John Gleeson (cricketer)
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| Born |
14 March 1938 Wiangaree, New South Wales |
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| Died | 7 October 2016 (aged 78) Tamworth, New South Wales |
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| Batting style | Right-hand bat | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bowling style | Legbreak googly | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Source: CricketArchive | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
John William Gleeson (14 March 1938 – 7 October 2016) was an Australian cricketer who played in 29 Tests from 1967 to 1972. He is best known for his unique bowling style, which according to Cricket Australia CEO James Sutherland "bamboozled batsmen" and could "regularly dumbfound the best batsmen in any team".
Gleeson was born in the northern NSW town of Wiangaree (14km north of Kyogle) and grew up in the country town of Tamworth. He was the son of a Wiangaree dairy farmer, and attributed the finger strength required to bowl with his two-fingered grip to his childhood, which he spent milking cows. Aged 15, he worked for the Postmaster-General's Department, and later for Telstra.
He used a grip similar to that of the then unique "bent-finger" action of Jack Iverson, using two fingers: a bent middle finger and the thumb pressing against the ball on both sides in an attempt to find a new variety of bowling tricks. He was one of a small number of Australians who experimented with revolutionary bowling grips in the wake of Iverson's stay in international cricket.
Gleeson preferred to bowl downwind on a greenish surface, since pace from the wicket compensated for his not being a large spinner of the ball. His accuracy resulted in his mainly being used for defensive purposes, rather than an attacking one. Under the old lbw law, batsmen could not be given out if they were struck outside off stump, allowing batsmen to safely use their pads without offering a shot to nullify his googly.
Gleeson was one of the prominent debutants of the 1966–67 Australian cricket season in the Sheffield Shield, taking 23 wickets in six matches.
In the 1966–67 season, he took four wickets in five balls, including a hat-trick, in a Sydney grade game, before taking 5/28 against Victoria. He was subsequently selected in an Australian "Second" team to tour New Zealand at the end of the year. He was selected for the 1967–68 Test series against India in Australia. He made his debut in the First Test at Adelaide Oval, taking 2/36 and 2/38. He managed less success in the remaining three Tests, taking five wickets to end with nine at an average of 28.55. In 1968 he won selection for the Ashes tour of England, playing all five Tests and taking 12 wickets at 34.66.
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