Australia’s 33rd Test captain and former wicketkeeper Barry Jarman has died, aged 84.
Jarman made his Test debut in 1959 then repeatedly served as Wally Grout’s understudy on tours, during which he had few opportunities to don the baggy green.
The South Australian donned the gloves more regularly for Australia after Grout’s retirement in 1966, playing 12 Tests in 13 months before he also retired and was succeeded by Brian Taber.
Jarman’s standing in the squad was reflected by the fact he captained the side during one Test on the 1968 Ashes tour, when Bill Lawry was injured.
He excelled consistently for South Australia and finished with 560 first-class dismissals, a tally at the time that was only bettered in Australia by Grout and Bert Oldfield.
“Barry was one of South Australia’s internationally known names. He was a great competitor and gentleman, who appreciated the way the game should be played and always had a terrific sense of humour,” the South Australian Cricket Association president, Andrew Sinclair, said.
“He lived his life to the full and was not afraid to share his opinion; you were never left in any doubt as to his view. He was a delight to be around.
“Our thoughts are with his family: wife Gaynor, and children Kristen, Gavin, Jason, Erin.”
Jarman ran a sports store in Adelaide then returned to cricket in a formal capacity in 1995, when the International Cricket Council appointed him a neutral match referee.
Jarman oversaw the “leather jacket” Test in 2000 at Centurion, where the South African captain Hansie Cronje accepted bribes from bookmakers and manufactured a result in the rain-affected match.