Ian Peebles
Encyclopedia
Ian Alexander Ross Peebles (20 January 1908 28 February 1980) was a cricketer
who played for Oxford University
, Middlesex
, Scotland
and England
. After retiring from cricket he became a cricket writer, working as a journalist on The Sunday Times
and as the author of many books on cricket.
Peebles had one of the strangest introductions to first-class cricket
of any player. He was born in Aberdeen
and came south to London
as a teenager to take up a post as secretary to the cricket school run by the former South African Test
player Aubrey Faulkner
. He so impressed Faulkner and other observers, including Sir Pelham Warner, with his leg break
and googly
bowling that, when the amateurs were short of a team to play in the annual Gentlemen v Players
match at The Oval
, Peebles was invited to make up the numbers. He took just one wicket in that game and scored only a few runs, and was not notably more successful in end-of-season festival matches at Scarborough and Folkestone
. But he was then picked, ostensibly as "secretary to the captain" for the 1927-1928 MCC
tour to South Africa
, where he played in the first four Tests.
In 1928, Peebles played his first county matches for Middlesex and the following year, as a regular in the team, he took 120 wickets at less than 20 runs per wicket. He was at Oxford for only one season, 1930, but took 70 wickets for the university, including 13 in the Varsity match
against Cambridge
.
This form brought him into the England Test team for the fourth Test against Australia
at Old Trafford
in July 1930, where he discomfited the top Australian batsmen. Bill Woodfull
left a ball that passed over the middle stump; the great Donald Bradman
was all but bowled by Peebles first ball, was then dropped in the slips and was finally caught for 14; and Peebles' first three balls to Alan Kippax
all produced appeals for leg before wicket
. Reports of the match suggested Peebles could be the match-winner England had sought against the batsmanship of Bradman and his colleagues - Bradman wrote of Peebles a few months later:
But the success was relative: in the final Test of the summer at The Oval, Peebles bowled 71 overs and took six wickets for 204 but that was in the context of an Australian total of 695. He was picked as a Wisden Cricketer of the Year in 1931.
Peebles had returned successfully to South Africa with MCC in 1930-31 and played regularly against New Zealand
in 1931. But under the strain of constant bowling, his leg break became less effective. He was picked for the final Test against Australia in 1934, but had to decline the invitation because of injury.
Across the 1930s, Peebles was an enthusiastic member of amateur tours to farflung places, but he played only intermittently for Middlesex until 1939, when he reappeared full-time to captain the side. But by then his bowling was used very sparingly, and he took only 49 wickets in the season. He came back after the Second World War for some matches up to 1948, but the loss of an eye during a wartime air raid curtailed his effectiveness.
A noted bon viveur and raconteur, Peebles in retirement was employed in the wine trade and then as a writer and journalist.
Cricketer
A cricketer is a person who plays the sport of cricket. Official and long-established cricket publications prefer the traditional word "cricketer" over the rarely used term "cricket player"....
who played for Oxford University
Oxford University Cricket Club
Oxford University Cricket Club is a first-class cricket team, representing the University of Oxford. It plays its home games at the University Parks in Oxford, England...
, Middlesex
Middlesex County Cricket Club
Middlesex County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Middlesex. It was announced in February 2009 that Middlesex changed their limited overs name from the Middlesex Crusaders, to the...
, Scotland
Scottish cricket team
The Scotland national cricket team represents Scotland in the game of cricket. They compete in the Clydesdale Bank 40 as the Scottish Saltires...
and England
English cricket team
The England and Wales cricket team is a cricket team which represents England and Wales. Until 1992 it also represented Scotland. Since 1 January 1997 it has been governed by the England and Wales Cricket Board , having been previously governed by Marylebone Cricket Club from 1903 until the end...
. After retiring from cricket he became a cricket writer, working as a journalist on The Sunday Times
The Sunday Times (UK)
The Sunday Times is a Sunday broadsheet newspaper, distributed in the United Kingdom. The Sunday Times is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News International, which is in turn owned by News Corporation. Times Newspapers also owns The Times, but the two papers were founded...
and as the author of many books on cricket.
Peebles had one of the strangest introductions to first-class cricket
First-class cricket
First-class cricket is a class of cricket that consists of matches of three or more days' scheduled duration, that are between two sides of eleven players and are officially adjudged first-class by virtue of the standard of the competing teams...
of any player. He was born in Aberdeen
Aberdeen
Aberdeen is Scotland's third most populous city, one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas and the United Kingdom's 25th most populous city, with an official population estimate of ....
and came south to London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
as a teenager to take up a post as secretary to the cricket school run by the former South African Test
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...
player Aubrey Faulkner
Aubrey Faulkner
George Aubrey Faulkner was a leading cricketer for South Africa for two decades.-Early life:...
. He so impressed Faulkner and other observers, including Sir Pelham Warner, with his leg break
Leg break
A leg break is a type of delivery in the sport of cricket. A delivery of a right-handed leg spin bowler. Leg breaks are also colloquially known as leggies or wrist spinners, as the wrist is the body part which is primarily used to impart spin on the ball, as opposed to the fingers in the case of...
and googly
Googly
In cricket, a googly is a type of delivery bowled by a right-arm leg spin bowler. It is occasionally referred to as a Bosie , an eponym in honour of its inventor Bernard Bosanquet.- Explanation :...
bowling that, when the amateurs were short of a team to play in the annual Gentlemen v Players
Gentlemen v Players
The Gentlemen v Players game was a first-class cricket match that was generally played on an annual basis between one team consisting of amateurs and one of professionals . The first two games took place in 1806 but the fixture was not revived until 1819. It was more or less annual thereafter...
match at The Oval
The Oval
The Kia Oval, still commonly referred to by its original name of The Oval, is an international cricket ground in Kennington, in the London Borough of Lambeth. In the past it was also sometimes called the Kennington Oval...
