deliveries columns catches/stumpings year tenfor bowling country fivefor batting image name lasttestyear column international testdebutdate source date runs testdebutyear wickets lasttestdate s/s matches article_title
- 29 2 - / - 30 / - 1952 - 0 - new zealand - 0 right-hand bat gordon_leggat . jpg gordon leggat 1956 tests first-class true 15 february http://content-aus.cricinfo.com/ci/content/player/37607.html cricinfo 15 february 351 3634 1952 - 1 3 february 0/2 7/23 9 57 gordon leggat

gordon leggat

john gordon leggat -lrb- 27 may 1926 -- 9 march 1973 -rrb- played nine tests for new zealand in the 1950s as an opening batsman .
gordon leggat was born in wellington , went to christchurch boys ' high school , and became a lawyer .
he played for canterbury from 1944-45 to 1955-56 .
he toured australia in 1953-54 with the new zealand team , and india and pakistan in 1955-56 .
dick brittenden said leggat `` brought to the task of opening an innings extraordinary powers of concentration , tremendous endurance , and a highly-developed cricket sense '' , pointing out that leggat had batted fourteen and a half hours in scoring 290 runs -lrb- 110 , 14 and 166 -rrb- for canterbury in the first three innings of the 1952-53 season .
leggat failed to score in his first test innings , against the touring west indies team in 1951-52 , but the next season he resisted the south african bowlers for several hours to score 22 and 47 -lrb- the top score , made in 190 minutes -rrb- in the first test in wellington .
he was not selected for the tour to south africa in 1953-54 , one of several players at the time who `` paid the ultimate price for being overweight '' .
but brought in to reinforce the new zealand batting when they played three matches in australia on their way home from south africa , he made 45 , 67 , 61 , 121 not out -lrb- to take new zealand to victory against south australia when they needed 226 runs in two and a half hours -rrb- , 11 and 34 against the state teams .
he was third in both aggregates and averages on the tour of india and pakistan in 1955-56 , scoring 652 runs at 34.31 .
he played four tests on the tour , making 37 and 50 not out in new delhi , and 31 and 61 -lrb- his highest test score -rrb- in madras .
he played his last test against the touring west indies in dunedin later that season , making 3 and 17 , and putting on 61 for the first wicket with bert sutcliffe in the second innings .
it was also his last first-class match .
he was a national selector from 1959 to 1965 , and chairman of the board of control of the new zealand cricket council from 1966 until he died suddenly in christchurch in 1973 , aged 46 .
he managed the tour to south africa in 1961-62 , on which new zealand won its first test victories outside new zealand .
his cousin ian leggat also played test cricket for new zealand .
