Cricket tragics of a certain generation will be able to tell you Sir Donald Bradman played one game against New Zealand.
He was caught behind for 11 when the New Zealanders stopped over in Adelaide on their way back from the 1937 tour of England.
''The Don'' never played cricket on this side on the Tasman but he came close. New Zealand Sports Hall of Fame chief executive and author Ron Palenski picks up the story in his book c Tindill b Cowie: The Story of Bradman and New Zealand.
''Even though he only played one innings against New Zealand, he writes in his first autobiography ... that one of his big regrets in the game is that he never played in New Zealand,'' Palenski said.
''He had lots of opportunities to come here, right from when he first started playing in New South Wales until the first test against Australia in 1945-46 when he was ill and couldn't make it.
''There were just cruel circumstances sometimes. He should have played in 1932 when they called in to Wellington on the way back from the United States but there was a bit of a mix-up in communication.
''The Australians played at the Basin in an exhibition game. Bradman did not know about it and was in a car tour of the Wairarapa.''
Had Bradman played in that game, chances are the crowds would have flocked to see him play.
''What I've tried to show in the book is just what a drawcard Bradman was. In the game against New Zealand he went in to bat on a Friday afternoon and scored 11 singles.
''There was a huge crowd at Adelaide Oval [the next day] expecting another century from Bradman.
"But as soon as Bradman was out, which was in the second over of the morning, without adding to his score, word went around the crowd that he is out. [Walter] Hadlee recalled being outside the ground and people who had been queuing up to get in just turned around and walked away.''
• c Tindill b Cowie: The Story of Bradman and New Zealand was first published in 2013 but has been re-released this year.
It is available from the New Zealand Sports Hall of Fame.
