Full name Murray Ernest Chapple
Born July 25, 1930, Christchurch, Canterbury
Died July 31, 1985, Hamilton, Waikato (aged 55 years 6 days)
Major teams New Zealand, Canterbury, Central Districts
Batting style Right-hand bat
Bowling style Left-arm medium
Mat | Inns | NO | Runs | HS | Ave | 100 | 50 | 6s | Ct | St | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Tests ![]() |
14 | 27 | 1 | 497 | 76 | 19.11 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 10 | 0 |
First-class | 119 | 201 | 16 | 5344 | 165 | 28.88 | 4 | 31 | 67 | 0 |
Mat | Inns | Balls | Runs | Wkts | BBI | BBM | Ave | Econ | SR | 4w | 5w | 10 | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Tests ![]() |
14 | 5 | 248 | 84 | 1 | 1/24 | 1/24 | 84.00 | 2.03 | 248.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
First-class | 119 | 11064 | 3559 | 142 | 5/24 | 25.06 | 1.93 | 77.9 | 4 | 0 |
Test debut | New Zealand v South Africa at Auckland, Mar 13-17, 1953 scorecard |
Last Test | New Zealand v England at Christchurch, Feb 25-Mar 1, 1966 scorecard |
Test statistics | |
First-class span | 1949/50 - 1971/72 |
Murray Ernest Chapple, who died at Hamilton on July 31, 1985, and 55, had already been appointed to manage the New Zealand team to England in 1986. A burly cricketer and able administrator, he possessed a sharp sense of humour and warm personality, and his death was an untimely blow to New Zealand cricket. Making his début for Canterbury when he was nineteen, as a right-hand batsman and left-arm swing bowler, he went on to play fourteen times for New Zealand between 1952-53 and 1956-66, first as an opening batsman and then lower in the order, scoring 497 test runs at an average of 19.11 with a top score of 76 against South Africa at Cape Town in 1953-54. After a season ( 1950-51) with Central Districts he forced his way into New Zealand's Test side by making an aggressive 165 for Canterbury against the touring South Africans at Christchurch in 1952-53, followed by 88 in the second innings. Of his fourteen Tests, eleven were in fact against South Africa, a country which he toured twice, the second time, in 1961-62, as vice-captain to John Reid. He was a member of the first New Zealand side to win a Test match, against West Indies at Auckland in 1955-56, and in his last Test match, against England at Christchurch in 1965-66, he was New Zealand's captain. Injury then precipitated his retirement, whereupon he became a New Zealand selector until 1970. He also managed the New Zealanders in West Indies in 1971-72 and in India and Pakistan in 1976-77. In first-class cricket he scored 5,344 runs (28.88) and hit four centuries. Switching from seam to orthodox left-arm spin, he also took 142 wickets, one of them in a Test match.
Wisden Cricketers' Almanack