*** Welcome to piglix ***

Jack Iverson

Jack Iverson
IversonPortrait.jpg
Personal information
Full name John Brian Iverson
Born (1915-07-27)27 July 1915
St Kilda, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Died 23 October 1973(1973-10-23) (aged 58)
Brighton, Victoria, Australia
Batting style Right-hand bat
Bowling style Legbreak googly
International information
National side
Career statistics
Competition Tests First-class
Matches 5 34
Runs scored 3 277
Batting average 0.75 14.57
100s/50s 0/0 0/0
Top score 1* 31*
Balls bowled 1108 8878
Wickets 21 157
Bowling average 15.23 19.22
5 wickets in innings 1 9
10 wickets in match 0 1
Best bowling 6/27 7/77
Catches/stumpings 2/0 13/0
Source: [1]

John Brian "Jack" Iverson (27 July 1915 – 23 October 1973) was an Australian cricketer who played in five Tests from 1950 to 1951. He was known for his unique "bent finger" grip, with which he briefly perplexed batsmen across Australia as well as the touring English cricket team. His five Tests were all against England, in the 1950–51 series, but was forced to retire to look after his ailing father's business; he "could have the world's best batsmen at his mercy, if he could spare the time".

Iverson was born in St Kilda, Melbourne, and was a fast bowler at Geelong College where he was educated. His school career was notable for his dismissal of Lindsay Hassett with an inswinger in an inter-house match within his school, later to become his captain in both the Victorian and Australian teams. Iverson was to take no part in cricket for twelve years after graduation, and did not play first class cricket for another 15 years. Starting in 1933, Iverson became a jackaroo in the Mallee and later rose to become an assistant manager on a property of Essington Lewis at Tallarook.

In 1939, he enlisted in the Australian Defence Force after the outbreak of the Second World War, and served in the anti-aircraft regiments of the Ninth Division in the Middle East, before being deployed to Papua New Guinea. There, Sergeant Iverson developed an unorthodox method of spinning the ball, which he gripped between his thumb and middle finger. This enabled him to bowl a wide variety of deliveries, including off breaks, leg breaks and googlies, without any change of action. At this stage he was only playing socially in spontaneous recreation with other army colleagues.


...
Wikipedia

...