OTD| Former Australian all-rounder Gus Gilmour was born in 1951

Garry “Gus” Gilmour, the former Australian cricketer, was one of the greatest all-rounders of his time. Gilmour was known for his big hitting with the bat and his ability to take wickets with the ball. He was also a good fielder in the slips position. The former Aussie star was born today, June 26, 1951. 

The all-rounder represented Australia in 15 test matches and five One Day Internationals (ODIs) between 1973 and 1977. He was also a part of the Australian squad that ended as the runner-up in the inaugural edition of the ODI World Cup in 1975.

Gilmour played for Newcastle when he was merely a teenager and was selected to play for Northern New South Wales against New Zealand when he was just 16. He went on to make his first-class debut for New South Wales.

His consistency in the first-class games earned him his international debut in 1973. Playing his first game against New Zealand, Gilmour contributed 52 runs off 58 balls in Australia’s first innings score of 462/8.

In the next innings, New Zealand got a total of 237, with Gilmour returning the figures of 75/4 in his spell. After enforcing a follow-on, Australia restricted the Kiwis to 200, with spinners doing the heavy lifting. Gilmour only bowled three overs in the second innings and did not pick any wickets. 

The highlight of Gilmour’s career was his performance against England in the 1975 World Cup. While he had been the 12th man in all the matches before, the semi-final against England was his chance to prove his worth. 

His bowling figures of 14 runs for six wickets in his 12 overs restricted the hosts to a score of just 93 runs. This was the first time a bowler picked six wickets in an ODI match. Gilmour’s all-rounded brilliance continued as he got Australia out of trouble after they had crumbled to 39/6. His knock of 28 not out in 28 balls guided Australia to the finals. 

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