Wilfred Ferguson facts for kids
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| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Born | 14 December 1917 Longdenville, Trinidad and Tobago |
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| Died | 23 February 1961 (aged 43) Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago |
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| Batting | Right-handed | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bowling | Right-arm legbreak | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| National side | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Test debut | 21 January 1948 v England | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Last Test | 17 March 1954 v England | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Source: CricInfo, 7 January 2020
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Wilfred Ferguson (born December 14, 1917, died February 23, 1961) was a talented West Indian cricket player. He played in eight important matches called Tests. These matches took place between 1947 and 1954. He also played first-class cricket for his home team, Trinidad. He played for Trinidad from 1943 to 1956.
Contents
Wilf Ferguson's Cricket Journey
Wilf Ferguson was known as a leg-spin bowler. This means he could make the cricket ball spin in a special way. He was also a strong batsman, especially when batting lower down the order.
Early Matches and Success
In March 1944, Ferguson played his second first-class match for Trinidad. He bowled really well, taking 5 wickets for 61 runs and then 4 wickets for just 22 runs. He also scored 60 runs with the bat. Trinidad won that match against British Guiana easily.
A year later, he had another great bowling performance. He took 5 wickets and then 6 wickets in a match against Barbados.
Test Debut and Big Moments
Ferguson played his first Test matches against England in 1947–48. He was the best bowler for both teams in that series. He played in all four matches and took 23 wickets.
In the second Test, which was played in his hometown of Port of Spain, he took an amazing 11 wickets in the match. A cricket expert named Norman Preston said Ferguson was "very fine" on the matting wicket. He praised Ferguson's skill in spinning the ball.
In the fourth Test, Ferguson showed off his batting skills. He scored 75 runs very quickly in just 105 minutes. People in the crowd also found him funny because he would sometimes take off his cap and show his bald head.
Later Career and Challenges
Ferguson faced some challenges with a shoulder injury. This made it harder for him to play as well. He toured India in 1948–49, playing in three Tests. He took 10 wickets during this tour.
In January 1950, he had his best first-class bowling figures. He took 7 wickets for 73 runs, helping Trinidad beat Jamaica. However, two new young spin bowlers, Sonny Ramadhin and Alf Valentine, started playing very well. They were chosen over Ferguson for the team that toured England in 1950.
Ferguson still toured Australia and New Zealand in 1951–52. He took many wickets in the practice matches. For example, he took 6 wickets against Tasmania. He used the strong winds to help him spin the ball and trick the batsmen.
He played one last Test match against England in 1953-54. He didn't take many wickets, but he scored a quick 44 runs as an opening batsman. This was when the West Indies team needed to score runs fast. Towards the end of that match, Ferguson even helped out by acting as the wicket-keeper. He caught two of the opposing team's opening batsmen.
