Bradman Puzzled!

Cricket is a game of glorious uncertainties. Indian Test team presently playing in England was a bit unlucky to miss winning the first Test, but were humiliated in the second.  But they have bounced back in the third by way of a huge win!  Many now believe that they may go on to win the series too! If they win, it will only be second time in cricket history to win a series after being down by 0-2.  Only Sir Donald Bradman had done it for Australia in Australia against England during 1936-37!

Seniors like me are now clearly in the 'Test mood'.  They have got every reason to tell their juniors that 'Test cricket is the best'! No discussion on Test cricket will be complete, without recalling the memory of the greatest Cricketer of all times, Sir Donald Bradman popularly called 'Don'.  What better time to remember this great man than today, whose birthday falls tomorrow (27th August)?

Living legend Sunil Gavaskar was the first cricketer to cross  

Brandman's invincible record of 29 Test centuries.  When interviewed on that occasion, Gavaskar in all humility had said that  'no cricketer can be greater than Bradman unless he scores 30 centuries in just 52 Tests'! Don's Test career average of '99.94' has been cited as the greatest achievement by any sportsman in any major sport.

During 1932-33 when England toured Australia, they had brought a special battery of fast bowlers (remember Harold Larwood?) led by their infamous Captain Douglas Jardine! (During 1985, DD had telecast a serial named BODYLINE covering the entire series). The pre-planned strategy 'bodyline' was only meant to intimidate and contain Bradman! Although the 'bodyline' attack consumed him for a 'famous duck' at MCG in the first innings, he bounced back with a fine century in the second innings to win that Test. Thus 'bodyline' was no puzzle to Bradman, the great.  

But during 1930, 'something about cricket' puzzled Bradman, for which he took 18 long years to find an answer! During those 18 years, while bowlers all across the world were busy finding an answer to Bradman, the Don himself was scratching his head to find the answer to that 'puzzle'.

It was a 'cricket puzzle', created by Arthur Eddington, a well known Physicist.  

It is as follows:

An Imaginary Scoreboard

Atkins.......6
Bodkine... 8
Dawkins...6
Hawkins...6
Jenkins.....5
Larkins.... 4
Meatkins..7
Perkins....11
Simkins....6
Tomkins...0
Willkins...1

Extras..... 0

Total......60

Bowling:
Pitchwell:  12.1-2-14-8
Speedwell:  6-0-15-1
Tosswell:    7-5-31-1

Hints:
-The batsmen have scored only in singles and 4s.
-All batsmen were 'out' clean bowled. There were no 'no balls' or  
   'short' runs.
-Speedwell and Tosswell bowled 6 and 7 overs respectively at a 
   stretch.
-Pitchwell opened the bowling, with Speedwell coming in at the 
   other end for the next over.
-The overs were of 6 balls each.

Questions:
1.Which bowler dismissed which batsmen?
2.Who was not out?
3.What were the fall of wickets?

Don finally solved it while sailing for his last tour to England in 1948. Thus he took 18 long years to solve it.

During 1958 when Bradman published his famous book 'The Art of Cricket', he had included this puzzle too, to give others a chance to try it out.

Come to 2016, Mumbai.  74-year-old Dattatraya Pulekar, a cricket enthusiast and a mathematics teacher, while searching his cupboard,  found a very old letter!

Reading it, he could recollect an old story.  The letter dated 22nd Feb 1965, was written by Bradman to Pulekar, congratulating him for successfully solving the puzzle. Earlier Pulekar had written to Bradman submitting the solution. Pulekar had done it in 3 days when compared to Don who had taken 18 long years. However there was no further correspondence between the 'two' in the subsequent days.

It has come to light that humble and unassuming Bradman kept writing congratulatory replies to all those who solved the puzzle and wrote to him. Had Bradman been alive today, and if you were to write to him with the correct solution, you too would have received such a congratulatory letter from the greatest sportsman on earth!

Now do you want to give it a try? Here are some clues.....

-You have to apply the theory of elimination.

-Find out who bowled which over by using the number of maiden overs and individual scores of the batsmen.

I too tried,  but could not solve.  One of my former colleagues has given me the solution!

I request my friends to write to me the solution.  If you can't solve also,  please write to me in this blog itself down below or write to me.  I will send you the solution. (My e mail id........... klakshminarayana1956@rediffmail.com)

Wishing you all curious time solving this great puzzle which had puzzled Bradman, the great!

                                                                   -0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

(I have referred to a few sites and sources while collecting pictures and info for this Blog.  I humbly convey my thanks to all of them).