Geoff Boycott's Test Debut — 48 Against Australia, Trent Bridge, June 1964

England had been looking for a reliable Test opener for several seasons after the decline of Peter Richardson. Boycott's domestic record — averaging over 50 for Yorkshire in his first season — was irresistible, however divisive his method.

Boycott's debut came at 23, after a single Yorkshire season in which his dour accumulation had already provoked complaints from Headingley crowds who wanted more aggression. Selected to open for England in the third Ashes Test, he batted three and a half hours for 48 — missed his fifty through poor shot selection, according to some; ran out of partners, according to his own account. The innings established both Boycott's strengths and his style: a technically flawless defence, a back-foot cut of great elegance, and an unwillingness to take risks that a less disciplined batsman would have accepted. England drew the match. Boycott kept his place throughout the series and by its end had established himself as England's first-choice opener. He would go on to play 108 Tests, scoring 8,114 runs at 47.72, but would also be dropped by England for three years (1974–77) after what the selectors and some teammates regarded as selfishly slow batting. He remains the most argued-about England batsman since the war.

“My job is to be there at the end of the day. If I'm not there, I've failed.”