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Full name Leslie O'Brien Fleetwood-Smith
Born March 30, 1908, Stawell, Victoria
Died March 16, 1971, Fitzroy, Melbourne, Victoria (aged 62 years 351 days)
Major teams Australia,Victoria
Batting style Right-hand bat
Bowling style Slow left-arm chinaman
Batting and fielding averages
Mat
Inns
NO
Runs
HS
Ave
100
50
6s
Ct
St
Tests
10
11
5
54
16*
9.00
0
0
1
0
0
First-class
112
117
33
617
63
7.34
0
1
42
0
Bowling averages
Mat
Inns
Balls
Runs
Wkts
BBI
BBM
Ave
Econ
SR
4w
5w
10
Tests
10
18
3093
1570
42
6/110
10/239
37.38
3.04
73.6
4
2
1
First-class
112
26569
13519
597
9/36
22.64
3.05
44.5
57
18
Career statistics
Test debut
South Africa v Australia at Durban, Dec 14-18, 1935 scorecard
Last Test
England v Australia at The Oval, Aug 20-24, 1938 scorecard
Test statistics
First-class span
1931/32 - 1939/40
Profile
Leslie O'Brien Fleetwood-Smith, who died in a Melbourne hospital on March 16, aged 60, played in 10 Test matches for Australia between 1935 and 1938, taking 42 wickets. A left-arm spin bowler who changed his style after breaking his right arm as a schoolboy, he often exploited the googly and the "chinaman" with effect. In all first-class cricket his record was 597 wickets, average 22.00. "Chuck", as he was known, first toured England in 1934 when he obtained 119 wickets - including three in four deliveries against Oxford University - for 18.06 runs apiece, but failed to gain a Test place against such formidable rivals as C.V. Grimmett and W.J. O'Reilly.
In 1936-37, however, after faring moderately in South Africa the previous year, he helped Australia to carry off the Ashes following the loss of the first two Tests, in which he did not play, to G.O. Allen's England team. Fleetwood-Smith did specially well in the fourth Test at Melbourne, his match analysis being 10 wickets for 239 runs. Again in England in 1938, he took part in four Tests and at Leeds earned match figures of 7 for 107, he and O'Reilly (10 for 122) bearing a major part in the victory which decided the rubber.
In the final match of the series at The Oval - his last Test appearance - however, he, in company with the other Australian bowlers, came in for a mauling. It was in that game that Leonard Hutton put together his record-breaking 364 and England won by the overwhelming margin of an innings and 579 runs. Fleetwood-Smith's analysis in a total of 903 was one wicket for 298 runs from 87 overs.
For Victoria, Fleetwood-Smith took 246 wickets for 24.56 runs each in 40 Sheffield Shield fixtures. Twice he enjoyed the distinction of dismissing nine batsmen in an innings - for 36 runs against Tasmania in 1932-33 and for 135 runs against South Australia five seasons later - at Melbourne in each case. He fell on hard times some years ago and was "living rough", but his friends rallied round him and latterly he was his old self again.
Wisden Cricketers' Almanack
