Gilbert Parkhouse facts for kids
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| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Full name |
William Gilbert Anthony Parkhouse
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| Born | 12 October 1925 Swansea, Glamorgan, Wales |
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| Died | 10 August 2000 (aged 74) Carmarthen, Wales |
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| Batting | Right-handed | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bowling | Right-arm medium pace | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Role | Batsman | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| International information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| National side | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Test debut (cap 348) | 24 June 1950 v West Indies | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Last Test | 28 July 1959 v India | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Domestic team information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1948–1964 | Glamorgan | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1950–1950/51 | MCC | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Career statistics | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Source: CricketArchive, 26 December 2008
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William Gilbert Anthony Parkhouse (born October 12, 1925 – died August 10, 2000) was a talented Welsh cricketer. He played in seven important international matches called Tests for England in 1950, 1950–51, and 1959.
Parkhouse was a right-handed batsman. He spent most of his career playing as an opening batsman for Glamorgan. Besides cricket, he also played rugby union for Swansea.
As a cricketer, he was known for scoring runs quickly and hitting the ball with style. People remembered his "effortless cover driving," which is a graceful way of hitting the ball through the off-side. He was also good at hitting the ball on the leg-side.
Contents
Gilbert Parkhouse: A First-Class Cricketer
Gilbert Parkhouse was born in Swansea, Wales. He went to school at Wycliffe College in Gloucestershire, England. Even during World War II, he played cricket matches that weren't officially "first-class" for Glamorgan.
He made his official first-class debut in 1948. This was a friendly match before the main season started. He batted at number three, which means he was the third player to bat for his team. That year, Glamorgan won their first-ever County Championship, a big cricket tournament.
In his very first Championship game, he scored 46 and 59 runs. Soon after, he hit his first "century" (100 runs or more) by scoring 117 runs. A week later, he scored another century with 103 runs. In his first season, he scored 1204 runs in total. This earned him his county cap, a special award.
In 1949, Parkhouse played even better. He scored 1491 runs and improved his highest score twice. He made 126 runs against Hampshire and then 145 runs against Nottinghamshire.
Playing for England: Test Cricket
The year 1950 was a huge one for Parkhouse. He became famous very quickly. He broke Glamorgan's records for the most centuries in a season and for reaching 1,000 runs the fastest.
Glamorgan needed a new opening batsman, so they asked Parkhouse to bat first with Emrys Davies. This change worked perfectly! Parkhouse scored 121 and 148 runs in his first two innings as an opener. Then, he scored 127 runs in the next match, making it three centuries in a row. Just 10 days later, he scored 161 runs, setting a new personal best.
This amazing form led to Parkhouse being chosen for the England team. He played in the second Test match against the West Indies at Lord's, a famous cricket ground. In his first innings, he didn't score any runs. But in the second innings, he scored 48 runs, which was a good effort. Even though England lost this match, Parkhouse's batting was praised.
After returning to Glamorgan, Parkhouse continued his excellent form. He scored 161 runs again and then even bettered it with 162 runs in another match.
He played in the third Test match too. He scored 13 runs in the first innings. In the second innings, he scored 69 runs, helping England catch up to the West Indies' score. However, England eventually lost this match as well.
Parkhouse was then chosen for the 1950-51 Ashes series tour in Australia and New Zealand. This was a very tough tour. He didn't do as well as hoped, partly because he faced very fast bowlers and also due to illness and injuries.
He played in the second Test match in Australia, scoring 9 and 28 runs. He also played in the third Test, scoring 25 and 15 runs. Later, during the New Zealand part of the tour, he got another chance in a Test match due to other players being injured. He scored 2 and 20 runs.
A County Cricket Star
After the international tours, Parkhouse returned to play for Glamorgan in 1951. He went back to batting at number three. He continued to be a strong player for his county team.
From 1951 to 1958, he consistently scored over 1,000 runs each season. This shows how reliable he was for Glamorgan. In 1954, he set a new personal best score of 182 runs. Two years later, in 1956, he scored an even higher 201 runs against Kent at Swansea. This was his highest score ever in first-class cricket.
A Strong Comeback in 1959
In 1959, Parkhouse had a fantastic season. His strong batting and quick scoring helped Glamorgan improve a lot in the County Championship. By the middle of the season, he had already scored four centuries.
Because of his great form, England chose him again for the Test team. He opened the batting with Geoff Pullar in the third Test against India. They had a very successful partnership, scoring 146 runs together. This was England's best opening start in many years! Parkhouse scored 78 runs, and England won the match easily.
Parkhouse and Pullar played in the fourth Test too. Parkhouse scored 17 runs in the first innings and 49 runs in the second. This was his last innings in a Test match for England. He was not chosen for the next international tour.
Even so, 1959 was Parkhouse's best season in first-class cricket. He scored 2243 runs, which was the only time he scored over 2,000 runs in a single season. His average of 48.76 runs per innings was one of the best among county players that year.
Later Career and Retirement
In 1960, Parkhouse scored a century against Leicestershire. This meant he had scored a century against every single one of the other 16 first-class counties, which is a great achievement!
In 1962, he scored his 32nd century for Glamorgan, breaking the county record. However, later that season, he was not selected for 12 county matches. This was the first time he had been left out of the team when he was available since his debut in 1948.
He played fewer matches in 1963 and 1964. After playing half a dozen matches in 1964, he decided to retire from first-class cricket.
After retiring as a player, Gilbert Parkhouse briefly coached for Worcestershire. Then, he moved to Edinburgh, Scotland. There, he coached both cricket and rugby at Stewart's Melville College until he retired in 1987. He passed away on August 10, 2000, in Carmarthen, Wales.
