And Sadly Runs "the Don": Tragedy and the Stuff of Legends in "the Don's Last Innings" (Critical Essay‪)‬

Cricket is a game arousing fierce passions wherever it is seriously played, from England--its country of origin--to the Indian subcontinent where the sport has whipped up and sustained both communal and national fervor (Guha 1) to Australia, the land where, according to Adair, Nauright and Phillips, sport was the first form of foreign policy (51). It is a game interwoven into lore and steeped in cultural idiosyncrasies, legends and rituals so it is no surprise that the game has made its way into various fictitious writings in numerous forms, including several plays. (1) Nor should it surprise that Don Bradman, indisputably the greatest batsman (2) to ever grace the game, should give his name to an Australian play by Tim Daly, The Don's Last Innings. This play was written in 1981, 33 years after Bradman had retired from Test cricket but while he was still alive. It was first performed in a fully staged and costumed reading in Adelaide the following year. Geoffrey Rush, later to win an Oscar, a Golden Globe and other awards for his acting in the film Shine, played the lead role, supported by Jacquy Phillips.