Jack Rutherford
Encyclopedia
John Walter Rutherford (born 25 September 1929, Bruce Rock, Western Australia
) is an Australia
n cricket
er who played in one Test
in 1956. He was the first Western Australia
cricketer to be picked for a "major" cricket tour and the first to win a Test cap for Australia
while playing for his native state.
Jack Rutherford was a right-handed opening batsman, inclined to be defensive, and an occasional leg-break bowler who played for Western Australia from the 1952-53 season. Until 1956-57, Western Australia played the other Sheffield Shield state cricket teams only once a season, so Rutherford's record of five first-class centuries in his first four seasons was notable enough to win him selection for the 1956 Australian tour to England. In a damp summer, though, he was not a success, scoring only 640 runs at an average of fewer than 23 runs per innings. Only fleetingly, early in the tour, did he look likely to break into the Test team: against MCC
at Lord's, he scored a dour 98 and shared a second wicket partnership of 282 with Neil Harvey
, who scored 225. But when the team was announced for the first Test, the Australians reverted to the first-choice opening pair of Colin McDonald and Jim Burke
.
On the way back to Australia from England, the team stopped in Pakistan for one Test match and in India for three games: in the second Indian match at Bombay (Mumbai), Rutherford won his solitary Test cap, replacing McDonald. He scored 30 and also took the wicket of Vijay Manjrekar
, but McDonald returned for the third match and Rutherford never played Test cricket again.
He played state cricket for three more seasons, but after top-scoring in the match and achieving his career-best bowling performance for Western Australia against the 1958-59 MCC touring side, he was not selected for the Tests that season and retired at the end of it, reappearing for just a single match two years later.
Bruce Rock, Western Australia
Bruce Rock is a town located in the Eastern Wheatbelt region of Western Australia, approximately east of Perth and southwest of Merredin. It is the main town in the Shire of Bruce Rock....
) is an Australia
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 one 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...
in 1956. He was the first Western Australia
Western Warriors
The Western Australia cricket team are an Australian first class cricket team representing the state of Western Australia...
cricketer to be picked for a "major" cricket tour and the first to win a Test cap for 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...
while playing for his native state.
Jack Rutherford was a right-handed opening batsman, inclined to be defensive, and an occasional leg-break bowler who played for Western Australia from the 1952-53 season. Until 1956-57, Western Australia played the other Sheffield Shield state cricket teams only once a season, so Rutherford's record of five first-class centuries in his first four seasons was notable enough to win him selection for the 1956 Australian tour to England. In a damp summer, though, he was not a success, scoring only 640 runs at an average of fewer than 23 runs per innings. Only fleetingly, early in the tour, did he look likely to break into the Test team: against 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...
at Lord's, he scored a dour 98 and shared a second wicket partnership of 282 with 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...
, who scored 225. But when the team was announced for the first Test, the Australians reverted to the first-choice opening pair of Colin McDonald and Jim Burke
Jim Burke (cricketer)
James Wallace Burke was an Australian cricketer who played in 24 Tests from 1951 to 1959.- Early years :...
.
On the way back to Australia from England, the team stopped in Pakistan for one Test match and in India for three games: in the second Indian match at Bombay (Mumbai), Rutherford won his solitary Test cap, replacing McDonald. He scored 30 and also took the wicket of Vijay Manjrekar
Vijay Manjrekar
Vijay Laxman Manjrekar is a former Indian cricketer who played 55 Tests. A small man, he was a fine cutter and hooker of the ball. He was the father of Sanjay Manjrekar....
, but McDonald returned for the third match and Rutherford never played Test cricket again.
He played state cricket for three more seasons, but after top-scoring in the match and achieving his career-best bowling performance for Western Australia against the 1958-59 MCC touring side, he was not selected for the Tests that season and retired at the end of it, reappearing for just a single match two years later.