Ian Wayne Callen (born 2 May 1955) is a former Australian

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 one

Test match Test match in some sports refers to a sporting contest between national representative teams and may refer to: * Test cricket * Test match (indoor cricket) * Test match (rugby union) * Test match (rugby league) * Test match (association football) ...

and five

One Day International A One Day International (ODI) is a form of limited overs cricket, played between two teams with international status, in which each team faces a fixed number of overs, currently 50, with the game lasting up to 9 hours. The Cricket World C ...

s between 1978 and 1982. He later ran a business making cricket bats from English willow he grew in Victoria and was the cricket writer for Sportshounds.

Cricket career

Callen made his first-class debut for

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

in 1976–77. In his fourth

Sheffield Shield The Sheffield Shield (currently known for sponsorship reasons as the Marsh Sheffield Shield) is the domestic first-class cricket competition of Australia. The tournament is contested between teams from the six states of Australia. Sheffield Shi ...

match he took 4 for 55 and 5 for 15 in an innings victory for Victoria over

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...

, and in the next match he took 1 for 82 and 8 for 42 in a 10-wicket victory over

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

. His only Test came 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 ...

Adelaide Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...

in 1978. Despite being badly affected by the injections he had received just before the match in preparation for the tour to the West Indies that was to follow, he took three wickets in each innings, helping bowl Australia to a series-winning victory. On the night before the last day's play, he collapsed in the team hotel and was placed on an

intravenous drip Intravenous therapy (abbreviated as IV therapy) is a medical technique that administers fluids, medications and nutrients directly into a person's vein. The intravenous route of administration is commonly used for rehydration or to provide nutrie ...

, but recovered to take an important part in Australia's victory on the last day. On the tour of the West Indies, he played in the first ODI, taking 1-42, and the second, taking 3-24. During the tour he fractured a vertebra in his lower back. In 1982 he returned to international cricket in Pakistan with the Australian side. He played in three ODIs, taking 1-32, 0-50 and not bowling in the third. He never fully recovered from the lower back injury.

Later career

Callen established Ian Callen Sports in 1981. He sold it in 1985 to concentrate on making a range of three bats, the MX, the K-IX and the Aussie Boomah. His company in the

Yarra Valley The Yarra Valley is the region surrounding the Yarra River in Victoria, Australia. The river originates approximately east of the Melbourne central business district and flows towards it and out into Port Phillip Bay. The name Yarra Valley ...

, Callen Cricket, has re-established the growing of cricket-bat willow from stock sent to Australia by English Test captain A. C. MacLaren in 1902. He harvests and processes the timber from his plantations at

Healesville Healesville is a town in Victoria, Australia, 52 km north-east from Melbourne's central business district, located within the Shire of Yarra Ranges local government area. Healesville recorded a population of 7,589 in the 2021 census. He ...

and Sale. The timber is used for the manufacture of cricket bats and picture frame mouldings. He conducts courses teaching the craft of making cricket bats by hand. At first he used willow imported from England, but now he uses his own.

References

External links

*
Callen Cricket website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Callen, Ian 1955 births Living people Australia Test cricketers Australia One Day International cricketers Boland cricketers Victoria cricketers Northumberland cricketers Australian cricketers Cricketers from Victoria (state) Cricket equipment manufacturers People from Alexandra, Victoria