Don Bradman Birth Anniversary: Revisiting the Legacy of Greatest Cricketer to Play the Game

DON BRADMAN BIRTH ANNIVERSARY: Australian great Sir Donald Bradman’s stats and stories are forever parts of the cricketing heritage. He was a generational cricketer, widely regarded as the greatest player to have graced the game. Bradman was a jack of all trades and also excelled in other sports, including tennis, squash, golf and billiards. August 27 marks the Aussie icon’s 115th birth anniversary. Sachin Tendulkar met Sir Don Bradman on latter’s 90th birthday party in Adelaide in the year 1998. Let’s take this opportunity to celebrate his legacy and truly understand his impact on the lives of millions.

1. Former Australian skipper Ian Chappell said that it wasn’t Don Bradman’s physical skills that separated him from the rest. He felt that his immense mental strength immuning him to the pressure was his biggest skill.
2. Bradman was extremely fond of schoolyard cricket, which influenced him to invent his own one-man cricket game in which he hit a golf ball with a cricket stump against a water tank to hone his skills.
3. Bradman became a regular cricket player at the age of 17, later solidifying his legacy by scoring 6996 runs in 52 matches with a batting average of 99.94.
4. A Test average of 99.94 is a near-impossible feat to achieve, especially in the 20th century. As of August 2023, the next-best average is of England’s HC Brook who sits at a mere 62.15.
5. Cricket was not a mature sport back in the 1900s. The game did not favour the batters as much as it does today as there were relaxed bowling regulations and the pitches were rough and weren’t maintained. The batters used no safety gear such as pads and joint guards.
6. In his final-ever Test match in 1948, Don Bradman required only four runs to finish his career with an average of a perfect 100.
7. Playing against England at the Oval, he missed a googly from Eric Hollies and was bowled for a two-ball duck leaving him just 0.06 shy of the dream average. However, it only went to show how the icon was still a mortal.
8. Donald Bradman was a source of inspiration to his countrymen during the Second World War.
9. His cricket was able to distract people from the raging war and give them a sense of hope during adverse times. Bradman’s prodigious scoring helped shape the nation’s identity. He was able to instil pride amongst Australians, uniting them during the war.
10. He also emitted a sense of inventiveness and motivation during the Great Depression. The legacy of “The Boy from Bowral” was more than just a title given to him by the tabloids. It signified the joy he brought to millions of Australians.