Richard Benaud (; 6 October 1930 – 10 April 2015) was an Australian cricketer who, after his retirement from international cricket in 1964, became a highly regarded commentator on the game. Benaud was a Test cricket all-rounder, blending leg spin bowling with lower-order batting aggression.
Educated at Parramatta High School, Benaud made his first grade debut for Cumberland at age 16, primarily as a batsman. In November 1948, at the age of 18, Benaud was selected for the New South Wales Colts, the state youth team.
As a specialist batsman, he made his first-class debut for New South Wales at the Sydney Cricket Ground against Queensland in the New Year's match of the 1948–49 season.
With Ray Lindwall, Keith Miller and Ernie Toshack, three of Australia's leading four bowlers from the 1948 Invincibles tour of England unavailable, Benaud bowled heavily in some matches.
At the start of the 1949–50 season, he was still in the Second XI, but when the Test players departed for a tour of South Africa soon afterwards, vacancies opened up.
Along with fellow bowling all-rounder Alan Davidson, he helped restore Australia to the top of world cricket in the late 1950s and early 1960s after a slump in the early 1950s.
Benaud returned and scored 37 and took a total of 2/68 in the final match, ending the season with 184 runs at 36.80 and 11 wickets at 34.63. ==Early Test career== The 1951–52 season saw a tour to Australia by the West Indies.
Up to this point, in seven matches for the season, the young all-rounder had only scored 307 runs at 27.90 and taken ten wickets at 64.80. Despite this, Benaud was chosen for his Test debut in the Fifth Test against the West Indies in 1951–52 in Sydney.
Benaud ended his season with 97 and a total of 3/39 in an innings win over South Australia. The following Australian season in 1952–53, Benaud started modestly and in the five first-class matches before the Tests, scored 208 runs at 26.00 including a 63 and 69, and 14 wickets at 38.64.
In another match for New South Wales against the touring team, he took a total of 5/95. Up to this point, his first-class batting average was below 30 and his bowling average close to 40, and he had never taken more than four wickets in an innings or six in a match. The selectors persisted in Benaud despite his unproductive Test performances, selecting him for the squad for the 1953 Ashes tour of England.
In eight first-class matches after his Test campaign was over, Benaud added a further half-century in addition to the century against Pearce's XI, and took 22 more wickets, including 4/20 against the Gentlemen of England. ==Consolidation== After returning home from his first overseas tour, Benaud was prolific during the 1953–54 Australian season, which was purely domestic with no touring Test team.
Richie commentated regularly during the 2011–12 season and was part of Nine's commentating team/roster. ==Personal life== Benaud married Marcia Lavender in 1953 and had two sons, Greg and Jeffery, from this marriage; he divorced Marcia in 1967.
Benaud was the only bowler selected for all five Tests of the 1954–55 series when England visited Australia.
He also made 113 against the touring side for the Prime Minister's XI. Australia's selectors persisted and selected him for the squad to tour the West Indies in 1954–55.
Benaud had contributed 246 runs at 41 and taken wickets steadily to total 18 at 26.94. During the 1956 tour to England, he helped Australia to its only victory in the Lord's Test, when he scored a rapid 97 in the second innings in 143 minutes from only 113 balls.
He ended the series with 200 runs at 25 and eight wickets at 42.5. Benaud's bowling reached a new level on the return leg of Australia's overseas tour, when they stopped in the Indian subcontinent in 1956–57 en route back to Australia.
*Benaud was in charge for the inaugural 1960–61 Frank Worrell Trophy against the West Indies, a series that included the famous Tied Test. Benaud's highest Test score of 122 was made against South Africa, Johannesburg, 1957–1958 His best Test bowling effort of 7 for 72 was against India, Madras, 1956–1957 He captained Australia in 28 Tests: 12 wins, 11 draws, 1 tie, 4 losses In 1963 he became the first player to complete the Test double of 200 wickets and 2,000 runs.
He ended his Test career in Sydney with statistics of 248 wickets (the Australia Test record at that time) at 27.03 and 2,201 runs at 24.45. ==Media career== After the 1956 England tour, Benaud stayed behind in London to take a BBC presenter training course.
He had managed, in the 14 Tests since then, 559 runs at 27.95 and 67 wickets at 24.98. ==Peak years and captaincy== After a break in the international calendar of a year, the 1957–58 tour to South Africa heralded the start of a phase of three international seasons when Benaud was at his peak.
*Benaud was in charge for the inaugural 1960–61 Frank Worrell Trophy against the West Indies, a series that included the famous Tied Test. Benaud's highest Test score of 122 was made against South Africa, Johannesburg, 1957–1958 His best Test bowling effort of 7 for 72 was against India, Madras, 1956–1957 He captained Australia in 28 Tests: 12 wins, 11 draws, 1 tie, 4 losses In 1963 he became the first player to complete the Test double of 200 wickets and 2,000 runs.
