Charles Allan Davis (born 1 January 1944), known as Charlie Davis, is a former

West Indian A West Indian is a native or inhabitant of the West Indies (the Antilles and the Lucayan Archipelago). For more than 100 years the words ''West Indian'' specifically described natives of the West Indies, but by 1661 Europeans had begun to use it ...

cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by striki ...

er who played in fifteen Test matches between 1968 and 1973. Davis started his

first-class cricket First-class cricket, along with List A cricket and Twenty20 cricket, is one of the highest-standard forms of cricket. A first-class match is one of three or more days' scheduled duration between two sides of eleven players each and is officiall ...

career at the age of 17, playing for

Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago (, ), officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean. Consisting of the main islands Trinidad and Tobago, and numerous much smaller islands, it is situated south of ...

. After a good

Shell Shield The Regional Four Day Competition, formerly known as Shell Shield and Carib Beer Cup, is the first-class cricket competition in the West Indies. It is administered by the Cricket West Indies. In the 2013-2014 season the winner of the tourname ...

season in 1968 Davis was selected for the West Indies. The highlight of his career was a home series against

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

, in which he scored 529 runs in four Tests at the average of 132.25. He was also a useful bowler, taking 63 wickets at first-class level. His Test career ended while the West Indies were in transition, and the arrival of newer players accounted for any place for Davis in the side.

Career

Born 1 January 1944, Belmont,

Port of Spain Port of Spain (Spanish: ''Puerto España''), officially the City of Port of Spain (also stylized Port-of-Spain), is the capital of Trinidad and Tobago and the third largest municipality, after Chaguanas and San Fernando. The city has a municip ...

, Davis was part of the West Indies squad that toured Australia between November 1968 and February 1969. The West Indies had dominated Test cricket for most of the decade, but at this stage the team contained many ageing stars and encountered an Australian team on the rise. Davis was one of the younger players in the touring party, and made his Test debut at the age of 24. Australia won the five-match series 3–1. After they lost the first Test, the West Indies made three changes to their team by bringing in three debutants: Davis,

Roy Fredericks Roy Clifton Fredericks (11 November 1942 – 5 September 2000) was a West Indian cricketer who played Test cricket from 1968 to 1977. He was an opening batsman for the West Indies in both Test cricket and one day cricket, and made 4334 Test run ...

, and

Prof Edwards Richard Martin "Prof" Edwards (born 3 June 1940), is a former cricketer. He played five Test matches as an opening bowler for the West Indies on the tour of Australia and New Zealand in 1968–69. After leaving The Lodge School in Barbados, he p ...

. Davis batted down the order (after the sixth wicket in the first innings, and one place lower in the second, coming in after the fall of the seventh wicket) and made scores of 18 and 10. By inflicting an innings defeat on the West Indies, Australia batted just once in the match. Davis bowled 24 overs, conceding 94 runs while taking the wicket of opening batsman

Bill Lawry William Morris Lawry (born 11 February 1937) is an Australian former cricketer who played for Victoria and Australia. He captained Australia in 25 Test matches, winning nine, losing eight and drawing eight, and led Australia in the inaugural ...

. It was the only Test Davis played on the tour. Davis' next taste of Test cricket was during the West Indies tour of England in 1969. In the meantime the West Indies had drawn a series with

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

and the team had undergone significant changes in personnel. Only five of the sixteen touring West Indians had played in England before. On his return to the team in the opening Test, Davis batted much higher than he had on debut and in both innings came in after the fall of the second wicket, scoring 34 and 24. Davis registered his maiden Test century in the second Test and was the only one scored by a West Indian during the tour.

Notes

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Davis, Charlie 1944 births Living people West Indies Test cricketers Trinidad and Tobago cricketers North Trinidad cricketers