Jim de Courcy
Encyclopedia
James Harry de Courcy was an Australia
n cricket
er who played in three Tests
on the 1953 Australian tour of England
.
De Courcy was a dashing right-handed middle-order batsman who played for New South Wales for 10 years from the 1947-48 season. A regular as a specialist batsman in the state side from 1949-50, he did not make a first-class
century until late in the 1951-52 season, when he hit 114 against South Australia in the Sheffield Shield match at Sydney
. That remained his highest score in Australia, though he added a second domestic cricket century the following season, 1952-53, in the match against Victoria at Melbourne
.
The 1952-53 season was de Courcy's most successful in Australian cricket, with 503 runs at an average
of 41.91 runs per innings. He was picked as an extra batsman for the 1953 tour of England, and outside the Test series on the tour was one of the most successful batsmen in first-class matches, scoring 1214 runs at an average of 41.86. His four centuries on the tour were the four highest scores of his career, and were headed by 204 in an end-of-season match against Combined Services
, when he was outdone by 262 not out from Keith Miller
, with whom he shared a partnership of 377 in 205 minutes for the fourth wicket.
De Courcy's mid-season form saw him brought into the Test side for the Third Test at Old Trafford. He was, said Wisden Cricketers' Almanack
, "brim full of confidence" and he made 41 in quick time, though some of his strokes "flew perilously over the fielders". He retained his place in the Test team for the final two matches of The Ashes
series, but added only 40 more runs in five innings, one of them not out.
De Courcy had a good season for New South Wales in 1953-54, improving his batting average to 49.00, though failing to score a century. He did not do well in matches for an Australian XI or New South Wales against the MCC side in 1954-55
and had a poor season in first-class cricket, failing to retain his Test or state place. He made single appearances in each of the next three seasons before retiring into grade cricket in the Newcastle area.
According to his obituary in Wisden, he was a taciturn man who earned the nickname "Words." He was a boilermaker by trade.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
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 three 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...
on the 1953 Australian tour of England
Australian cricket team in England in 1953
The Australian cricket team toured England in the 1953 season to play a five-match Test series against England for The Ashes.England won the final Test to take the series 1-0 after the first four Tests were all drawn. England therefore recovered the Ashes for the first time since losing them in...
.
De Courcy was a dashing right-handed middle-order batsman who played for New South Wales for 10 years from the 1947-48 season. A regular as a specialist batsman in the state side from 1949-50, he did not make a first-class
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...
century until late in the 1951-52 season, when he hit 114 against South Australia in the Sheffield Shield match at Sydney
Sydney Cricket Ground
The Sydney Cricket Ground is a sports stadium in Sydney in Australia. It is used for Australian football, Test cricket, One Day International cricket, some rugby league and rugby union matches and is the home ground for the New South Wales Blues cricket team and the Sydney Swans of the Australian...
. That remained his highest score in Australia, though he added a second domestic cricket century the following season, 1952-53, in the match against Victoria at Melbourne
Melbourne Cricket Ground
The Melbourne Cricket Ground is an Australian sports stadium located in Yarra Park, Melbourne and is home to the Melbourne Cricket Club. It is the tenth largest stadium in the world, the largest in Australia, the largest stadium for playing cricket, and holds the world record for the highest light...
.
The 1952-53 season was de Courcy's most successful in Australian cricket, with 503 runs at an average
Batting average
Batting average is a statistic in both cricket and baseball that measures the performance of cricket batsmen and baseball hitters. The two statistics are related in that baseball averages are directly descended from the concept of cricket averages.- Cricket :...
of 41.91 runs per innings. He was picked as an extra batsman for the 1953 tour of England, and outside the Test series on the tour was one of the most successful batsmen in first-class matches, scoring 1214 runs at an average of 41.86. His four centuries on the tour were the four highest scores of his career, and were headed by 204 in an end-of-season match against Combined Services
Combined Services cricket team
The Combined Services cricket team represents the British armed forces. The team played at first-class level in England for more than forty years in the mid-twentieth century. Their first first-class match was against Gentlemen of England at Lord's in 1920, while their last was against Oxford...
, when he was outdone by 262 not out from 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...
, with whom he shared a partnership of 377 in 205 minutes for the fourth wicket.
De Courcy's mid-season form saw him brought into the Test side for the Third Test at Old Trafford. He was, said Wisden Cricketers' Almanack
Wisden Cricketers' Almanack
Wisden Cricketers' Almanack is a cricket reference book published annually in the United Kingdom...
, "brim full of confidence" and he made 41 in quick time, though some of his strokes "flew perilously over the fielders". He retained his place in the Test team for the final two matches of The Ashes
The Ashes
The Ashes is a Test cricket series played between England and Australia. It is one of the most celebrated rivalries in international cricket and dates back to 1882. It is currently played biennially, alternately in the United Kingdom and Australia. Cricket being a summer sport, and the venues...
series, but added only 40 more runs in five innings, one of them not out.
De Courcy had a good season for New South Wales in 1953-54, improving his batting average to 49.00, though failing to score a century. He did not do well in matches for an Australian XI or New South Wales against the MCC side in 1954-55
English cricket team in Australia in 1954-55
Len Hutton captained the English cricket team in Australia in 1954–55, playing as England in the 1954-55 Ashes series against the Australians and as the MCC in their other matches on the tour. It was the first time that an England team had toured Australia under a professional captain since the 1880s...
and had a poor season in first-class cricket, failing to retain his Test or state place. He made single appearances in each of the next three seasons before retiring into grade cricket in the Newcastle area.
According to his obituary in Wisden, he was a taciturn man who earned the nickname "Words." He was a boilermaker by trade.