Former Australia leg-spinner and coach Peter Philpott dies aged 86
Former Australia leg-spinner Peter Philpott passed away at the age of 86 on Sunday, October 31, after a long battle with illness. Philpott represented Australia in eight Tests between March 1965 and January 1966, in which he bagged 26 wickets at 38.46, and took to coaching after his playing career.
Peter Philpott passed away aged 86, on Sunday, after a long battle with illness. Philpott debuted during Australia’s tour of the West Indies in 1964-65, and bagged 18 wickets at 34.94 in the five-match series, during which he dismissed Sir Garfield Sobers, Rohan Kanhai and Conrad Hunte twice each. He played in three Ashes matches during the following home summer, which marked the end of a rather short Test career which fetched him 26 wickets at 38.46.
Philpott represented New South Wales (NSW) in first-class cricket and took 245 wickets at 30.31, and scored 2,886 runs at 31.36 from 76 matches. He also captained the side during the 1963-64 and 1964-65 Sheffield Shield seasons, during a career that spanned between 1954-55 and 1966-67.
He became a renowned coach after his playing career, and was at the helm for Australia during the 1981 Ashes, and later had stints at NSW, South Australia, Yorkshire, Surrey and Sri Lanka. During the 1998/99 season, England sought his help to counter Shane Warne’s mastery.
In 2004, he was honoured with Life Membership of the NSW Cricket Association.
“I’d like to pass on my deepest condolences from everyone at Cricket NSW to Peter’s family and friends,” said Lee Germon, Cricket NSW CEO, as he paid tribute to Philpott’s contribution to the game.
“Any player that has reached the heights Peter did, in playing for his country and captaining his state, will long be remembered by the game.
“After his decorated playing career Peter was an outstanding coach and educator who was involved in cricket in Sydney’s north for more than six decades.Â
”My personal memory is being a young wicket keeper at the Peter Philpott coaching clinics in Christchurch in New Zealand. He also took me for my level 3 coaching course in Christchurch and I saw first hand his incredible coaching skills.”
It has been a tough few days for Australia’s cricket fraternity, as off-spinner Ashley Mallett and all-rounder Alan Davidson passed away on Friday and Saturday respectively.