Duncan Albert Sharpe (born 3 August 1937) is a Pakistani former cricketer who played in three
Test matches Test match in some sports refers to a sporting contest between national representative teams and may refer to:
* Test cricket
* Indoor cricket, Test match (indoor cricket)
* Test match (rugby union)
* Test match (rugby league)
* Test match (associa ...
in 1959–60. Sharpe is of
Anglo-Indian
Anglo-Indian people are a distinct minority group, minority community of mixed-race British and Indian ancestry. During the colonial period, their ancestry was defined as British paternal and Indian maternal heritage; post-independence, "Angl ...
heritage, and was the third
Christian
A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...
to play Test cricket for
Pakistan
Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...
. He has lived in Australia since 1961.
Career in Pakistan
Sharpe's family had lived in
British India
The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance in South Asia. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one form or another ...
since the middle of the 19th century as their ancestors migrated from England. They were relatives of the English novelist
William Thackeray
William Makepeace Thackeray ( ; 18 July 1811 – 24 December 1863) was an English novelist and illustrator. He is known for his satirical works, particularly his 1847–1848 novel '' Vanity Fair'', a panoramic portrait of British society, and t ...
. Sharpe was born in
Rawalpindi
Rawalpindi is the List of cities in Punjab, Pakistan by population, third-largest city in the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. It is a commercial and industrial hub, being the list of cities in P ...
but grew up in
Lahore
Lahore ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, second-largest city in Pakistan, after Karachi, and ...
, where his mother was a nurse. He was one of three brothers, who were all sent to board at St. Anthony High School, Lahore, after their parents separated.Richard Heller and
Peter Oborne
Peter Alan Oborne (; born 11 July 1957) is a British journalist and broadcaster. He is the former chief political commentator of ''The Daily Telegraph'', from which he resigned in early 2015. He is author of ''The Rise of Political Lying'' (2005 ...
, ''White on Green: Celebrating the Drama of Pakistan Cricket'', Simon & Schuster, London, 2016, pp. 102–11. Duncan Sharpe took a job as a clerk with
Pakistan Railways
Pakistan Railways is the state-owned railway operator in Pakistan. Founded in 1861 as the North Western State Railway and headquartered in Lahore, it owns of operational track across Pakistan, stretching from Peshawar to Karachi, offering bot ...
when he was 17. He was described as a "strikingly handsome man who was once genuinely mistaken for the actor
Cary Grant
Cary Grant (born Archibald Alec Leach; January 18, 1904November 29, 1986) was an English and American actor. Known for his blended British and American accent, debonair demeanor, lighthearted approach to acting, and sense of comic timing, he ...
". Sharpe occasionally wrote articles for the Lahore-based ''
Civil and Military Gazette
''The Civil and Military Gazette'' was a daily English-language newspaper founded in 1872 in British India. It was published from Lahore, Simla and Karachi, some times simultaneously, until its closure in 1963.
Sharpe played his first first-class match as a middle-order batsman for a Railways and Baluchistan side against the touring MCC side in Multan in 1955–56. In his next match, in the 1957–58
Quaid-e-Azam Trophy
The Quaid-e-Azam Trophy is a domestic first-class cricket competition in Pakistan. With few exceptions, it has been staged annually since it was first played during the 1953–54 season. Domestic cricket in Pakistan has undergone many reorganis ...
Bahawalpur
Bahawalpur (Urdu: ; ) is a city in Punjab, Pakistan. It is the 13th largest city of Pakistan and List of cities in Punjab, Pakistan by population, 8th most populous city of Punjab. Bahawalpur is the capital of Bahawalpur Division.
Founded in ...
, he kept wicket. Apart from his Tests he kept wicket during most of his career in Pakistan.
