Wisden overview
Fit and strong, Martin Donnelly was simply the best left-hand batsman in the world immediately after the Second World War. CB Fry volunteered that not one of the left-handers of his own day was superior. A complete batsman, he drove with punishing power and was merciless in pulling and cutting anything short. His footwork was superb. In the field he had speed, as befitted a rugby player (he represented England against Ireland in 1946-47), and a powerful, accurate throw. Donnelly first played for New Zealand as a 19-year-old in 1937, but he reached his zenith 12 years later, on the 1949 tour of England. He was always equably tempered and treated cricket as a game, not a war. Christopher Martin-Jenkins Adapted by Wisden from World Cricketers: A Biographical Dictionary (Oxford, 1996).

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