Neil Adcock

Neil Adcock Biography

Neil Adcock was a terror even for a country that has produced a seemingly infinite sequence of fast bowlers. He formed a pair with Peter Heine to torment contemporary batsmen across the world. Both Peter May and Colin Cowdrey, who knew a thing or two about handling pace, found the pair more intimidating than Ray Lindwall and Keith Miller. Tom Graveney called them “two of the nastiest”.

It was fitting that Adcock would become the first South African to take a hundred Test wickets. If his Test average of 21 comes as impressive, his 405 First-Class wickets came at a mere 17.

Adcock was very fast, but his greatest strength was to make the ball take off awkwardly off a length, often aiming at the head of batsmen. In only his second Test, at Johannesburg in 1953-54, he claimed 3 for 44 and 5 for 43 — and hit seven different batsmen (Bert Sutcliffe included) in the first innings. Sutcliffe was hit on the side of the head and had to be hospitalised; Lawrie Miller, hit on the chest, coughed blood, and joined Sutcliffe; and another delivery crashed into John Beck’s box so hard that it got inverted.

And when Australia needed a mere 68 in the Port Elizabeth Test of 1957-58, Adcock bowled so fast that Trevor Goddard took two steps back at gully after the first ball and two more steps after the second. When a tormented Colin McDonald fell for 4, he told Goddard “tell that bastard I’ve got a family at home.”

The open-chested action was unusual for a man who moved the ball away from the batsman, his right arm coming down like a whiplash at the last moment. The action was so beautifully rhythmic that it never mattered, utilising every step of his run-up to work up pace.

He toured England twice. He broke down midway in 1955, but not before taking 34 wickets at 27. When he returned in 1960 — following intense physical training — he more than made up for that, with 108 wickets at a mere 14.

In between the two tours, Adcock, Heine, and Hugh Tayfield helped South Africa draw the home series of 1956-57 against England — the best side in the world at that point — after the hosts were down 0-2. Adcock’s 21 Test wickets came at 15.

He could not bat at all. Not only did he average 5.40, but his Test runs tally of 146 was barely more than his wickets count of 104. Two Tests before his retirement the tallies stood at 100 runs and 95 wickets before he decided to ‘spoil’ everything. However, his only batting dream — that of hitting a six in Test cricket — came off Johnny Wardle, in the Johannesburg Test of 1956-57.

In 26 Tests Adcock captured 104 wickets at a superb average of 21.10 with five 5-wicket hauls. His batting lacked substance but never sensation. His runs managed to just about stay abreast of his wickets before surging ahead in the last two Tests and ending with 146 at 5.40, with a top-score of 24.

He later became a travel agent and radio commentator. He was 81 when he passed away, in 2013.

Abhishek Mukherjee

Neil Adcock Batting & Fielding Averages

Career	M	In	R	NO	HS	Avg	BF	SR	100s	50s	4s	6s	Ct	St
Test	26	39	146	12	24	5.407	229	63.75	0	0	12	--	4	0
ODIs	0	--	--	--		--	--	--	--	--	--	--	--	--
T20s	0	--	--	--		--	--	--	--	--	--	--	--	--
World Cup	0	--	--	--		--	--	--	--	--	--	--	--	--

Neil Adcock Bowling Averages

Career	M	B	R	W	Avg	EC	SR	5WI	10WM	BBI	BBM
Test	26	5507	2195	104	21.10	2.391	52.	5	0	6/43	8/87
ODIs	0	--	--	--	--	--	--	--	--
T20s	0	--	--	--	--	--	--	--	--
World Cup	0	--	--	--	--	--	--	--	--		--

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