He was twelfth man for two Tests when the
West Indies
The West Indies is an island subregion of the Americas, surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea, which comprises 13 independent island country, island countries and 19 dependent territory, dependencies in thr ...
toured Pakistan in 1958–59, and he toured England with
Pakistan Eaglets
Pakistan Eaglets were a team of young cricketers from Pakistan, founded by Justice A.R. Cornelius. They toured England and Wales every year from 1952 to 1959, Malaya and Ceylon in 1960–61, and England again in 1963. Most of their matches were n ...
, a team of promising young players, in 1959, scoring 1608 runs on a three-month tour of non-first-class matches.
After a total of nine first-class matches and 255 runs at an average of 21.25 and a top score of 67, Sharpe made his Test debut for Pakistan against
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
in Dacca on 13 November 1959. Batting at number five, he scored 56 and 35, more runs than any of his teammates in a low-scoring match that Pakistan lost. He was not successful in the next two Tests.
He made his first first-class century later that season, 118 for a Combined XI against the touring
Indian Starlets
Indian Starlets were a team of young Indian cricketers who played 16 first-class matches between 1960 and 1967.
Tour of Pakistan, 1959-60
Seventeen players took part in a tour of Pakistan in April and May 1960. They played seven first-class match ...
in Lahore. In 1960–61 he scored 109 for
Lahore
Lahore ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, second-largest city in Pakistan, after Karachi, and ...
against Rawalpindi and Peshawar in the
Ayub Trophy
The President's Trophy (formerly Patron's Trophy) is a cricket competition that is held in Pakistan. It was previously held between 1960–61 and 2018–19 but was refounded from the 2023–24 season. It consists of teams representing the governm ...
semi-final in Lahore.
Career in Australia
Disappointed by his non-selection for Pakistan's 1960–61 tour of India, Sharpe decided to emigrate to Australia. Sponsored by
Barry Jarman
Barrington Noel Jarman (17 February 193617 July 2020) was an Australian Test cricketer and International Cricket Council (ICC) match referee. Jarman played in 19 Test matches for the Australian cricket team between 1959 and 1969, including o ...
, he moved to Adelaide in 1961 and played
Sheffield Shield
The Sheffield Shield is the domestic first-class cricket competition of Australia. The tournament is contested between teams representing the six states of Australia. The Sheffield Shield is named after Henry Holroyd, 3rd Earl of Sheffield, Lor ...
cricket with
South Australia
South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a States and territories of Australia, state in the southern central part of Australia. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories by area, which in ...
alongside the likes of
Gary Sobers
The Right Excellent Sir Garfield St Aubrun Sobers, NH, AO, OCC (born 28 July 1936), also known as Sir Gary or Sir Garry Sobers, is a Barbadian born former cricketer who played for the West Indies between 1954 and 1974. A highly skilled bowle ...
and Jarman from 1961–62 to 1965–66. He hit 50 not out in the first Sheffield Shield match of the season in 1961–62 against Western Australia but was less successful thereafter and played irregularly. His highest score for South Australia was 72 in the first match of the 1965–66 season against Victoria, but his next match was also his last; like his first, ten years earlier, it was against a touring MCC team – for whom
Ken Barrington
Kenneth Frank Barrington (24 November 193014 March 1981), was an English international cricketer who played for the England cricket team and Surrey County Cricket Club in the 1950s and 1960s. He was a right-handed batsman and occasional leg-sp ...
Don Bradman
Sir Donald George Bradman (27 August 1908 – 25 February 2001), nicknamed "The Don", was an Australian international cricketer, widely acknowledged as the greatest batsman of all time. His cricketing successes have been claimed by Shane ...
found him a job assisting the groundsman at
Adelaide Oval
The Adelaide Oval is a stadium in Adelaide in the state of South Australia. It is located in the Adelaide Parklands, parklands. The venue is predominantly used for cricket and Australian rules football, but has also played host to rugby league, ...
, and he developed his skills and qualifications and later became a foreman of parks and gardens in
Melbourne
Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...
.
Sharpe lives with his wife Gillian in Melbourne. They have six children.Haigh, ''Silent Revolutions'', p. 284. He also has a son from an earlier marriage in Pakistan.