In 1958 he became Australia's Test captain until his retirement in 1964.
He had been a major contributor to the series win, scoring 329 runs at 54.83 and taking 30 wickets at 21.93, establishing himself as one of the leading leg spinners of the modern era. When Ian Craig fell ill at the start of the 1958–59 season, Benaud was promoted to the captaincy ahead of vice-captain Neil Harvey.
Along with fellow bowling all-rounder Alan Davidson, he helped restore Australia to the top of world cricket in the late 1950s and early 1960s after a slump in the early 1950s.
This was exhibited in the 1960–61 Test series against the visiting West Indians, in which the grounds were packed to greater levels than they are today despite Australia's population doubling since then. The First Test in Brisbane ended in the first tie in Test history, which came about after Benaud and Alan Davidson, rather than settle for a draw, decided to risk defeat and play an attacking partnership, which took Australia to the brink of victory.
*Benaud was in charge for the inaugural 1960–61 Frank Worrell Trophy against the West Indies, a series that included the famous Tied Test. Benaud's highest Test score of 122 was made against South Africa, Johannesburg, 1957–1958 His best Test bowling effort of 7 for 72 was against India, Madras, 1956–1957 He captained Australia in 28 Tests: 12 wins, 11 draws, 1 tie, 4 losses In 1963 he became the first player to complete the Test double of 200 wickets and 2,000 runs.
In 1960, he made his first radio commentary in the United Kingdom at the BBC, after which he moved into television. After retiring from playing in 1964, Benaud turned to full-time cricket journalism and commentary, dividing his time between Britain (where he worked for the BBC for many years before joining Channel 4 in 1999), and Australia (for the Nine Network).
Along with the West Indian captain Frank Worrell, Benaud's bold leadership enlivened interest in Test cricket among a public who had increasingly regarded it as boring. On his third and final tour to England in 1961, he was hampered by damaged tendons in his right shoulder, which forced him to miss the Second Test at Lord's known as the "Battle of the Ridge".
He was appointed an OBE in that year and in 1962 was named as one of the Wisden Cricketers of the Year. The 1961–62 Australian season was purely a domestic one, with no touring international team.
Later that same day, there was a commemoration service officiated by former teammate turned lay preacher Brian Booth; attendees included his family and close friends, among them former players Shane Warne and Ian Chappell, and then Australian Test captain Michael Clarke. ==Recognition== Benaud was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 1961 for services to cricket.
He was appointed an OBE in that year and in 1962 was named as one of the Wisden Cricketers of the Year. The 1961–62 Australian season was purely a domestic one, with no touring international team.
His batting was reliable, with 227 runs at 32.47. At the start of the 1963–64 season, Benaud announced that it would be his last at first-class level.
*Benaud was in charge for the inaugural 1960–61 Frank Worrell Trophy against the West Indies, a series that included the famous Tied Test. Benaud's highest Test score of 122 was made against South Africa, Johannesburg, 1957–1958 His best Test bowling effort of 7 for 72 was against India, Madras, 1956–1957 He captained Australia in 28 Tests: 12 wins, 11 draws, 1 tie, 4 losses In 1963 he became the first player to complete the Test double of 200 wickets and 2,000 runs.
Richard Benaud (; 6 October 1930 – 10 April 2015) was an Australian cricketer who, after his retirement from international cricket in 1964, became a highly regarded commentator on the game. Benaud was a Test cricket all-rounder, blending leg spin bowling with lower-order batting aggression.
In 1958 he became Australia's Test captain until his retirement in 1964.
In 1960, he made his first radio commentary in the United Kingdom at the BBC, after which he moved into television. After retiring from playing in 1964, Benaud turned to full-time cricket journalism and commentary, dividing his time between Britain (where he worked for the BBC for many years before joining Channel 4 in 1999), and Australia (for the Nine Network).
He said of her, "She improved my love of vegetables by introducing the phrase, 'You can't go out and play cricket until you have eaten all your vegetables.'" In October 2013, Benaud crashed his vintage 1965 Sunbeam Alpine into a wall while driving near his home in Coogee, a beachside suburb in Sydney's east.
In 1967–68 he captained a Commonwealth team against Pakistan, playing in his last five first-class fixtures. During Benaud's captaincy, Australia did not lose a series, and became the dominant team in world cricket.
Richie commentated regularly during the 2011–12 season and was part of Nine's commentating team/roster. ==Personal life== Benaud married Marcia Lavender in 1953 and had two sons, Greg and Jeffery, from this marriage; he divorced Marcia in 1967.
In 1967, he married his second wife, Daphne Surfleet, who had worked for the English cricket writer E.
His batting had been steady though with 231 runs at 33, but his bowling unpenetrative with 12 wickets at 37.42. Benaud was awarded life membership by the New South Wales Cricket Association, but he returned it in protest in 1970 when his younger brother John was removed from the captaincy.
