Reginald Duff was a powerful hitter of the ball, a player who watched the ball until the very last moment before deciding what stroke to play. His favourite shot being the drive through covers. He made his debut in the second test match in Melbourne against England in 1901/02 and made 104. During the match he shared a last wicket partnership with Wawick Armstrong of 120 and averaged 44.42 for the series.

He was chosen as Victor Trumper's opening partner in Australia's tour of England in both 1902 and 1905, twice scoring over 1300 runs on tour. He made 146 in his last Test match at the Oval in 1905, the highest of all players in the complete series. He fell on hard times after the tour of England and never really re-captured his magic form in Shield Cricket, ending his career a year later in 1907.