Wall Tim Image 2 South Australia 1934

Description

One of only three bowlers to take all ten wickets in a Sheffield Shield innings, Semaphore, Adelaide, South Australia born Thomas “Tim” Wall was for a time Australia’s best fast bowler. Wall was chiefly a batsman in club cricket, though he never aspired to emerge from the tail end in first class cricket from his first match at the age of 20. Having made his first class debut for South Australia in 1924-25, he was called up for the final Ashes Series Test against England at Melbourne in March 1929. On his debut, he took five wickets in the second innings and in the match, took eight wickets for 189 (Hammond in both innings) in a long-awaited victory for a rebuilding Australian side.

Perhaps because his pace was less than the very fastest, Tim Wall’s subsequent record fell short of early expectation, however, his earnest endeavours brought 56 wickets in 18 Tests at the slightly expensive rate of 35.89 apiece, with 43 of those wickets being English, at a cost of 38.67 each, spread over four series, two of them in England (1930 and 1934). Three times he took five wickets in a Test innings, twice against England and once (5-14 at Brisbane in November 1931) against South Africa. He also played in four of the Bodyline Series Tests in the 1932-33 Ashes series.

He took 178 wickets in Sheffield Shield cricket at an average of 29.53, and Wall’s 10-36 against New South Wales at Sydney in February 1933 remains the best first class figures recorded in Australia. It is also the only ten-wicket innings ever recorded for South Australia. Swinging the ball in a stiff breeze, Wall took the last nine wickets after lunch – four in one over – for five runs. Six were bowled, and he included Bradman (56), Fingleton (43), Brown (0) and McCabe (0) among his victims, albeit New South Wa;es went on to win the match by 98 runs.. Not for 33 years was his all-ten feat equalled, by Queensland’s Peter Allan, and only Ian Brayshaw has done it since.

He played his last first class match in 1935-36. In 108 first class matches he made a single half century, 53 not out, averaging 10.50 with the bat, and with his bowling took 330 wickets at 29.93 apiece, with a pair of ten wicket matches and 10 five wicket hauls.

A. G. Moyes wrote of Tim Wall that, off a long run, ‘he had a good approach, and as he reached the bowling crease kicked his feet about like a frisky colt … He could move the ball freely, and sometimes disconcertingly, had splendid stamina, was a magnificent trier, and a charming companion.’

Wall’s grandson Brett Swain played 23 first class matches for South Australia from 1994 to 2001.

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