| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | Shaun Francis Graf | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 19 May 1957 Somerville, Victoria, Australia | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Batting | Right-handed | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bowling | Right-arm fast-medium | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| International information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| National side | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ODI debut(cap 62) | 23 November 1980 v New Zealand | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Last ODI | 24 November 1981 v West Indies | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Domestic team information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1979 | Wiltshire | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1979/80–1982/83 | Victoria | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1980 | Hampshire | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1983 | Cornwall | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1983/84 | Western Australia | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1984/85 | Victoria | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Career statistics | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Source:Cricinfo,26 February 2013 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Shaun Francis Graf (born 19 May 1957) is an Australian former international cricketer who played eleven One Day Internationals (ODIs) for Australia in the early 1980s as a bowling all-rounder. He played his domestic cricket at first-class level predominantly for Victoria,but also played a season for Western Australia. Graf also played domestically in England,at first-class level for Hampshire and at minor counties level for Wiltshire and Cornwall. He later became a prominent administrator with Cricket Victoria.
Graf was born in 1957 in Somerville,Victoria,Australia. He was educated at St Bede's College in the Melbourne suburb of Mentone. [1] He made his grade debut at the age of 19 for St Kilda Cricket Club as a fast bowling all-rounder in the 1976–77 season. [2] In 1979,he played minor counties cricket in England for Wiltshire,making five appearances in the Minor Counties Championship. [3] Alongside playing minor counties cricket,he spent time in Bristol playing club cricket for Knowle. [4] Returning to Australia after his minor counties stint,Graf made his debut in first-class cricket for Victoria against New South Wales at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) in the 1979–80 Sheffield Shield,with him playing a further five Shield matches that season. [5] He scored 135 runs in his debut first-class season, [6] in addition to taking 17 wickets at an average of 27.88. [7] In the same season,he debuted in List A one-day cricket for Victoria,making four appearances in the 1979–80 McDonald's Cup. [8] He played in the final of the tournament at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG),taking 2 for 34 to help Victoria win the match. [9]
In December 1979,he joined Hampshire ahead of the 1980 season. [10] He made his debut for Hampshire in a 1980 County Championship fixture against Warwickshire at Southampton. Graf made fifteen first-class appearances in 1980,including against the touring Australians. [5] In these,he scored 284 runs at a batting average of 20.28, [11] in addition taking 20 wickets at an average of 44.45. [12] In one-day cricket,he made twelve appearances for Hampshire, [8] taking 17 wickets at an average of 18.23. [13]
Graf's first-class form was better in the Australian 1980–81 season. In his first Sheffield Shield game of the season,against Western Australia,he scored 34 and 64 and took four wickets. [14] Later in the season,he scored his maiden first-class century against the same opponents at the MCG. [15] Across the season,he made eight first-class appearances, [5] scoring 286 runs at an average of 40.85; [6] with the ball he took 20 wickets at an average of 30.30. [6] His Shield form led to Graf being selected in the Australia squad for the second Test match of their home series against New Zealand,at a time when the Australian selectors were seeking an all-rounder. [16] Commenting on Australia lacking a true all-rounder,Australia captain Greg Chappell said at the time:"Shaun Graf is an up-and-comer in this area and he is possibly what Australia needs –not only in one day cricket but in Test matches as well". [17] Although he did not end up playing in the Test series,with a back injury ruling him out,with Trevor Chappell replacing him in the side for the third Test. [18] He did make his One Day International (ODI) debut against New Zealand at the Adelaide Oval in the first match of the Australia Tri-Nation Series which followed. [19] He played in nine ODI matches during the series,which also featured India, [20] with Graf taking eight wickets in the series at an average of 31.87; [21] he was omitted from the four-match final against New Zealand. Alongside the ODI series,Australia played India in a Test series,with Graf replacing Trevor Chappell in the squad for the first Test,but he did not play. [22] He was replaced in the second Test by Bruce Yardley. [23]
The following season,he made two further ODI appearances in the second and third matches of the Tri-Nation Series against Pakistan and the West Indies,having been called-up to replace the injured Dennis Lillee. [24] During the 1981–82 domestic season,Graf made eight first-class appearances scoring 230 runs at an average of 19.16, [6] while with the ball he took 17 wickets at an average of 39.47. [7] In one-day cricket,he made three appearances in the 1981–82 McDonald's Cup. [8] The following season,he made six first-class appearances,scoring 155 runs at an average of 19.16, [6] whilst with the ball he took 14 wickets at an average of 30.50; [7] during the season playing against Western Australia at The WACA,he took the only five wicket haul of his first-class career with figures of 5 for 95 in the Western Australia second innings,having taken 4 for 53 in their first innings. [25] He also played three one-day matches during the season. [8] Graf returned to England for the 1983 English summer,playing minor counties cricket for Cornwall. [26] He made eight appearances for Cornwall in the Minor Counties Championship, [3] whilst returning to Bristol to play club cricket for Knowle when he wasn't required by Cornwall. [27]
In 1983–84 he moved to Western Australia for one year,being selected to play in the 1983-84 Sheffield Shield match against Victoria as a replacement for injured batsman Wayne Andrews. [28] In his only season with Western Australia,in which they won their ninth Sheffield Shield, [29] he made eleven first-class appearances,scoring 420 runs at an average of exactly 35. [6] With the ball,he took 32 wickets at an average of 32.75. [7] He also made four one-day appearances in the 1983-84 McDonald's Cup, [8] with Graf playing against South Australia in the final of the competition at the Adelaide Oval. He came close to guiding Western Australia to victory,with a late unbeaten cameo of 37 runs from 33 ball,but Western Australia ultimately fell eight runs short. [30] He returned to Victoria the following season,making one appearance in the 1984-85 Sheffield against Queensland. [5]
Described as an athletic all-rounder, [31] Graf made 55 first-class appearances,scoring 1,559 runs at an average of 25.14; [32] described by Christopher Martin-Jenkins as possessing a wristy action and able to consistently bowl away-swinging deliveries, [31] he took 124 first-class wickets at an average of 33.91. [32] In one-day cricket,he made 41 appearances,scoring 300 runs at an average of exactly 15,whilst with the ball he took 51 wickets at an average of 25.58. [32]
After retiring,Graf continued to play Grade Cricket for St Kilda until 1999,making 243 appearances for the club across 24 seasons,whilst scoring 4,200 runs and taking 382 wickets. [2] He became a selector for the Victoria cricket team during the 1990–91 season,and became the cricket operations manager of the Victorian Cricket Association (later Cricket Victoria) in 1995. [33] He retired from his role with Cricket Victoria in July 2022. [33]