Overall he played in or commentated on approximately 500 Test matches, as he himself noted in one of his final interviews in Britain when asked if he would miss Test cricket. He openly criticized the actions by the Chappell brothers (Trevor and Greg) in the post-match reaction to the underarm bowling incident of 1981, proving his moral integrity far outweighed his unconditional patriotism for Australia.
He was inducted into the Sport Australia Hall of Fame in 1985.
He took four wickets in a Second Test in Lahore that sealed the series 2–0, the last time Australia would win a Test in Pakistan until Mark Taylor's men in 1998, 37 years later.
In 1960, he made his first radio commentary in the United Kingdom at the BBC, after which he moved into television. After retiring from playing in 1964, Benaud turned to full-time cricket journalism and commentary, dividing his time between Britain (where he worked for the BBC for many years before joining Channel 4 in 1999), and Australia (for the Nine Network).
He vacated the commentary booth when New Zealand was about to clinch a test victory at Lord's in 1999, allowing former New Zealand captain-turned-commentator Ian Smith to call the famous victory of his compatriots.
In 1999 he was awarded a Logie Award for Most Outstanding Sports Broadcaster. In 2007, he was inducted into the Australian Cricket Hall of Fame at the Allan Border Medal award evening and in 2009 he was inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame. In November 2015, Benaud became an honouree at Bradman Foundation, having been a long-serving patron in his life.
On Channel 4's live commentary, Benaud often made sarcastic comments regarding the advertisement of Desktop Richie. In 2004, Benaud starred in a series of television advertisements for the Australian Tourism Commission, aimed at promoting Australia as a tourist destination.
Thus, the 2005 Ashes series was the last that Benaud commentated on in Britain.
Benaud stated he would spend the Northern Hemisphere summer in Britain writing, and would continue working for the Nine Network in Australia. Benaud commentated for the BBC TV highlights of the 2006–07 Ashes in Australia as part of his continuing commentary work for Australia's Nine Network. Benaud's distinctive speaking style has been frequently parodied on the Australian comedy series Comedy Inc.
In 1999 he was awarded a Logie Award for Most Outstanding Sports Broadcaster. In 2007, he was inducted into the Australian Cricket Hall of Fame at the Allan Border Medal award evening and in 2009 he was inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame. In November 2015, Benaud became an honouree at Bradman Foundation, having been a long-serving patron in his life.
Benaud and Daphne often stayed at their holiday home in Beaulieu-sur-Mer on the French Riviera. On 29 October 2008, Benaud's mother, Irene, died, aged 104.
Chris Barrie of Red Dwarf fame incorporated impressions of Benaud into his stand-up repertoire. On 18 February 2009, during a radio interview, Benaud announced that he would be retiring from television commentary.
But that'll be no more television commentary". It was announced on 15 November 2009, that Benaud had signed a three-year contract with the Nine Network to continue being part of their cricket coverage until 2013, although his role would change from that of ball-by-ball commentary.
In 1999 he was awarded a Logie Award for Most Outstanding Sports Broadcaster. In 2007, he was inducted into the Australian Cricket Hall of Fame at the Allan Border Medal award evening and in 2009 he was inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame. In November 2015, Benaud became an honouree at Bradman Foundation, having been a long-serving patron in his life.
Richie commentated regularly during the 2011–12 season and was part of Nine's commentating team/roster. ==Personal life== Benaud married Marcia Lavender in 1953 and had two sons, Greg and Jeffery, from this marriage; he divorced Marcia in 1967.
But that'll be no more television commentary". It was announced on 15 November 2009, that Benaud had signed a three-year contract with the Nine Network to continue being part of their cricket coverage until 2013, although his role would change from that of ball-by-ball commentary.
He said of her, "She improved my love of vegetables by introducing the phrase, 'You can't go out and play cricket until you have eaten all your vegetables.'" In October 2013, Benaud crashed his vintage 1965 Sunbeam Alpine into a wall while driving near his home in Coogee, a beachside suburb in Sydney's east.
It was presented to his wife. ==Death== In November 2014, at age 84, Benaud announced that he had been diagnosed with skin cancer.
Richard Benaud (; 6 October 1930 – 10 April 2015) was an Australian cricketer who, after his retirement from international cricket in 1964, became a highly regarded commentator on the game. Benaud was a Test cricket all-rounder, blending leg spin bowling with lower-order batting aggression.
He died in his sleep on 10 April 2015. Prime Minister Tony Abbott offered his family a state funeral but his widow, Daphne, declined, respecting his wishes for a private funeral. Benaud was buried on 15 April, in a private funeral ceremony attended only by his immediate family.
In 1999 he was awarded a Logie Award for Most Outstanding Sports Broadcaster. In 2007, he was inducted into the Australian Cricket Hall of Fame at the Allan Border Medal award evening and in 2009 he was inducted into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame. In November 2015, Benaud became an honouree at Bradman Foundation, having been a long-serving patron in his life.
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