, Peebles was invited to make up the numbers. He took just one wicket in that game and scored only a few runs, and was not notably more successful in end-of-season festival matches at Scarborough and Folkestone
Folkestone
Folkestone is the principal town in the Shepway District of Kent, England. Its original site was in a valley in the sea cliffs and it developed through fishing and its closeness to the Continent as a landing place and trading port. The coming of the railways, the building of a ferry port, and its...
. But he was then picked, ostensibly as "secretary to the captain" for the 1927-1928 MCC
Marylebone Cricket Club
Marylebone Cricket Club is a cricket club in London founded in 1787. Its influence and longevity now witness it as a private members' club dedicated to the development of cricket. It owns, and is based at, Lord's Cricket Ground in St John's Wood, London NW8. MCC was formerly the governing body of...
tour to 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...
, where he played in the first four Tests.
In 1928, Peebles played his first county matches for Middlesex and the following year, as a regular in the team, he took 120 wickets at less than 20 runs per wicket. He was at Oxford for only one season, 1930, but took 70 wickets for the university, including 13 in the Varsity match
Varsity match
A varsity match is a sporting fixture between two university rivals; in its original and most common form, it is used to describe meetings between Oxford University and Cambridge University.-Popular British and Irish Varsity matches:*University of Oxford v...
against Cambridge
Cambridge University Cricket Club
Cambridge University Cricket Club is a first-class cricket team. It now plays all but one of its first-class cricket matches as part of the Cambridge University Centre of Cricketing Excellence , which includes Anglia Ruskin University...
.
This form brought him into the England Test team for the fourth Test against Australia
Australian cricket team
The Australian cricket team is the national cricket team of Australia. It is the joint oldest team in Test cricket, having played in the first Test match in 1877...
at Old Trafford
Old Trafford (cricket)
Old Trafford is a cricket ground situated on Talbot Road in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester. It has been the home of Lancashire County Cricket Club since its foundation in 1864, having been the ground of Manchester Cricket Club from 1857...
in July 1930, where he discomfited the top Australian batsmen. Bill Woodfull
Bill Woodfull
William Maldon "Bill" Woodfull OBE was an Australian cricketer of the 1920s and 1930s. He captained both Victoria and Australia, and was best known for his dignified and moral conduct during the tumultuous bodyline series in 1932–33 that almost saw the end of Anglo-Australian cricketing ties...
left a ball that passed over the middle stump; the great Donald Bradman
Donald Bradman
Sir Donald George Bradman, AC , often referred to as "The Don", was an Australian cricketer, widely acknowledged as the greatest batsman of all time...
was all but bowled by Peebles first ball, was then dropped in the slips and was finally caught for 14; and Peebles' first three balls to Alan Kippax
Alan Kippax
Alan Falconer Kippax was a cricketer for New South Wales and Australia. Regarded as one of the great stylists of Australian cricket during the era between the two World Wars, Kippax overcame a late start to Test cricket to become a regular in the Australian team between the 1928–29 and...
all produced appeals for leg before wicket
Leg before wicket
In the sport of cricket, leg before wicket is one of the ways in which a batsman can be dismissed. An umpire will rule a batsman out LBW under a series of circumstances which primarily include the ball striking the batsman's body when it would otherwise have continued on to hit the batsman's...
. Reports of the match suggested Peebles could be the match-winner England had sought against the batsmanship of Bradman and his colleagues - Bradman wrote of Peebles a few months later:
- When I got to the crease I found Peebles bowling extraordinarily well, and ... I may as well admit that for the first time in my life I was unable to detect a bowler's leg break from his "bosey" (googly). I watched Peebles as closely as I knew how, but there was no use. Neither by watching his hand nor the ball could I detect it, and definitely this day his bowling was too good for me. I had a most unhappy time!http://www.slsa.sa.gov.au/bradman/scrapbooks/10/bsb10177.htm
But the success was relative: in the final Test of the summer at The Oval, Peebles bowled 71 overs and took six wickets for 204 but that was in the context of an Australian total of 695. He was picked as a Wisden Cricketer of the Year in 1931.
Peebles had returned successfully to South Africa with MCC in 1930-31 and played regularly against New Zealand
New Zealand cricket team
The New Zealand cricket team, nicknamed the Black Caps, are the national cricket team representing New Zealand. They played their first in 1930 against England in Christchurch, New Zealand, becoming the fifth country to play Test cricket. It took the team until 1955–56 to win a Test, against the...
in 1931. But under the strain of constant bowling, his leg break became less effective. He was picked for the final Test against Australia in 1934, but had to decline the invitation because of injury.
Across the 1930s, Peebles was an enthusiastic member of amateur tours to farflung places, but he played only intermittently for Middlesex until 1939, when he reappeared full-time to captain the side. But by then his bowling was used very sparingly, and he took only 49 wickets in the season. He came back after the Second World War for some matches up to 1948, but the loss of an eye during a wartime air raid curtailed his effectiveness.
A noted bon viveur and raconteur, Peebles in retirement was employed in the wine trade and then as a writer and journalist.