Australian cricket team in South Africa in 1935–36

The Australia national cricket team toured South Africa from November 1935 to March 1936 and played a five-match Test series against South Africa. Australia won the Test series 4–0. Australia were captained by Vic Richardson; South Africa by Herby Wade.

The team

• Vic Richardson (captain)
• Stan McCabe (vice-captain)
• Ben Barnett
• Bill Brown
• Arthur Chipperfield
• Len Darling
• Jack Fingleton
• Chuck Fleetwood-Smith
• Clarrie Grimmett
• Ernie McCormick
• Leo O'Brien
• Bert Oldfield
• Bill O'Reilly
• Morris Sievers

Don Bradman and Alan Kippax were unavailable. Hans Ebeling was selected but later withdrew and was replaced by Sievers. Harold Rowe was the manager.^[1]

The tour

The Australians played 16 matches, all of them first-class. They won 13 (10 of them by an innings) and drew the other three. Of their four victories in the Tests, three were by an innings.^[1]

The leg-spin bowlers Grimmett (44 wickets) and O'Reilly (27) took 71 wickets between them in the Tests; the other Australian bowlers together took 27 wickets.^[2] On the tour overall O'Reilly took 95 wickets at an average of 13.56 and Grimmett took 92 at 14.80.^[3]

Test series summary

First Test

14, 16, 17, 18 December 1935 (4-day match) Scorecard

South Africa	v	Australia
248 (114.2 overs) EAB Rowan 66 LO Fleetwood-Smith 4/64 (28 overs)		429 (162.2 overs) SJ McCabe 149 ACB Langton 4/113 (48.2 overs)
282 (115 overs) AD Nourse 91 WJ O'Reilly 5/49 (17 overs)		102/1 (36.3 overs) WA Brown 55 EL Dalton 1/12 (1.3 overs)

Australia won by 9 wickets Kingsmead Cricket Ground, Durban Umpires: JC Collings and WG Routledge

• South Africa won the toss and elected to bat.
• 15 December was taken as a rest day.
• F Nicholson and JB Robertson (both SA), and EL McCormick and LO Fleetwood-Smith (both AUS) made their Test debuts.

Second Test

24, 26, 27, 28 December 1935 (4-day match) Scorecard

South Africa	v	Australia
157 (63.2 overs) EAB Rowan 38 WJ O'Reilly 4/54 (20.2 overs)		250 (81.3 overs) JHW Fingleton 62 B Mitchell 4/26 (7.3 overs)
491 (149.3 overs) AD Nourse 231 CV Grimmett 3/111 (58 overs)		274/2 (76.1 overs) SJ McCabe 189* RJ Crisp 1/62 (17.1 overs)

Match drawn Old Wanderers, Johannesburg Umpires: RGA Ashman and JC Collings

• South Africa won the toss and elected to bat.
• 25 December was taken as a rest day.
• AW Briscoe and EG Bock (both SA) made their Test debuts.

Third Test

1, 2, 3, 4 January 1936 (4-day match) Scorecard

Australia	v	South Africa
362/8d (115 overs) WA Brown 121 XC Balaskas 4/126 (38 overs)		102 (38.2 overs) AD Nourse 44* CV Grimmett 5/32 (17 overs)
		182 (f/o) (87.4 overs) IJ Siedle 59 CV Grimmett 5/56 (36.4 overs)

Australia won by an innings and 78 runs Newlands Cricket Ground, Cape Town Umpires: RGA Ashman and JC Collings

• Australia won the toss and elected to bat.
• There was no play on the first day.

Fourth Test

15, 17 February 1936 (4-day match) Scorecard

South Africa	v	Australia
157 (63.4 overs) IJ Siedle 44 WJ O'Reilly 5/20 (21 overs)		439 (127.4 overs) JHW Fingleton 108 EQ Davies 4/75 (24.4 overs)
98 (43.5 overs) B Mitchell 48* CV Grimmett 7/40 (19.5 overs)

Australia won by an innings and 184 runs Old Wanderers, Johannesburg Umpires: RGA Ashman and JC Collings

• South Africa won the toss and elected to bat.
• 16 February was taken as a rest day.
• The match was scheduled for four days but completed in two.
• RL Harvey and EQ Davies (both SA) made their Test debuts.

Fifth Test

28, 29 February, 2, 3 March 1936 (4-day match) Scorecard

South Africa	v	Australia
222 (109.1 overs) KG Viljoen 56 CV Grimmett 7/100 (45 overs)		455 (146.5 overs) JHW Fingleton 118 B Mitchell 5/87 (25.5 overs)
227 (113.1 overs) B Mitchell 72* CV Grimmett 6/73 (48 overs)

Australia won by an innings and 6 runs Kingsmead Cricket Ground, Durban Umpires: JC Collings and WG Routledge

• South Africa won the toss and elected to bat.
• 1 March was taken as a rest day.