99 and more

The man with an average in excess of 99 would have been 99 today.

Generally acknowledged as the greatest batsman ever in the game of cricket, Don Bradman was born on 27th August 1908 at Cootamundra, New South Wales, Australia. His records are legendary: 117 first-class hundreds, 12 Test double centuries, two Test triple hundreds, 6996 runs at the famous average of 99.94.

Bradman practised batting incessantly during his youth. He invented his own solo cricket game, using a stump and a golf ball. A water tank stood on a curved brick stand behind the Bradman home on paved area and when hit into this stand, the ball would rebound at high speed and varying angles. This form of practice helped him to develop his timing and reactions. At the age of 12, he hit his first century, playing for the Bowral Public School against Mittagong High School.

In 1996 the Bradman Museum located on Glebe Park adjacent to the Bradman Oval, Bowral was opened by John Howard, the Prime Minister of Australia, on the Don's 88th birthday. A commerartive gateway was built to honour Sir Donal Bradman on his 90th birthday just near the gateway that the original clubhouse for the Bowral Cricket Club stood. Honouring Sir Bradman, the Prime Minister called him the "greatest living Australian".

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The BCCI, much criticized for its inability to find a coach for the Indian cricket team may find comfort in Sir Don's words.

" I was never coached; I was never told how to hold a bat. "

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