Graham Whyte

Whyte made his first class debut in 1974–75. He took three wickets against the touring MCC side bowling in tandem with Malcolm Francke.{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article110792388 |title=Match weakened by absence of Test men |newspaper=The Canberra Times |volume=49 |issue=13,937 |location=Australian Capital Territory, Australia |date=13 December 1974 |accessdate=6 December 2023 |page=20 |via=National Library of Australia}}

Whyte appeared more regularly for Queensland in 1976-77. That summer he took 6–65 against WA.{{Cite web|url=http://www.qldcricket.com.au/news/philipson-turns-in-record-performance/2015-02-27|title=Philipson Turns in Record Performance|access-date=3 November 2017|archive-date=7 November 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171107020932/http://www.qldcricket.com.au/news/philipson-turns-in-record-performance/2015-02-27|url-status=dead}}{{Cite web|url=https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Scorecards/36/36627.html|title = The Home of CricketArchive}} He took 14 wickets overall at an average of 35.

During the season Whyte played several games alongside Viv Richards who wrote in his memoirs that Whyte "was a real character... He would stand there and say, ‘Come on, Thommo [Jeff Thomson], rip the fucker up him. . . Fucking give him plenty ... Hurt the fucker.’ But his batting was as limited as his vocabulary. When it was his turn and there was some pace about, the same guy who gave all that crap suddenly went deathly quiet... Out there he had all that chat, but when it came to it he displayed cowardice, and there are a lot like that in Shield cricket, good talkers when they are in the field but when they come in to bat it’s a different story."{{cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/sirviviandefinit0000rich/page/120/mode/1up|first=Viv|last=Richards|year=2001|title=Sir Vivian : the definitive autobiography|page=120|publisher=Penguin}}

After Australia's leading spinners Ray Bright and Kerry O'Keefe joined World Series Cricket in 1977, some observers such as Greg Chappell and Ray Robinson suggested Whyte may be selected for Australia.{{cite book|page=189-190|url=https://archive.org/details/ashes770000chap/page/n1/mode/2up|publisher=Angus and Robertson|title= The Ashes '77|last=Chappell|first= Greg|year=1977}}{{cite news|title=Much talent remains for Australia|newspaper=The Sydney Sun Herald |date=23 October 1977|page= 74}}

Whyte had a very good season in 1977–78, taking 25 wickets at 32.48. However the Australian selectors preferred Tony Mann, Jim Higgs and Bruce Yardley. Whyte's omission from the 1978 tour to West Indies was publicly criticised by Queensland coach Ken Mackay.{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article250329648 |title=Q'ld coach lashes Aust selectors |newspaper=Papua New Guinea Post-courier |volume= |location=International, Australia |date=23 January 1978 |accessdate=6 December 2023 |page=18 |via=National Library of Australia}}

Whyte only took three first class wickets the following summer and did not play first class cricket from March 1979 to October 1983.

However he was recalled to the Queensland team in October 1983, by which stage he was captain-coach of Queensland Colts.{{cite news|title=Queensland recall Whyte|newspaper=The Sydney Morning Herald|date=18 October 1983|page= 29}} He took 20 wickets at 40.80 that summer. Whyte played in the 1983-84 Shield final.[https://www.espncricinfo.com/series/sheffield-shield-1983-84-356352/western-australia-vs-queensland-final-357435/full-scorecard 1983-84 Sheffield Shield final] at Cricinfo

Whyte played two more first class games in 1984–85.

Whyte died after a long illness in January 2025.

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Category:Cricketers from Queensland

Category:1952 births

Category:2025 deaths

Category:Australian cricketers

Category:Queensland cricketers

Category:Place of birth missing (living people)

Category:20th-century Australian sportsmen

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