Russell Matheson (Macarthur, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the Member for Bennelong for his wonderful contribution in respect of Richie Benaud. Today I rise to honour and pay tribute to Richie Benaud, one of our finest ever Australians. It is hard to articulate what Richie Benaud means to Australia and cricket fans throughout the world. Those younger than me will remember him as the preeminent commentator and the benevolent grandfather of cricket, with the rich evocative voice that became so familiar. Cricket will never be the same without it. He certainly was the voice of summer. Those of my generation remember Richie as a tough, fearless, canny, Australian cricket captain who never lost a test series and in 1963 was the first man in the history of the game to do the double of 2,000 test runs and 200 test wickets. Richie Benaud was born in Penrith in Sydney's south west on Monday 6 October 1930 to parents Louis and Irene. Richie was born into a sport-loving family, with his mother a fine tennis player in her youth and his father, Louis, or Lou, as he was known, a talented leg spinner who transferred his cricket passions to his two sons, Richie and John, who both played for Australia. By his own account, Richie's childhood was filled with happiness and adventure as he found his passion for the game which would later make him famous. I would like to read an excerpt from Richie's autobiography that captures this magical time in his formative years:

Better than heaven was when the team was one short and aged twelve 12 I was allowed to bat for Cumberland against Petersham in 1942 at Petersham Oval.

I took quite a good catch off my father's bowling when they batted and then with nine wickets down I went out to bat.

We needed four runs and I had one ball to play in the over.

Everyone was crouched around. I played forward and dropped the ball at my feet. Milton Jarrett the big hitter and medium-pace bowler took strike at the other end, smashed the ball for six and the game was over.

It was like playing a Test cricket match or so it seemed at the time. When I walked off the field Milton Jarrett looked ten foot tall. I felt the same and there was no happier twelve-year old than me.

In many ways, this recollection perfectly sums up the man we came to know and love—a person filled by the success of others, a person who was determined to win, but only do so within the spirit of the game.

Richie's success playing cricket is beyond repute. He made his national debut at 21, but it was not until the 1957-58 tour of South Africa that he really made his mark and established himself on the international stage. Richie was player of the tour. His fielding was excellent. In 18 first-class matches he scored 817 runs at 51.06 and took 106 wickets at 19.41 that saw Australia take the series 3-0. Added to this, it was abundantly clear he was leadership material, despite being in the shadow of Ian Craig at the time. The Australian Cricket Board went through a period of great upheaval after that successful South African tour, but Richie emerged as captain and took the reins as skipper in a home series against England in 1958, leading the side to regain the Ashes. His Australian team went on to defend the coveted trophy twice, and during his rein as skipper, Benaud was in charge of the national side for 28 tests, and in that time Australia never lost a series.

As Andrew McGarry wrote:

Most remarkable still was the way he achieved this feat: not by grinding out results but with an attacking flair that not only produced results but captured the imagination of the public that was jaded with Test cricket. In this way he broke new ground and set a model for the modern cricket captain.

This is certainly a view held by Michael Clarke, who credits Richie with creating the winning culture that led Australia to become the most dominant force in world cricket. As Clarke said in April in response to Richie's passing:

He loved winning. He helped the Australian team have the attitude where they wanted to win.

He played the game the right way. He saw the game that not many people are gifted enough to see …

This gift that Richie had for reading and understanding the game was crystal clear in his commentary and writing, which educated and enthralled countless cricket fans for more than 40 years.

I feel it is only appropriate that I conclude with a passage from Richie's writing taken from his book The Appeal of Cricket:

Great players and great team men, ordinary players and ordinary team men have taken part in splendid or mediocre matches.

There have been changes to laws and the playing conditions and stubbornness and ignorance ensure that in some areas no change will take place.

There are been generous incidents and bitchy behaviour, joy and despair.

This is in part what makes cricket such a great game—a game that should be taken seriously.

Involved is a stern test of character for everyone: players, umpires, administrators, media representatives and cricket followers.

More than anything else this is the appeal of cricket.

In a finishing, may I say: rest in peace, Richie. You were loved and respected by all and certainly will never be forgotten. Our thoughts go out to Daphne, John and the entire Benaud family for their loss.

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