Donald Wilson (7 August 1937 – 21 July 2012) was an English

cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by st ...

er, who played in six Test matches for

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...

from 1964 to 1971. His

first-class cricket First-class cricket, along with List A cricket and Twenty20 cricket, is one of the highest-standard forms of cricket. A first-class match is one of three or more days' scheduled duration between two sides of eleven players each and is officiall ...

career, which lasted from 1957 to 1974, was spent with

Yorkshire County Cricket Club Yorkshire County Cricket Club is one of 18 first-class county clubs within the domestic cricket structure of England and Wales. It represents the historic county of Yorkshire. Yorkshire are the most successful team in English cricketing hi ...

and he later became a noted cricket coach. He was born in

Settle Settle or SETTLE may refer to: Places * Settle, Kentucky, United States * Settle, North Yorkshire, a town in England ** Settle Rural District, a historical administrative district Music * Settle (band), an indie rock band from Pennsylvania * ''S ...

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a Historic counties of England, historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other Eng ...

and died at

York York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...

Life and career

Wilson made his first-class debut in 1957 but his regular cricket began two years later when he succeeded

Johnny Wardle Johnny Wardle (8 January 1923 – 23 July 1985) was an English spin bowling cricketer whose Test Match career lasted between 1948 and 1957. His Test bowling average of 20.39 is the lowest in Test cricket by any recognised spin bowler since ...

as Yorkshire's left-arm spinner, winning his Yorkshire

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in 1960. He was then an integral part of Yorkshire's formidable side that won seven

County Championship The County Championship (referred to as the LV= Insurance County Championship for sponsorship reasons) is the domestic first-class cricket competition in England and Wales and is organised by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB). It b ...

titles between 1959 and 1968. He was tall and wiry, relying on bounce more than savage side spin, and took 100 wickets in a season five times, including three of the seven seasons he was part of the Championship-winning side. He also secured two

hat-tricks A hat-trick or hat trick is the achievement of a generally positive feat three times in a match, or another achievement based on the number three. Origin The term first appeared in 1858 in cricket, to describe H. H. Stephenson taking three wi ...

in 1966.

Derek Underwood Derek Leslie Underwood (born 8 June 1945) is an English former international cricketer, and a former President of the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC). Through much of his career, Underwood was regarded as one of the best bowlers in Test cricket ...

owned the left arm spinner's spot in the

side during Wilson's career, but he ventured abroad twice with the national team. He toured India in 1963–64, where he played all five Test matches, and to

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...

and New Zealand in 1970–71, where he played against New Zealand, at the end of

Ray Illingworth Raymond Illingworth CBE (8 June 1932 – 25 December 2021) was an English cricketer, cricket commentator and administrator. , he was one of only nine players to have taken 2,000 wickets and made 20,000 runs in first-class cricket.Arnold, Peter ...

's successful Ashes campaign. He also played twice for England against the Rest of the World in 1970, after the cancellation of the South Africa tour. These were counted as full Test matches at the time, but were later stripped of their status. Wilson retired from

in 1974, disillusioned by

Geoffrey Boycott Sir Geoffrey Boycott (born 21 October 1940) is a former Test cricketer, who played cricket for Yorkshire and England. In a prolific and sometimes controversial playing career from 1962 to 1986, Boycott established himself as one of England's m ...

's captaincy, and took up the role as the MCC's chief

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Coac ...

Lord's Lord's Cricket Ground, commonly known as Lord's, is a cricket venue in St John's Wood, London. Named after its founder, Thomas Lord, it is owned by Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) and is the home of Middlesex County Cricket Club, the England ...

, a position he held until 1991. He then continued his lifelong involvement in the game by returning to Yorkshire, as coach at

Ampleforth College Ampleforth College is a co-educational independent day and boarding school in the English public school tradition located in the village of Ampleforth, North Yorkshire, England. It opened in 1802 as a boys' school, it is situated in the groun ...

. Wilson also played Bradford League Cricket for Manningham Mills In season 1979, along with Phil Sharpe, winning the

Priestley Cup The Priestley Cup is a cricket cup competition contested by clubs in the Bradford Premier League The Bradford Premier League (currently known as the Gordon Rigg Bradford Premier League for sponsorship reasons) is an amateur cricket competitio ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Wilson, Don 1937 births 2012 deaths England Test cricketers English cricketers Yorkshire cricketers International Cavaliers cricketers People from Settle, North Yorkshire English cricket coaches Marylebone Cricket Club cricketers Cricketers from Yorkshire Lincolnshire cricketers T. N. Pearce's XI cricketers Marylebone Cricket Club President's XI cricketers