Under the auspices of Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC), the England cricket team toured Australia in the 1954–55 season to play a five-match Test series against Australia. England won the series 3–1, with one match drawn, and thereby retained The Ashes, which they had won in 1953. The England squad moved on to New Zealand, where they won both the Tests that were played there. Including the New Zealand leg of the tour, the team played 21 first-class matches (including the Tests), of which they won 12, lost 2, and drew 7. In the seven Test matches, the team was known as England, and in the other 14 as MCC.

England squad MCC initially selected a 17-man squad captained by Len Hutton, who became the first professional to captain the England team since Arthur Shrewsbury in 1887. Before the team left England, Denis Compton suffered a recurrence of a troublesome knee injury, and needed treatment. Vic Wilson was added to squad as Compton's replacement. However, Compton's injury responded well to treatment, and he was able to join the team later, so England completed the tour with 18 players.

Also travelling with the party were Lancashire club secretary Geoffrey Howard, who was the tour manager; George Duckworth the former Lancashire and England wicket-keeper, who was the team's scorer and baggage master; and physiotherapist Harold Dalton of Essex.

Squad details below state each player's age at the beginning of the tour (on 11 October 1954), his batting hand, his type of bowling, and his County Championship club at the time:

+ Batsmen Name County club Birth date Batting style Bowling style Ref L. Hutton (captain) Yorkshire right-handed leg break P. B. H. May (vice-captain) Surrey right-handed D. C. S. Compton Middlesex right-handed slow left-arm wrist spin M. C. Cowdrey Kent right-handed leg break W. J. Edrich Middlesex right-handed right arm fast-medium and off break T. W. Graveney Gloucestershire right-handed leg break R. T. Simpson Nottinghamshire right-handed off break J. V. Wilson Yorkshire left-handed right arm medium

+ All-rounders Name County club Birth date Batting style Bowling style Ref T. E. Bailey Essex right-handed right arm fast-medium

+ Wicket-keepers Name County club Birth date Batting style Bowling style Ref K. V. Andrew Northamptonshire right-handed T. G. Evans Kent right-handed

+ Bowlers Name County club Birth date Batting style Bowling style Ref R. Appleyard Yorkshire right-handed right arm medium and off break A. V. Bedser Surrey right-handed right arm fast-medium P. J. Loader Surrey right-handed right arm fast J. E. McConnon Glamorgan right-handed off break J. B. Statham Lancashire right-handed right arm fast F. H. Tyson Northamptonshire right-handed right arm fast J. H. Wardle Yorkshire left-handed slow left-arm wrist and orthodox spin

Australia selections Australia, captained by Ian Johnson, used 17 players in the series.

The details for each player below state his age at the beginning of the English tour (on 11 October 1954), his batting hand, his type of bowling, and his Sheffield Shield state at the time:

+ Batsmen Name Shield state Birth date Batting style Bowling style Ref P. J. P. Burge Queensland right-handed right arm medium J. W. Burke New South Wales right-handed off break L. E. Favell South Australia right-handed right arm medium R. N. Harvey Victoria left-handed right arm off break G. B. Hole South Australia right-handed off break C. C. McDonald Victoria right-handed A. R. Morris New South Wales left-handed slow left-arm wrist spin W. J. Watson New South Wales right-handed

+ All-rounders Name Shield state Birth date Batting style Bowling style Ref R. Benaud New South Wales right-handed leg break and googly A. K. Davidson New South Wales left-handed left arm fast medium K. R. Miller New South Wales right-handed right arm fast

+ Wicket-keepers Name Shield state Birth date Batting style Bowling style Ref G. R. A. Langley South Australia right-handed L. V. Maddocks Victoria right-handed

+ Bowlers Name Shield state Birth date Batting style Bowling style Ref I. W. G. Johnson (captain) Victoria right-handed off break R. G. Archer Queensland right-handed right arm fast W. A. Johnston Victoria left-handed slow left arm orthodox and left arm medium R. R. Lindwall Queensland right-handed right arm fast

Tour itinerary The following is a list of the 23 matches played by MCC/England in Australia. Seventeen, including the five Test matches, were first-class fixtures.The Test matches are in bold font. The six minor games are in the rows with a cotton cream background.

