The Third Test of the 1948 Ashes series was one of five Tests in the Ashes cricket series between Australia and England. It was played at Old Trafford in Manchester from 8 to 13 July 1948. After a bouncer by Ray Lindwall bloodied his head, Denis Compton left the field but returned and helped England recover to 363 all out on the second afternoon. Compton and Alec Bedser were involved in a mix-up, running out the latter and ending a 121-run partnership. Dick Pollard hit Australian Sid Barnes (pictured) in the ribs with a pull shot, hospitalising him. After rain washed out the fourth day and the first half of the fifth day, the match was drawn, meaning that England could do no better than level the series. As Australia held the Ashes, they retained them. Even though 30% of the playing time was lost to rain, the match set a record for the highest attendance at a Test match in England at 133,740, surpassing the previous Test. (This article is part of a featured topic: Australian cricket team in England in 1948.).

Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Featured_topics/Australian_cricket_team_in_England_in_1948

_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:

1776:

The United States Declaration of Independence received its first formal public reading, in Philadelphia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Declaration_of_Independence

1950:

Korean War: American troops withdrew from Cheonan, in modern- day South Korea, after suffering heavy casualties from a North Korean attack. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Chonan

2014:

German citizen Lars Mittank disappeared from Varna Airport, Bulgaria; his last known movements have been widely watched on YouTube. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disappearance_of_Lars_Mittank

2021:

Head of a Bear sold at auction in London for £7.5 million, a record for a drawing by Leonardo da Vinci. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Head_of_a_Bear

_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:

thwack: 1. (transitive) 2. To hit (someone or something) hard, especially with a flat implement or a stick; to thrash, to whack. 3. (also figuratively) To drive or force (someone or something) by, or as if by, beating or hitting; to knock. 4. To pack (people or things) closely together; to cram. 5. (figuratively) To decisively defeat (someone) in a contest; to beat, to thrash. 6. (obsolete) To crowd or pack (a place or thing) with people, objects, etc. 7. (intransitive) 8. To fall down hard with a thump. 9. (obsolete) To be crammed or filled full. 10. (obsolete, rare) Of people: to crowd or pack a place. 11. An act of hitting hard, especially with a flat implement or a stick; a whack; also, a powerful stroke involved in such hitting; a blow, a strike. 12. A dull or heavy slapping sound. 13. Used to represent the dull or heavy sound of someone or something being hit or slapped. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/thwack

___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:

Passion is power, And, kindly tempered, saves. All things declare Struggle hath deeper peace than sleep can bring.   --William Vaughn Moody https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/William_Vaughn_Moody