Breaking: Former Australian cricket captain Bob Simpson dies aged 89 – Australian Broadcasting Corporation

Personalise the news and
stay in the know
Emergency
Backstory
Newsletters
中文新闻
BERITA BAHASA INDONESIA
TOK PISIN
Sport
Topic:Sport
Bob Simpson was inducted into the Australian Cricket Hall of Fame in 2006. (Getty Images: Hamish Blair)
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has been among the first to pay tribute to former Australian cricket great Bob Simpson, who has died at the age of 89.
Simpson made his Test debut in 1957, going on to play 62 Tests with 10 centuries and a top-score of 311.
He also captained Australia in 39 Tests and coached the national side for more than a decade.  
Former Australian men's Test cricket captain Bob Simpson has died aged 89.
The cricketer, who was born in Sydney in 1936, played 62 Tests for Australia, scoring 4,689 runs — with 10 centuries and 27 50s — and taking 71 wickets.
He made his Test debut against South Africa in Johannesburg in 1957, and his first century came in an Ashes Test at Old Trafford in 1964 — Simpson went on to score 311.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese was among the first to pay tribute to Simpson.
He is one of only seven Australians to make a triple-century.
He was also one of the greatest slip-fielders the game has seen, taking 110 catches.
Simpson averaged nearly a catch per innings, the greatest average of a non-wicketkeeper in Test history.
Simpson captained Australia in 39 Tests in three stints between 1963 and 1978.
After nearly a decade away from Test cricket, he was called out of retirement after the arrival of World Series Cricket in 1977.
He played a home series against India, and a tour against the West Indies in the Caribbean.
Bob Simpson (left) played in numerous Ashes tours for Australia, later captaining and coaching the touring side. (Getty Images: Evening Standard/Hulton Archive)
He went on to coach the national team for more than a decade — under his mentorship, Australia rebounded to win the 1986 Cricket World Cup, several Ashes series, including the regaining of the urn in England in 1989, and winning the Frank Worrell Trophy for the first time in 1995, beating the West Indies in the Caribbean.
After stepping down from the role in 1996, Simpson was a consultant to the Indian national team in the late 90s, and coached the Netherlands national team for a period.
He received numerous honours, including his induction into the Australian Sporting Hall of Fame in 1985, to the Australian Cricket Hall of Fame in 2006, and the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame in 2013.
He was made a Member of the Order of Australia in 1978, and an Officer of the order in 2007.
Topic:NRL
Topic:AFL
Topic:English Premier League
Topic:Cricket
Topic:AFL Women’s
LIVE
Topic:World Politics
Topic:Earthquakes
Topic:Weather
Topic:Housing Policy
Topic:Cricket
Australia
Cricket
Sport
Topic:World Politics
Topic:World Politics
Topic:Earthquakes
Topic:Weather
Topic:Housing Policy
BREAKING
Topic:Courts
Topic:Rental Housing
Topic:Mining and Metals Industry
We acknowledge Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples as the First Australians and Traditional Custodians of the lands where we live, learn, and work.
This service may include material from Agence France-Presse (AFP), APTN, Reuters, AAP, CNN and the BBC World Service which is copyright and cannot be reproduced.
AEST = Australian Eastern Standard Time which is 10 hours ahead of GMT (Greenwich Mean Time)

source