Dates Match Venue Result Notes 11–12 Oct 1954 Western Australia Country v MCC Recreation Reserve, Bunbury Match drawn Two-day match. Edrich scored 129; McConnon took 5/30. 15–19 Oct 1954 Western Australia v MCC WACA Ground, Perth MCC won by 7 wickets Opening first-class match.WA 103 (Statham 6/23) & 255 (Ken Meuleman 109; Statham 3/68). MCC 321 (Hutton 145*) & 40/3. 22–25 Oct 1954 Western Australia Combined XI v MCC WACA Ground, Perth MCC won by an innings and 62 runs WAC 86 (Statham 3/21) and 163 (Wardle 4/34). MCC 311 (May 129, Wilson 72). 29 Oct – 2 Nov 1954 South Australia v MCC Adelaide Oval MCC won by 21 runs MCC 246 (Compton 113) and 181 (Hutton 98). SA 254 (Favell 84; Tyson 5/62) and 152 (Favell 47; Appleyard 5/46). 5–9 Nov 1954 Australian XI v MCC Melbourne Cricket Ground Match drawn MCC 205 (Simpson 74; Johnson 6/66). Aus XI 167/7. No play on the last two days. 12–16 Nov 1954 New South Wales v MCC Sydney Cricket Ground Match drawn MCC 252 (Cowdrey 110, Hutton 102) and 327 (Cowdrey 103). NSW 382 (Bill Watson 155; Tyson 4/98, Bedser 4/117) and 78/2. 19–23 Nov 1954 Queensland v MCC The Gabba, Brisbane Match drawn MCC 304 (Simpson 136, Compton 110; Lindwall 4/66) and 288 (May 77). QLD 288 and 25/2. 26 Nov – 1 Dec 1954 Australia v England The Gabba, Brisbane Australia won by an innings and 154 runs First Test. Queensland Country v MCC Association Ground, Rockhampton Australia Prime Minister's XI v MCC Manuka Oval, Canberra Victoria v MCC Melbourne Cricket Ground 17-22 Dec 1954 Australia v England Sydney Cricket Ground England won by 38 runs Second Test. Northern New South Wales v MCC No. 1 Sports Ground, Newcastle, New South Wales 31 Dec 1954 – 5 Jan 1955 Australia v England Melbourne Cricket Ground England won by 128 runs Third Test. Tasmania Combined XI v MCC Tasmania Cricket Association Ground, Hobart Tasmania v MCC North Tasmania Cricket Association Ground, Launceston South Australia Country v MCC Vansittart Park, Mount Gambier South Australia v MCC Adelaide Oval 28 Jan – 2 Feb 1955 Australia v England Adelaide Oval England won by 5 wickets Fourth Test. Victoria Country v MCC Yallourn Oval, Yallourn Victoria v MCC Melbourne Cricket Ground New South Wales v MCC Sydney Cricket Ground 25 Feb – 3 Mar 1955 Australia v England Sydney Cricket Ground Match drawn Fifth Test.

Test series summary 1st Test at Brisbane Cricket Ground – Australia won by an innings and 154 runs 2nd Test at Sydney Cricket Ground – England won by 38 runs 3rd Test at Melbourne Cricket Ground – England won by 128 runs 4th Test at Adelaide Oval – England won by 5 wickets 5th Test at Sydney Cricket Ground – match drawn

First Test

Second Test

Third Test

Fourth Test

Fifth Test

Ceylon stopover The MCC party had a stopover in Colombo en route to Australia. On 30 September 1954, they played a one-day single innings match (i.e., not limited overs) at the Colombo Oval against the Ceylon national team. MCC's team, captained by May, was mainly composed of the younger and less experienced players. Ceylon won the toss, and decided to field. MCC scored 178/8 declared (Cowdrey 66*), and Ceylon had reached 101/4 at close of play, so the result was a draw.

Notes

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