Australian Services cricket team

The Australian Services XI was a cricket team comprised solely of military service personnel during world war two. the team played matches against English cricket sides of both military and civilian origins.

These matches were aimed at increasing morale in the war ravaged English cities and as a means to returning elite level cricket back into England after the conclusion of fighting in the European theatre of the war.

The side was composed of an amalgam of a RAAF XI, which had already been stationed in England during the war, and another group of mostly AIF soldiers from Australia. The players were deliberately stationed with each other in England for the express purpose of forming a cricket team to tour the country, with Australian prime minister John Curtin pushing for the immediate resumption of international cricket after the war was over. The team was officially a military unit, led by Squadron Leader Stan Sismey, the team's wicket-keeper.

Only one player in the side, future Test captain Lindsay Hassett, had any previous Test match experience, and the rest of the side was made up mostly of Australian Sheffield Shield players. Cricketing great Keith Miller, at the time only considered a promising batsman with Victoria, played what many consider to be his 'breakout' series in the Victory Tests, ensuring that when he returned to Australia he would have a place in the Australian national team now referred to as The Invincibles.

Graham Williams, the team's main strike bowler, had only been released from a German prisoner of war camp weeks before the series started, and played at 31 kg (68 lb) below his pre-war playing weight. In between overs he drank glasses of glucose and water to keep his energy up, but when he was unable to bowl Miller took his place and demonstrated what a valuable pace bowler he would become in the future himself.

The Australian team, despite being split by rank and service, all took their place in the side in good spirit and not much was made of the fact that Hassett, a warrant officer who was outranked by almost every other member of the team, was appointed captain.

External sources

* http://www.ascacricket.net.au/Hassett_1945.htm
* http://www.ausport.gov.au/fulltext/1997/sportsf/sf970425.htm
* http://www.abc.net.au/stateline/sa/content/2006/s1627653.htm