Former Australia cricketer Alan Davidson, widely regarded as one of the finest left-arm pace bowlers and who was one of the star players of the 1960-61 Tied Test, died peacefully on Saturday morning in Sydney. He was 92.

His passing came a day after the death of another former Australia great, Ashley Mallet.

Davidson, an all-rounder renowned for his potent ability to swing the ball both ways, claimed 186 wickets and scored 1,328 runs in 44 Tests between 1953 and 1963 for Australia and was inducted into the International Cricket Council’s Hall of Fame in 2011. Until the emergence of Pakistan’s Wasim Akram, Davidson was considered by cricket pundits to be the most lethal left-arm fast bowler to have played the game.

“Alan Davidson’s passing is a sad moment for Australian cricket and for cricket across the world,” Cricket Australia chair Richard Freudenstein said in a statement.

“Alan was a colossal figure in our game, not only as one of the finest players to have

represented Australia and NSW (New South Wales), but for the positive influence he exerted across the game as an administrator, mentor and benefactor.

“The tremendous skill and the boundless spirit with which Alan embraced cricket and life embodied everything that is great about the game.

“He will remain a shining example for every player who follows in his footsteps.”

The Tied Test at the Gabba in Brisbane in 1960 between Australia and Frank Worrell’s West Indies, which Davidson played with a broken finger, was the high point of his memorable career.

Davidson finished with match figures of 11 for 222 and a combined tally of 124 runs, with a second innings knock of 80 setting the stage for the most dramatic of finishes as the hosts rallied from 57 for five to finish all out for 232.

It marked the first time a player had completed the double of 10 wickets and 100 runs in a Test. In all, he took 33 West Indies wickets in four Tests of that series (he missed the fourth match in Adelaide).

Davidson grew up on the New South Wales Central Coast, learning his craft on a homemade wicket on the family property, before shifting to Sydney and making his first-class debut in 1949-50.

After retirement, Davidson spent five years as an Australian Test selector from 1979 until 1984. The flag on the Members Pavilion at the Sydney Cricket Ground, where Davidson served as a trustee for 20 years, was lowered to half-mast in tribute.

Davidson toured India twice, first in 1956, under Ian Johnson, and again in 1959-60, when Australia were led by another fine all-rounder and Davidson’s friend, Richie Benaud. He played in only one Test on the 1956 tour, the drawn game at Bombay’s Brabourne Stadium picking up only one wicket, that of Naren Tamhane. He wasn’t part of the winning sides of the Madras and Calcutta Tests. But three years later, he was the mainstay of the Australia attack, taking 29 wickets in five Tests of the series.

Davidson’s career best performance came in the second Test at Green Park, Kanpur. He picked up five wickets in the first innings and 7 for 93 in the second in an energy-sapping spell of 57.3 overs. India though won the Test — their first victory over Australia — with off-spinner Jasu Patel casting a spell and picking up 14 wickets in the match (9/69 and 5/55).

Among Davidson’s many admirers was West Indies legend Garry Sobers, who once described the Australian all-rounder as “perhaps the best (new-ball bowler) in the world for a period of about five years” and “a magnificent hitter”.