Godfrey Evans

Infobox Historic Cricketer


nationality = English
country = England
country abbrev = ENG
name = Godfrey Evans
picture = Cricket_no_pic.pngbatting style = Right-hand bat
bowling style = Legbreak
tests = 91
test runs = 2439
test bat avg = 20.49
test 100s/50s = 2/8
test top score = 104
test balls = -
test wickets = -
test bowl avg = -
test 5s = -
test 10s = -
test best bowling = -
test catches/stumpings = 173/46
FCs = 465
FC runs = 14882
FC bat avg = 21.22
FC 100s/50s = 7/62
FC top score = 144
FC balls = 286
FC wickets = 2
FC bowl avg = 122.50
FC 5s = -
FC 10s = -
FC best bowling = 2/50
FC catches/stumpings = 816/250
debut date = 17 August
debut year = 1946
last date = 18 June
last year = 1959
source = http://content-aus.cricinfo.com/ci/content/player/12543.html

Thomas Godfrey Evans CBE (August 18, 1920 – May 3, 1999) was an English cricketer who played for Kent and England.

Described by "Wisden" as 'arguably the best wicket-keeper the game has ever seen', Evans collected 219 dismissals in 91 Test match appearances between 1946 and 1959 and a further 1066 in first-class matches for Kent. En route he was the first wicket keeper to reach 200 Test dismissals and the first Englishman to reach both 1000 runs and 100 dismissals and 2000 runs and 200 dismissals in Test cricket. He was a Wisden Cricketer of the Year in 1951.

After his retirement from professional cricket Evans became a cricket expert for bookmakers Ladbrokes, famously offering odds of 500 to 1 on an England victory against Australia at Headingley in 1981, the match in which Ian Botham and Bob Willis fought back from following-on at 227 runs behind to achieve a memorably improbable victory.

External links

*cricinfo|ref=england/content/player/12543.html
* David Frith, "Ebullient keeper with eternal charm", [http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4158/is_19990504/ai_n14233842 "The Independent"] , May 4, 1999
* Norman Harris, "Obituary", [http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4158/is_19990504/ai_n14233783 "The Independent"] , May 4, 1999