W is for Winners Trivia Quiz

Answer: Frank Woollley

Frank Woolley, a tall left handed batter and bowler of left arm orthodox spin played for Kent for over 30 years, and in a run beginning in 1909 featured in every England team for a 19 year period. His career is well covered in Ian Peebles's book "Woolley: Pride of Kent".

His highest first class score, 305, was amassed during the 1911-12 tour of Australia. The three Wrights listed as wrong answers all batted high in the order in their careers, and John, of New Zealand, was also left handed.

Answer: Frank Worrell

Frank Mortimer Maglinne Worrell was the first black player to captain The West Indies, breaking one of cricket's nastier taboos. As captain he helped to bring about two of the most famous test series ever played, in Australia in 1960-61, which began with the first tied match in test cricket history, and in England in 1963, which featured a draw at Lord's that went right down to the last possible ball of the match.

He ultimately received a knighthood for his services to cricket. The three wrong answers were all openers, Woodfull featuring at test level.

Answer: Everton Weekes

Everton de Courcy Weekes, like Worrell, a product of the tiny island of Barbados was in addition to the information above the first player ever hit centuries in five successive test innings. He owed the unusual forename to the fact that his father was a supporter of the English football club of that name.
The three wrong answers were/are all fine players.

Answer: Clyde Walcott

Clyde Leopold Walcott is the third of the 'Three Ws'. He averaged 56.68 in test cricket, firmly among the elite at that most demanding level of the game. In their Barbados days he and Worrell once shared a partnership of 574 for the fourth wicket.
The three wrong answers are all middle order batters of varying accomplishment.

Answer: Steve Waugh

Until the 1989 Ashes Steve Waugh had been holding a place as an all-rounder and on the basis of having the right temperament. That series was a turning point for him, and through the 1990s he was one of the hardest batters to dislodge. He starred in the series in the Caribbean in which Australia beat the West Indies to claim the status of top dogs in the test cricket world after a decade and a half of West Indian dominance. In 1997 at Old Trafford, on a pitch had everyone else in trouble, he won the match for his side by chiselling out centuries in both innings.

Mark Waugh is his younger (by a few minutes) twin brother, who was elevated to the international stage somewhat later - enough later in fact for him to be dubbed 'Afghan' on the grounds that he was the forgotten Waugh.

Answer: BJ Watling

BJ Watling (his given name is Bradley-John but he has always been referred to by his initials) established a reputation for being a battler in the middle order, and was also a very fine keeper. His test match achievements include a double century.
The three wrong answers are all keepers who could bat to varying degrees.

Answer: Sammy Woods

Samuel Moses James Woods was hugely important to Somerset in the 1890s and early 1900s, and generally batted higher for them than the position I have given him in this side. He scored over 15,000 first class runs with 19 centuries, and took over 1,000 first class wickets at under 21 a piece.
None of the incorrect answers could accurately be labelled an all rounder, though Luke Wood might try to claim it.

Answer: Shane Warne

Shane Warne took over 700 test wickets in his remarkable career, and batted well enough to have a test best of 99 and a 90 in an Ashes match. Even in 2005, the only time England got the better of Australia in Warne's career he took 40 wickets in the series and scored 250 runs.
Of my wrong answers only Shane Watson is a genuine cricketer, and he started as a pace bowling all rounder before finding his metier at international level as a top order batter.

Answer: Johnny Wardle

Johnny Wardle bowled both left arm orthodox and left arm wrist spin (the latter, turning the ball the opposite way to Warne is likely to more useful in this XI). He disagreed with Yorkshire over their choice of captain in 1958, wrote a book, serialized in a newspaper, in which he expressed himself overly forcefully, and the county terminated his contract, which effectively ended his first class career.
Of the wrong answers only Woof, who played in the 1870s and 1880s, bowled with his left arm.

Answer: Bill Whitty

Bill Whitty played for Australia in the run-up to WWI. He featured in the Triangular Tournament of 1912, when teams from Australia and South Africa travelled to England to play test matches against both their hosts and each other. A combination of bad weather, a weak South Africa and an Australia riven by internal strife meant the tournament was a failure and it would be another six decades (and in a different format) until the inaugural Women's World Cup in 1973 that a multi-lateral international event would next take place. Of the wrong answers Whitney was a left arm seamer of later vintage, playing mainly in the 1980s, while Claude Woolley was an opening batter, and brother of Frank, and John Willes was a figure from early in the game's history, involved in the change from under-arm to round-arm bowling.

