A rather sombre day for Australian cricket and also Western Australian cricket too. Rod Marsh was a great player and in those days helped change the role of wicket keeper which was regarded as a specialist position to one where the keeper could also wield the willow too. Marsh scored three test hundreds and was the first Australian wicketkeeper to do so, some 95 years after the first test Australia played. He also made a total of 12 first class hundreds, having played many Sheffield Shield games for WA. Marsh also finished his career with 355 test dismissals which was a then record with the famous "caught Marsh bowled Lillee" having been recorded 95 times in test cricket which is still a record today I believe. Coincidentally, Dennis Lillee finished his test career with 355 wickets which was also a record then, rather fitting for the two great mates from Western Australia.
Marsh was very well respected as a person and played a significant role in the resurgence of Australian cricket by heading up the AIS academy in Adelaide, this helped Australia dominate cricket during the 1990's and most of the 2000's with such elite talent coming though. He also spent time with England's cricket side along with serving as Australia's chief selector for two years last decade.
Certainly a sad day for cricket in general and Rod will very much be missed throughout the cricketing world.
Rod Marsh's inauspicious start to life as a Test cricketer earned him the nickname "Iron Gloves". But by the end of his career he was revered as an icon and one of the best to ever keep wicket for Australia.
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