Mike Brearley

England|Wicketkeeper Batter
Mike Brearley
INTL CAREER: 1976 - 1981
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Full Name

John Michael Brearley

Born

April 28, 1942, Harrow, Middlesex

Age

81y 326d

Nicknames

Brears, Scagg

Batting Style

Right hand Bat

Bowling Style

Right arm Medium

Fielding Position

Wicketkeeper

Playing Role

Wicketkeeper Batter

Height

5ft 11in

Education

City of London School; St John's College, Cambridge

RELATIONS

(father)

Other

Journalist, Author

Mike Brearley was an outstanding captain - intuitive, resourceful, sympathetic and clear-thinking - but at Test level his tremendous record owed much to a superb and versatile attack. Its spearheads, Bob Willis and Ian Botham, took respectively 112 wickets (at 24) and 150 wickets (at 19) under Brearley's leadership, and missed only five Tests between them. Brearley unusually combined a scholarly mind (a first in Classics and a 2:1 in Moral Sciences at Cambridge) and a total lack of intellectual snobbery, enabling him to make easy friendships at every social level. He first took charge in 1977, when Tony Greig's undercover work for World Series Cricket came to light. But it was his final series, in 1981, that made certain of his lasting fame. Taking over from Botham, who lost his own confidence and the selectors' after an Australian win at Trent Bridge and a pair at Lord's, Brearley so completely and rapidly restored it that Botham, with bat then ball then bat, propelled England to three successive victories, the first from a seemingly impossible position at Headingley. Brearley pulled the strings, however. He never appeared ruffled either on or off the field: a favourite answer when a bowling change or team selection was criticised would be a smiling "You never know, the alternative might have been still worse." His batting record for England was inadequate. But he was well worth his place without a stack of runs. As Rodney Hogg, the Australian fast bowler, put it: "He has a degree in people."
John Thicknesse

Mike Brearley Career Stats

Batting & Fielding

FormatMatInnsNORunsHSAveBFSR100s50s4s6sCtSt
Tests3966314429122.88483929.79091310520
ODIs252435107824.28112045.5303470120
FC45576810225186312*37.81--45134--41812
List A272264326135124*26.44--337--1110

Bowling

FormatMatInnsBallsRunsWktsBBIBBMAveEconSR4w5w10w
Tests39------------
ODIs25------------
FC455-31519231/6-64.003.65105.0-00
List A272-486042/32/315.007.5012.0000
Mike Brearley portrait

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Test
ODI

Debut/Last Matches of Mike Brearley

Recent Matches of Mike Brearley

Photos of Mike Brearley

Geoffrey Boycott and Mike Brearley have a chat during Edgbaston's 50th Test
Majid Khan, Barry Richards, Mike Brearley and John Stephenson
Mike Brearley and John Stephenson at a MCC World Cricket Committee media conference
 John Stephenson, Mike Brearley, Barry Richards and Majid Khan at the MCC  World Cricket Committee conference
Mike Brearley speaks at a press conference
Mike Brearley