Bruce Yardley
Encyclopedia
Bruce Yardley is a former Australian cricket
er who played in 33 Tests
and 7 ODIs from 1978 to 1983. He is generally regarded, alongside Ashley Mallett, as one of the two best off spinners Australia has produced.
Known to his teammates as 'Roo', Yardley was an off-spin bowler who, like many spinners, began life as a fast-medium pace seamer. In his late 20s Yardley switched to off-spin and had success at club and then state level. His technique was slightly unusual in that he bowled at near medium-pace, rolling the ball off his middle finger rather than the index finger like conventional off-spinners. A handy number-eight batsman who scored four test half-centuries his batting was often characterised by a Yardley yahoo over the top of slips which opposition teams sometimes attempted to counter using a fly slip. Yardley was also an exceptional fielder in the gully region taking 31 catches in his 33 tests including a number of spectacular efforts. He was also the recipient of some fine fielding being the lucky bowler when John Dyson took his catch of the century to dismiss West Indian Sylvester Clarke.
In the early 1980s Yardley was Australia's first-choice spinner; during this period he took most of his 126 Test wickets, including a Test-best of 7/98 against the West Indies
at Sydney
in 1981/82. It was for this and other eye catching performances for which he was named the 1981/1982 Benson and Hedges International Cricketer of the Year.
Despite his fine all round cricket game he was rarely considered for One Day Internationals and in 1981 he was controversially left out of the Ashes squad which toured England (Yardley and fellow West Australian
Bruce Reid
are the only two bowlers to take 100 wickets for Australia without playing a Test there). Yardley participated in Australia's first tour of Sri Lanka
in 1983 and took seven wickets, including a five-wicket haul, in what proved to be his final Test.
Since retiring from competitive cricket Yardley has still been involved in the sport as a coach and media commentator. In 1997 he was appointed coach of the Sri Lankan national team. A long time admirer and supporter of Sri Lankan record breaking off-spinner Muttiah Muralitharan it was Yardley who encouraged Murali to add the doosra to his arsenal. He was always adamant that Murali was not a chucker.
Bruce also recently spent several years as Regional Cricket Officer for Western Australian Cricket Association which involved responsibility for promoting cricket and increasing participation in the South West region through school visits/programs and cricket carnivals. He is also a regular cricket commentator on TV and radio.
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 33 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...
and 7 ODIs from 1978 to 1983. He is generally regarded, alongside Ashley Mallett, as one of the two best off spinners Australia has produced.
Known to his teammates as 'Roo', Yardley was an off-spin bowler who, like many spinners, began life as a fast-medium pace seamer. In his late 20s Yardley switched to off-spin and had success at club and then state level. His technique was slightly unusual in that he bowled at near medium-pace, rolling the ball off his middle finger rather than the index finger like conventional off-spinners. A handy number-eight batsman who scored four test half-centuries his batting was often characterised by a Yardley yahoo over the top of slips which opposition teams sometimes attempted to counter using a fly slip. Yardley was also an exceptional fielder in the gully region taking 31 catches in his 33 tests including a number of spectacular efforts. He was also the recipient of some fine fielding being the lucky bowler when John Dyson took his catch of the century to dismiss West Indian Sylvester Clarke.
In the early 1980s Yardley was Australia's first-choice spinner; during this period he took most of his 126 Test wickets, including a Test-best of 7/98 against the West Indies
West Indian cricket team
The West Indian cricket team, also known colloquially as the West Indies or the Windies, is a multi-national cricket team representing a sporting confederation of 15 mainly English-speaking Caribbean countries, British dependencies and non-British dependencies.From the mid 1970s to the early 1990s,...
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...
in 1981/82. It was for this and other eye catching performances for which he was named the 1981/1982 Benson and Hedges International Cricketer of the Year.
Despite his fine all round cricket game he was rarely considered for One Day Internationals and in 1981 he was controversially left out of the Ashes squad which toured England (Yardley and fellow West Australian
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
Bruce Reid
Bruce Reid
Bruce Anthony Reid is an Australian cricketer and bowling coach of the Indian national cricket team on their 2003-04 tour to Australia....
are the only two bowlers to take 100 wickets for Australia without playing a Test there). Yardley participated in Australia's first tour of Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...
in 1983 and took seven wickets, including a five-wicket haul, in what proved to be his final Test.
Since retiring from competitive cricket Yardley has still been involved in the sport as a coach and media commentator. In 1997 he was appointed coach of the Sri Lankan national team. A long time admirer and supporter of Sri Lankan record breaking off-spinner Muttiah Muralitharan it was Yardley who encouraged Murali to add the doosra to his arsenal. He was always adamant that Murali was not a chucker.
Bruce also recently spent several years as Regional Cricket Officer for Western Australian Cricket Association which involved responsibility for promoting cricket and increasing participation in the South West region through school visits/programs and cricket carnivals. He is also a regular cricket commentator on TV and radio.