J.T. MURRAY

1 April 1935 – 24 July 2018

Middlesex and England

Right hand bat and wicketkeeper 
First-class span 1952-1975

Born in Kensington, West London, John Murray dedicated his life to Middlesex. A talented schoolboy sportsman, he reached the inaugural FA Youth Cup in 1952-1953 season with the Brentford Youth Team. He made his debut for the Middlesex first team at the age of only 17 in 1952 and became one of the most accomplished wicketkeepers in the history of the sport. He achieved a world record of 1,527 first-class dismissals behind the stumps, which lasted for ten years until it was broken by Bob Taylor. His wicket-taking ability was coupled with elegance and neat glovework. 

A stylish batter too, Muray was not a regular century maker but known for making great-looking thirties. He made 1,000 runs in a season six times for Middlesex, and made one Test century for England, against the West Indies in 1966, helping England win the last Test in the series after already being 3-0 down. In 1967 he was made a Wisden Cricketer of the Year, his last year in first-class cricket. In all likelihood he would have made more appearances for England had his career not coincided with that of the more accomplished batter Jim Parks. 

Upon retiring, he became a coach, England selector and sat on the Middlesex General Committee. He was taken ill doing what he enjoyed most, watching Middlesex at Lord’s and died shortly afterwards at the age of 83.