If you’re under the age of 35, you may not have heard of Jim Higgs, but older Roarers or cricket history buffs will know that Higgs was a very capable leg spinner for Victoria and Australia.
Personally, I started following cricket from the late 1980s, which by then, Higgs’ career was well and truly over.
So without seeing him play, I had to rely on doing some research on the web.
Higgs played for Victoria between 1970-1983. He collected 399 first-class wickets at an average of 29.66 in 122 matches. He played 22 Tests for Australia from 1978-1981, taking 66 Test wickets at a respectable average of 31.16, including two five-wicket hauls.
On ESPNcricinfo, respected cricket journalist Gideon Haigh described Higgs as “Australia’s best legspinner between Richie Benaud and Shane Warne”.
From that summation, it appeared that Higgs was superior in quality compared to Terry Jenner, Kerry O’Keefe, Bob Holland and Trevor Hohns.
Haigh also added “his misfortune was to play at a time when wrist-spin was nearly extinct, thought to be the preserve only of the eccentric and the profligate, and so to find selectors and captains with little empathy with his guiles”.
As such, it probably wasn’t the right era for a leg spinner, hence affecting Higgs’ career. Judging by his statistics, Higgs deserved more of an opportunity in the baggy green.
Higgs made his Test debut for Australia against the West Indies in Port of Spain, Trinidad in 1978 at the height of Kerry Packer’s World Series Cricket. As such, the Australian Test side didn’t have the availability of any of the greats involved in what some scribes called ‘the Packer circus’.
Higgs began his Test career with a second-rate Australian side, while the West Indies had their WSC players in their line-up and were at full strength. Predictably, the Windies won the Test by an innings and 106 runs.
However, Higgs wasn’t overawed by the occasion, taking 4/91 off 24.5 overs. In his debut Test series, he took 15 wickets at 25.
Australia versus India, third Test, Sydney 1981 – India second innings
In his overall Test career, Higgs acquitted himself very well against the West Indies, England and New Zealand. The one country that he found great difficulty was India, where he averaged 47.
Higgs played his final Test against India in 1981 at the age of just 30. He ended his first-class career only a couple of years later in 1983. He retired at an age where the best years of a spinner were still yet to come.
A few years after his retirement from cricket, Higgs became national Test selector. But something even more significent was to occur.
Shaun Graf, captain/coach of Victorian club side St Kilda, called Higgs. He was asking for his assistance with a young leg-spinner by the name of Shane Warne. Would Higgs teach him how to bowl the flipper?
In the initial stages, young Warne couldn’t control the delivery, to the point where many went over the back of the net. But later on, as we all know, Warne did master the delivery with devastating effect, in no small part thanks to Higgs.
Another ex-Test leg-spinner who helped in Warne’s development was Terry Jenner. He taught Warne the top-spinner and other variations with leg spin bowling. It would become the start of a long working relationship between Jenner and Warne.
While at the AIS cricket academy, founding head coach Jack Potter helped Warne with new modifications in the art of leg spin.
When Warne was selected for the Test side, the selection panel included Higgs and John Benaud, the younger brother of legendary leg-spinner and commentator Richie. No doubt, both had faith in Warne, especially after Warne’s difficult debut against India where he finished with match figures of 1/150.
A couple of months later, Warne finished the Sheffield Shield season as 12th man for Victoria.
But Higgs and Benaud gave Warne more opportunities to shine at Test level. Eventually, less than a year later, we started to see Warne’s first glimpses of greatness in a Test match against Sri Lanka.
Before the second innings of that Test, Warne had career figures of 1/335.
Chasing a small total of 181, Sri Lanka were cruising at one stage at 2/127. But Greg Matthews and Warne turned the match in Australia’s favour. Matthews picked up four wickets, while Warne took 3-0 in 11 balls to seal victory for Australia by 16 runs.
It would be the start of a long, successful career for Warne, which yielded over 700 Test wickets.
For many years, Jenner was the man who was credited publicly for mentoring Warne’s career, and rightly so. But other men behind the scenes contributed to the makings of the legend. Graf, Potter and Higgs all played a part and all should be recognised for their work.
Why is Jim Higgs the unsung hero to Warne’s greatness? Higgs coached Warne the flipper, which gave Warne so many Test wickets, particularly in the early part of his career.
My assumption of Higgs as a selector is he continually backed Warne’s ability as a leg spinner – something that was missing from the selectors during Higgs’ playing days. A leg-spinning selector knowing what a leg spinner is going through provides a valuable insight and knowledge on any selection panel. In the end, Higgs was justified.
Since Warne retired in 2007, a dozen or so spinners have been selected and tossed out of the Australian side. If those selectors were around during Warne’s early Tests, he may have had a completely different path in cricket history.
Terry Jenner played a huge part in Warne’s success. But in many ways, Higgs deserves to be on the same level as Jenner.
jamesb
Roar Guru
Yeah Chappelli, Greigy and Packer were certainly at the forefront of improving players salaries and conditions.
Rowdy
Roar Rookie
To comment years late but Mallett suffered from two things. He withdrew from series because he needed to earn money. I think Chappelli used his example when confronting Bradman one time. The other was the selectors double-guessed him. He got to a 100 wickets in only one more test than Lillee.
JMW
Guest
It would have made sense. I'll bet he's still in SA though.
JohnB
Guest
The state by state rundown was for early/mid 70s - Sleep started just after that. And he is mentioned in the last sentence! Incidentally, it's hard for a Qld supporter from that era to forget him - he had a markedly better record against Qld than he did against every other state (other than the then much weaker than now Tasmania), making lots of runs at the Gabba and both scoring runs and taking wickets consistently in Adelaide. Overall against Qld he averaged just under 51 with the bat and took 2.5 wickets per game at 33. I always thought he should have moved to Qld.
