With the demise of Madhav Mantri, India’s oldest living Test cricketer, memories of a generation past spring to mind. While most of these fabled names exist only in cricketing lore for the current generation of fans, their legends live on. Shiamak Unwalla doffs his cap at some of the greats.
Most cricket fans born in the late 20th century will be able to remember exactly what score South Africa chased down against Australia in that famous Wanderers match. They will be able to retell almost exactly to which parts of the ground each of Yuvraj Singh’s six sixes against Stuart Broad in the 2007 World T20 went. They will be able to remember in exacting detail where Brian Lara scored his 400th run in that innings.
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Unfortunately, the world of cricket has little to no visual record of the past exploits of people who are today part of cricketing lore. We have all heard of names like Frank Woolley, but there are few alive today who have any idea of his style of batsmanship. Fewer still would have actually watched him play. Names like Harold Larwood, Bill Ponsford and Wilfred Rhodes inspire immediate awe, yet most of us have never seen their pictures. It is the loss of many a cricket fan, but while we may never have the pleasure to see them in person, their myth will live on long after the rest of us.
Below is a list of the Test cricketers who lived till a ripe old age.
| Player | Mat | Born | Died | Age |
| Eric Tindill (NZ) | 5 | 18-12-1910 | 01-08-2010 | 99 |
| Francis MacKinnon (Eng) | 1 | 9 Apr 1848 | 27-02-1947 | 98 |
| John Lambert Kerr (NZ) | 7 | 28-12-1910 | 27-05-2007 | 96 |
| Wilfred Rhodes (Eng) | 58 | 29 Oct 1877 | 08-07-1973 | 95 |
| William “Bill” Brown (Aus) | 22 | 31-07-1912 | 16-03-2008 | 95 |
| Gordon “Dad” Weir (NZ) | 11 | 02-06-1908 | 31-10-2003 | 95 |
| Sydney Barnes (Eng) | 27 | 19 Apr 1873 | 26-12-1967 | 94 |
| Esmond Kentish (WI) | 2 | 21-11-1916 | 10-06-2011 | 94 |
| MJ Gopalan (India) | 1 | 06-06-1909 | 21-12-2003 | 94 |
| Ron Hamence (Aus) | 3 | 25-11-1915 | 24-03-2010 | 94 |
| Denis Begbie (SA) | 5 | 12-12-1914 | 10-03-2009 | 94 |
| Jack Newman (NZ) | 3 | 03-07-1902 | 23-09-1996 | 94 |
| Donald Cleverley (NZ) | 2 | 23-12-1909 | 16-02-2004 | 94 |
| Robert “Bob” Wyatt (Eng) | 40 | 02-05-1901 | 20-04-1995 | 93 |
| Edwin “Kenny” Burn (Aus) | 2 | 17 Sep 1862 | 20-07-1956 | 93 |
| Reginald Allen (Aus) | 1 | 2 Jul 1858 | 02-05-1952 | 93 |
| Reginald Simpson (Eng) | 27 | 27-02-1920 | 24-11-2013 | 93 |
| Alfred Gover (Eng) | 4 | 29-02-1908 | 07-10-2001 | 93 |
| Hunter “Stork” Hendry (Aus) | 11 | 24 May 1895 | 16-12-1988 | 93 |
| Ernest “Tiger” Smith (Eng) | 11 | 6 Feb 1886 | 31-08-1979 | 93 |
| Thomas Mitchell (Eng) | 5 | 04-09-1902 | 27-01-1996 | 93 |
| Colin Snedden (NZ) | 1 | 07-01-1918 | 24-04-2011 | 93 |
| Cotar Ramaswami (India) | 2 | 16 Jun 1896 | 0-01-1990 | 93 |
| Percy Fender (Eng) | 13 | 22 Aug 1892 | 15-06-1985 | 92 |
| Lionel Birkett (WI) | 4 | 14-04-1905 | 16-01-1998 | 92 |
| Madhav Mantri (Ind) | 4 | 01-09-1921 | 23-05-2014 | 92 |
| Donald Bradman (Aus) | 52 | 27-08-1908 | 25-02-2001 | 92 |
| Norman “Mandy” Mitchell-Innes (Eng) | 1 | 07-09-1914 | 28-12-2006 | 92 |
| William Solomon (SA) | 1 | 23 Apr 1872 | 12-07-1964 | 92 |
| Andrew Sandham (Eng) | 14 | 6 Jul 1890 | 20-04-1982 | 91 |
| Alec Bedser (Eng) | 51 | 04-07-1918 | 04-04-2010 | 91 |
| Henry “Harry” Donnan (Aus) | 5 | 12 Nov 1864 | 13-08-1956 | 91 |
| Arthur McIntyre (Eng) | 3 | 14-05-1918 | 26-12-2009 | 91 |
| Frank Woolley (Eng) | 64 | 27 May 1887 | 18-10-1978 | 91 |
| Percy “Plum” Lewis (SA) | 1 | 2 Oct 1884 | 30-01-1976 | 91 |
| Walter Hadlee (NZ) | 11 | 04-06-1915 | 29-09-2006 | 91 |
| Walter “Merv” Wallace (NZ) | 13 | 19-12-1916 | 21-03-2008 | 91 |
| Mohammad Aslam (Pak) | 1 | 05-01-1919 | 22-01-2011 | 91 |
| John “Jack” MacBryan (Eng) | 1 | 22 Jul 1892 | 14-07-1983 | 90 |
| Harold Larwood (Eng) | 21 | 14-11-1904 | 22-07-1995 | 90 |
| Samuel Loxton (Aus) | 12 | 29-03-1921 | 03-12-2011 | 90 |
| Frank Hearne (Eng/SA) | 6 | 23 Nov 1858 | 14-07-1949 | 90 |
| George Hearne (SA) | 3 | 27 Mar 1888 | 13-11-1978 | 90 |
| Syed Mushtaq Ali (India) | 11 | 17-12-1914 | 18-06-2005 | 90 |
| Henry “Harry” Lee (Eng) | 1 | 26 Oct 1890 | 21-04-1981 | 90 |
| William “Bill” Ponsford (Aus) | 29 | 19-10-1900 | 06-04-1991 | 90 |
| Dennis Brookes (Eng) | 1 | 29-10-1915 | 09-03-2006 | 90 |
| Leslie Walcott (WI) | 1 | 18 Jan 1894 | 27-02-1984 | 90 |
| Edward “Teddy” Hoad (WI) | 4 | 29 Jan 1896 | 05-03-1986 | 90 |
| Herbert “Bert” Strudwick (Eng) | 28 | 28 Jan 1880 | 14-02-1970 | 90 |
| Alexander “Alec” Coxon (Eng) | 1 | 18-01-1916 | 22-01-2006 | 90 |
(Shiamak Unwalla is a reporter with Cricket Country. He is a self-confessed Sci-Fi geek and Cricket fanatic who likes to pass his free time by reading books, watching TV shows, and eating food. Sometimes all at the same time. You can follow him on twitter at @ShiamakUnwalla)
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