The Tangiwai Test: Story of New Zealand Cricket's Brave Hearts
18 Jun, 2022
Picture Source: Reuters
The Ellis Park saga that unfolded during the Christmas of 1953 is one of the most gut-wrenching and inspiring stories to come out of New Zealand cricket. We do not remember the match for its dramatic finish or insatiable records but for the heroic defiance of two Kiwi batters - one battling a physical tragedy while the other dealt with a personal loss. This is the story about the men who forgot to look up the word ‘surrender’ in the dictionary.
New Zealand’s tour of South Africa for a five test series in 1953-54 was their first outside England. The Kiwis were still looking for their first test win. They lost the first test by an innings and 58 runs. The second test was scheduled to take place at Ellis Park in Johannesburg from December 24-29. South Africa piled up 259-8 on the first day before the teams went into rest day for Christmas.
Meanwhile in New Zealand, a jolting disaster shook the nation amidst the ecstasy of Christmas eve. The Wellington-Auckland express plunged into the Whangaehu river at Tangiwai, after one of the piers on the railway bridge over the river was damaged by a mudflow. The tragedy resulted in a death toll of 151 and remains the worst rail disaster in New Zealand history. New Zealand fast bowler Bob Blair was intimated by a telegram that his fiancé Nerissa Love was among the people who had perished in the disaster.
Flags were lowered to half-mast as the Boxing day proceedings took off. Blair was left devastated. He decided to stay in the hotel room and not take the field. The Kiwi bowlers wrapped up South Africa for 271 in real quick time. South Africa had a formidable bowling line-up, including the 6’3” fast and vicious Neil Adcock and the highly economical off-spinner Hugh Tayfield. The fiery pitch at Ellis Park meant that Adcock breathed fire with the ball.
The New Zealand openers were dismissed cheaply, with Murray Chapple getting hit in the chest by a bouncer from Adcock. Bert Sutcliffe, the stylish left-hander and New Zealand's leading run scorer then, took charge at 9-2. He attempted to hook a short ball from Adcock but was hit on the left ear and immediately went down. He was taken straight to the hospital. The tests did not reveal any fracture but Sutcliffe kept losing consciousness. Meanwhile on the ground, Lawrie Miller was hit on the chest by a sharp bouncer from Adcock and lost some blood. He was rushed to the hospital as well.
It was going all downhill for New Zealand. Score was 57-5 but the Kiwis refused to bow down. Miller surprisingly walked out to bat despite being hurt. He bravely batted for his 14 before getting cleaned by a beauty from Ironside. Score was now 81-6 and New Zealand required another 40 runs to avoid the follow on. What happened next is a story for the ages. Sutcliffe walked in to bat with his head wrapped in bandages. The crowd was stunned as they came to terms with this nerve-wrecking sight.
Sutcliffe launched a counter-attack on the South African bowlers. Follow-on was saved but the match wasn’t as Sutcliffe kept losing partners at the other end. New Zealand were eventually at 154-9 when the players started to walk off the field. To everyone’s amazement, Bob Blair walked out to bat. Teary-eyed and heartbroken. Sutcliff remarked,
Come on son. This is no place for you. Let's swing the bat and get the hell out of here.
In a heartwarming gesture, the home crowd was boisterous in supporting the broken men. Hugh Tayfield, who was accorded the status of being South Africa’s greatest spinner, was taken to bits by Sutcliffe and Blair. They thrashed him for 25 runs in an over, which included three sixes from Sutcliffe and one from Blair. The duo stitched a 33 run last wicket stand with Sutcliffe remaining undefeated on a 112- minute 80.
New Zealand were bundled for 187. South Africa won the test by 132 runs. A quote from Rand Daily Mail perfectly sums up the emotionally draining match:
"It is not the result of the match that will be best remembered when men come together to talk about cricket. They will speak of a match that was as much worth watching as it was worth playing, a match the New Zealanders decided must go on.''
The defiant Kiwis scripted a cricket folklore like no other, one that continues to live on.
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