All in the family: Father and two sons who have played Test cricket

Tags: Shaun Edward Marsh, Mitchell Ross Marsh

Published on: Oct 22, 2014

The first Test of the series against Pakistan which began in Dubai on Wednesday is historic for Australia. The match saw the debut of Mitchell Marsh

The first Test of the series against Pakistan which began in Dubai on Wednesday is historic for Australia. The match saw the debut of Mitchell Marsh, the son of the legendary Geoff Marsh, which now means that both of his sons have played Test cricket for the country. Left-handed batsman Shaun Marsh has already played Tests for the Aussies. While it’s a first for Australia, it is the third example in cricket history that a father and two sons have played for their country. Here’s a look at all three.


Geoff Marsh, Shaun Marsh and Mitchell Marsh: Geoff was a prolific batsman in the Australian Test squad from the mid-80s to the early 90s. He played exactly 50 Tests, and scored 2854 runs at an average of 33 with four hundreds and 15 fifties. Marsh had a highest score of 138 during his Test career. Having made his Test debut in 2011, his son Shaun has so far had a stop-start career. He has only featured in 9 Tests, and has scored 493 runs, also at an average of 33, with two hundreds and one fifty. Shaun’s highest score so far is 148. Mitchell, who has played nine ODIs, is making his debut in the ongoing Test against the Pakistanis in Dubai.


Walter Hadlee, Dayle Hadlee and Richard Hadlee: Walter played 11 Tests for New Zealand between 1937 and 1951, scoring 543 runs at an average of 30 with one hundred and two fifties. He had a highest Test score of 116. Walter’s son Dayle featured in 26 Tests for the Kiwis in the 60s and 70s. A medium fast bowler, he picked up 71 scalps at an average of 33.6 with five four-wicket hauls. His best figures were 4 for 30. Dayle averaged only 14 with the bat, but had a half-century, his highest of 56.


Richard was way ahead of his father and brother in terms of success. In 86 Tests, he claimed 431 wickets at a splendid average of 22 with 36 five-wicket hauls. He picked up 10 wickets in a match on nine occasions, and had best bowling figures of 9 for 52. With the bat, Richard hit two hundreds and 15 fifties at an average of 27 with a best of 151 not out. He scored over 3000 runs during his illustrious Test career.

Lala Amarnath, Mohinder Amarnath and Surinder Amarnath: The great Lala played 24 Tests and scored 878 runs at an average of 24.3 with one hundred (the first for India in Tests) and four fifties. Lala’s highest Test score was 118. Mohinder was the more successful of Lala’s sons. He played 69 Tests and notched up 4378 runs at an impressive average of 42.5 with 11 tons and 24 fifties. Mohinder had a highest Test score of 138. Surinder scored a century on Test debut at Auckland in 1976. But, he finished with 10 Tests and a disappointing average of 30.5, adding only three more fifties to his century.


--By A Cricket Analyst

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