JMW
Guest
It's also a slight on Higgs to say Dutchy Holland was the better bat of the two. I thought Murray Bennett looked a cricketing icon in those photochromatic kiddie fiddler spectacles.
JMW
Guest
You forgot Peter "sounder" Sleep from SA. Higgs poor batting and fielding gifted Sleep a few Tests as a leg spinning all rounder. Truth be told Sleep did add depth with the bat but his leggies, whilst giving him a lot of wickets in first class matches, weren't really test standard.
JMW
Guest
More importantly it helped Dougie Walters get to a century. I couldn't understand how Higgs could be so competent with the ball yet so incompetent in the other two disciplines. We basically started at one for none in every innings he padded up.
JMW
Guest
Spotty or Candles Bright was the perennial tourist!
JohnB
Guest
I was also going to query that comment. In the early to mid 70s every Shield team had a leg-spinner. Higgs in Vic (although he was only playing about half the games in his first 3 years - the Vics did however have other leggies playing some games at the same time, so there probably weren't many games where they didn't have one), Jenner SA, Paulson and Mann in WA (although neither was a fixture, and possibly WA didn't always play either of them at the WACA), Francke in Qld, O'Keefe (and arguably Gleeson) in NSW (plus John Watkins). Plus it was not uncommon for batsmen to bowl part time leggies - Keith Stackpole and Ian Chappell being obvious examples, but Greg Chappell also bowled leggies before switching to medium pace, and someone like Bobbie Simpson who was a very handy leggie was only just out of FC cricket (before coming back to captain Higgs during the Packer years). I think you could more accurately say that that time was a bit like the period post Warne - the potential value of a leggie was very much appreciated and the selectors were desperate for a good one, leading to them trying out quite a few, but the problem, rather like now, was that none of those tried, including with the greatest respect Higgs, were quite up to it. Possibly by the end of the 70s the attitude Gideon Haigh refers to might have started to come in a bit more, because there hadn't been a really good leggie in the previous decade. The fact that bowlers like Holland, Sleep and Hohns were used over the next decade does suggest the selectors still wanted to have one.
Gav
Guest
I recall watching Jim Higgs when I was a young bloke. I always wanted him to successd but..... He was something of a novelty when all the rage was pace bowling and Batting line ups were being decimated by the Windies 4 prong pace attack. All I recall is that he was fairly inaccurate and bowled a lot of long hops, his stats your providing seem to indicate he was better than I recall. Had to laugh at peters comments about Ray Bright......incredibly boring to watch. Must have kept it tight though because he played a fair bit. Shame Bob Holland didn't get more of a chance. He was very good and better than Higgs in my mind. Had a great wrongun which he under used.
Perry Bridge
Guest
And with Bright being a left arm orthodox, he could spin away from the RHB's. Had he been right arm orthodox then Higgs might have got more games. As it was Bright went on to captain the state and snaffled a couple of lower order 100s with the bat at one point. For Higgs - ironically the first memory that comes to mind is that no ball Robin Baillache called on Lance Cairns for intimidatory bowling. It helped no doubt in Higgs achieving one of his batting highlights as PPVII describes. It's a shame that Higgs was washed up by his early 30s - due to back issues. Seeing the gambles by selectors with Dutchy Holland, and Peter Taylor and returning Peter Sleep to the side through the mid 80s - had Higgs still been able to he might well have added more tests.
Peter
Roar Rookie
Ray Bright spun the ball once I believe.
Armchar Expert
Guest
It was probably Higgs' lack of batting prowess that forced his early retirement, Victorian captain and fellow spinner Ray Bright was a handy batsman, so there wasn't room for Higgs, even if he was the better bowler.
Warnie's Love Child
Guest
Funny thing with spinners, there are very few average tailenders among them. They were either handy with the bat - R Benaud, G Matthews, P Taylor, J Emburey, D Vettori, or rabbits - J Higgs, B Holland, B Chandrasekhar, B Bedi, l Gibbs.
Armchar Expert
Guest
Good article and good input from Gideon, in Higgs day it was horses for courses", if it wasn't a spinning wicket he wouldn't play, I remember hearing from someone "in the know" that captain Greg Chappell once told selectors if Higgs was selected in the test 11, he wouldn't give him a bowl.
Pope Paul VII
Guest
Sure was At. Fondly remembered. We still get out the Ashley Mallett to bang the stumps in of a saturday.
Atawhai Drive
Roar Guru
Ashley Mallett was one of the better off-spinners to play for Australia but it took him 12 years to play 38 Tests in an era dominated by pace. Mallett was also a good catcher in the gully, in what was a strong Australian fielding side in the mid-1970s.
Ruminate
Roar Guru
He had a fairly relaxed looking action, rather than an energetic action like Warne who imparted a big rip on the ball at the crease As mentioned he had a fair bit of loop to his bowling, and turned the ball a bit, he had a good wrongun, a flipper and a toppy too. Good bowler, was my idol as a 12 year old leggie way back when....
Pope Paul VII
Guest
Not so sure of Gid Haigh's assessment that leggies were a luxury during Jimmy's time but to be fair he knows a hell of a lot more than me. A A Mallet also struggled to get a match. Lillee and Thommo spawned a pace era that lasted a good 10 years so the slowies picked up the scraps. Back in 78/79 Higgs and Hurst put on an epic 30ish for the last wicket. Nearly the highlight of the summer. His batting is most remembered for being given not out due to intimidatory bowling from Lance Cairns, helping Dougie to his last test 100.
Pedro the Maroon
Guest
With the bat, he was the Phil Tufnell of his day ... and perhaps held a record of some sort for most number of consecutive ducks. But if Cameron Boyce can emulate Jim Higgs, then we'll have a handy spinner for a few years.