricketer at the time of his death, the only person to play Tests for New Zealand in both cricket and rugby union , and the only person ever to play Tests in both sports,...

 and fellow South African Norman Gordon

Norman Gordon

Norman Gordon is a former South African cricketer who played in five Tests in the 1938–39 South African cricket season. He was born in Boksburg, Transvaal. He is the oldest living Test cricketer, and the first to reach 100 years...

.

Test Career

Begbie made his Test debut against England in December 1948 at the age of 34, playing the first three Tests of the five match series. In the first Test he scored 37 and 48, falling both times to Alec Bedser

Alec Bedser

Sir Alec Victor Bedser, CBE was a professional English cricketer. He was the chairman of selectors for the English national cricket team, and the president of Surrey County Cricket Club...

, as England won by 2 wickets. In the second Test he was out for 5 as the match was drawn. In the third Test, he was run out for 18 as the match was again drawn. Begbie did not play the final two games of the series, which was won 2-0 by England. He next played for South Africa in the fourth Test of the 1949/1950 series against Australia. He was out for 24 to Keith Miller

Keith Miller

Keith Ross Miller MBE was an Australian Test cricketer and a Royal Australian Air Force pilot during World War II. Miller is widely regarded as Australia's greatest ever all-rounder. Because of his ability, irreverent manner and good looks he was a crowd favourite...

 as the match was drawn. In the final Test of the series, he was out for 1 to Geff Noblet

Geff Noblet

Geffery Noblet was an Australian cricketer who played in 3 Tests from 1950 to 1953....

 in the first innings and then to Bill Johnston

Bill Johnston (cricketer)

William Arras Johnston was an Australian cricketer who played in forty Test matches from 1947 to 1955. A left arm pace bowler, as well as a left arm orthodox spinner, Johnston was best known as a spearhead of Don Bradman's undefeated 1948 touring team, well known as "The Invincibles"...

 for 5 in the second and took his only Test wicket, bowling Neil Harvey

Neil Harvey

Robert Neil Harvey MBE is a former Australian cricketer who represented the Australian cricket team between 1948 and 1963, playing in 79 Test matches. He was the vice-captain of the team from 1957 until his retirement...

for 116. Australia crushed South Africa by an innings and 259 runs to seal a 4-0 series victory. This was Begbie's final Test match.