Les Ames

Leslie Ethelbert George Ames was a magnificent wicketkeeper and batsman for England. He was born in Elham, Kent in 1905. As a right-handed batsman, he played 47 Test matches for England along with 593 first-class matches. He is known as the greatest batsman and wicketkeeper that the world has ever known.

Growing up in Kent, Ames attended the Harvey Grammer School in Folkestone. He played for the Kent county cricket club in England before getting selected to play his national team on the international front. From his test cricket career, he scored 2,434 runs while playing with an average of 40.56 and took 74 catches with 23 stumpings. In first-class cricket, he played more matches and amassed 37,348 runs. His batting average remained 43.51 with 704 catches and 417 stumpings. His top score for test matches was 149 and for first-class matches, it was 295 runs. He was also a exceptionally good bowler for a wicket-keeper and took 24 first-class wickets while maintaining a bowling average of 33.37.

Ames was also the wicketkeeper for the most infamous Bodyline tour of Australia back in 1932-33. However, his career was cut short by the Second World War where he served the Royal Air Force. He returned to cricket after the way but declared the 1951 season as his last one. After retirement, he became a successful manager as well as an administrator.

Career Highlights

He was selected by Wisden as the Cricketer of the Year in 1929.