Answer: Courtney Walsh

Courtney Walsh, along with his equally legendary bowling partner Curtly Ambrose carried the West Indies through the 1990s, masking to an extent a serious decline, which was laid bare when they departed the scene. He was also a fine servant for Gloucestershire for a number of years.
None of the incorrect answers are West Indian.

Answer: Bob Willis

Robert George Dylan Willis (the Dylan was the name he added in tribute to his favourite musician, Bob Dylan) took 325 test wickets. His most remarkable moment came at Headingley 1981, a match he almost wasn't picked for. With Australia 56-1 in the final innings, needing a mere 74 more to win, he was called up for a last burst, and tore through the Australian middle and lower order, ending with innings figures of 8-43 as England won by 18 runs. All three wrong answers are pace bowlers who have had big moments at international level.

Answer: Bill Woodfull

William Maldon Woodfull was a solid opener, often in association with his fellow Victorian Bill Ponsford. He was also a successful captain, who twice regained The Ashes, each time securing the series win on his birthday. The latter of these two series, the 1934 Ashes, marked the end of top level cricket for both him and Ponsford. Of the wrong answers Washbrook was a Lancashire and England opener, Worrall an early Australian opener and Wodehouse, better known as PG Wodehouse, was a writer and keen cricket fan (one of his most famous creations, Jeeves, was named in honour of an allrounder he saw in action).

Answer: Doug Walters

Doug Walters had a splendid test career, with the exception that he never made big runs in England. He had a test best of 250 against New Zealand. His career, which began in the mid-1960s ended when he was not selected for the 1981 tour of England.

Answer: Kane Williamson

Kane Williamson scored over 9,500 test runs at an average in the middle 50s. In the second half of the 2010s he was one of a group of batters known as the 'fab four', a term coined by another Kiwi legend, Martin Crowe. The other three members of the group were Virat Kohli, Steve Smith and Joe Root.

Answer: Mark Waugh

Mark Waugh had to wait a few years for his test debut. Ironically he came in for twin brother Steve, though the pair went on to play a lot of internationals together.
Dean Waugh is the third Waugh brother, four years the junior of the twins. He played one first class match.

Answer: John Waite

John Waite, scorer of 2,405 test runs at just over 30 and maker of 141 dismissals as a test wicket keeper, is well worth his place as understudy to BJ Watling. Opening the batting and keeping wicket is a big ask in test cricket, and one he would not face in this squad, a detail that I would expect to lead to his batting performances being better than those he achieved in actual life. Mervyn Waite was an Australian middle order batter and medium pacer who played two test matches with stunning lack of success - he scored 11 runs at 3.66 and had total career bowling figures of 1-190, though that solitary wicket was that of Denis Compton.

Answer: Vyell Walker

Vyell Walker scored 3,384 first class runs at 17.26 at a time when run scoring was seriously hard and took 334 first class wickets at 14.54. That included an astonishing double feat for England against Surrey when he scored a century in one innings, and later in the same match took all ten wickets in one of the Surrey innings.

He was one of seven brothers from Southgate. Their ground is still sometimes used by Middlesex, though their more usual 'home from home' when Lord's is unavailable is Radlett these days. The other Walkers listed comprise two solid county professionals (Peter and Willis), and one the Hambledon side who dominated the game in the later 18th century (Tom).

Answer: Tom Wass

Tom Wass was among the finer cricketers not to gain international recognition. In 1907, at the age of 34, he spearheaded the Nottinghamshire bowling attack as they won the county championship. John Arlott named Wass in an England XI of those who never got the call that he created.
Of the wrong answers Wall was an Australian pacer of high but not the very highest class, Ward was a batter for Kent in the 1990s and Wills an early Australian cricketer who also created Aussie Rules football as a way for cricketers to keep fit in the off season.

Answer: Wellington

Amanda-Jade Wellington is a splendid cricketer and is also building a good reputation in the commentary box. She is nowadays surplus to Australian requirements (Georgia Wareham and Alana King are their preferred leg spin options) but continues to perform well in various domestic competitions.
The hint was a slightly cryptic one - Italy is a boot shaped country, and wellingtons are a type of boot.