Air Sergeant Cyril Matthew Francois, was killed in a motor accident near Pretoria on May 26. A hard-hitting batsman and right-arm fast-medium bowler, he was a regular member of Griqualand West teams from 1920 to 1928. In Currie Cup matches he scored 610 runs, average 17.94, and took 76 wickets at 25.98 each. He came into prominence in the 1922-23 season with seven wickets for 114 runs for Griqualand West against the M.C.C. team and played in all five Test matches. Selected as a bowler, he took only six wickets in the series, three of these for 23 runs in England's first innings in the first Test match, but he batted consistently well, scoring 252 runs at an average of 31.50, including scores of 72, 43 and 41. He was unlucky not to be selected to tour England in 1924 with the South African team, but he played in one of the unofficial Test matches against the English team led by the Hon. L. H. Tennyson the following season, scoring 0 and 35. His last two appearances in first-class cricket were in the 1927-28 season, when he scored 54 v. M.C.C. and 97 and 54 against Orange Free State. In all first-class games he scored 1,232 runs, average 22.81, and took 101 wickets at 28.44 apiece. Born in London on June 20, 1897, Francois, who went to South Africa when very young, was 46 at the time of his death.
Wisden Cricketers' Almanack

C M Francois © The Cricketer International

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