Davidson, Spofforth inducted into ICC Hall of Fame

Former Australia greats, allrounder Alan Davidson and the late fast bowler Frederick Spofforth, have been inducted into the ICC Hall of Fame. Joining them in 2011's Hall of Fame class are the retired West Indies fast bowler Curtly Ambrose and former Australia women's captain Belinda Clark.

Davidson took 186 wickets and scored 1328 runs in 44 Tests between 1953 and 1963. He was especially effective in the last five years of his career, taking 170 wickets at 19.25 in 32 Tests, only four of which were lost. He was the first man to take ten wickets and make more than 100 runs in the same game, a feat he accomplished in the famous tied Test in Brisbane against West Indies, despite a broken finger on his bowling hand. His retirement was a big loss to Australia, who won only one Test series in the first four years after his exit.

"Since being selected for the first time for my country, this is an amazing recognition and I am proud of it," Davidson said. "My dream since I was nine-years-old was to play for Australia. It was most extraordinary feeling. This is an acknowledgment of my career, so this is equally as great.

"I think the great thing was that I got to play the best in the world over my career. I was fortunate to tour England three times, India and Pakistan twice, West Indies and South Africa as well. I toured all nations of the world at the time, took on the best in the world. My performances were also an acknowledgment of the players that I played against."

Davidson, Ambrose, and Clark will be inducted during the ICC annual awards in London, while Spofforth will be inducted later next year in a ceremony involving his family. Known by the nickname "The Demon", Spofforth is widely regarded as Australia's first true fast bowler. He claimed 94 wickets in 18 Tests at an average of less than 20 apiece, and was the first bowler to take a Test hat-trick. He claimed ten wickets in a match on four occasions, and his analysis of 14 for 90 against England at The Oval in 1882 is still the second-best performance by an Australian bowler in Test history.