Born 1918, Melbourne

Played for Victoria & Australia

FC 1935 - 1956

4,905 runs (22.92) 2 centuries, 619 wkts (23.30) and 138 catches

Tests 45 1,000 runs (18.51), 109 wickets (29.19) and 30 catches

Ian Johnson was a slow right handed off spinner who enjoyed flighting the ball more than hurrying the ball into the batsman, often using the cross wind to his advantage. Although a great bowler for Australia and regarded as one of the best to come out of Australia in his time, he was unable to make the most of wet wickets.

He worked his way up to the test side and at 17 started his first class career with Victoria. He took over the reigns for Australia succeeding Lindsay Hassett as Australian Captain in the home series of 1954/5 - although the captaincy was not a popular choice amongst his team-mates. Playing in 45 Test matches, he was a member of the Invincibles squad of 1948 to tour England. He also played against South Africa, New Zealand, India, West Indies and Pakistan. His first bowling performance against England in 1946/7 he was unplayable, taking 6 wickets for 42 runs, however his best bowling came against West Indies in 1955 when he took 7 wickets for 44 in the second innings.

Batting wasn't a great strength of Johnson's in Test matches although he did contribute to the middle order. His highest Test score was 77 against England in the 3rd test at Sydney in 1950/1. In his retirement, he continued his association with Victoria by being Secretary of the Melbourne Cricket Ground for 25 years from 1957. Johnson was awarded the MBE and then the OBE for his services to cricket, in 1956 and 1977 respectively.