Basil Hayles

Basil Ratcliffe Marshall Hayles (29 October 1916 – 4 November 2007) was an English first-class cricketer and British Army officer.

Hayles was born at Andover, Hampshire.^[1] He was educated at Haileybury and Imperial Service College,^[1] before attending the Royal Military Academy.^[2] He graduated from the academy in August 1936 and was posted to the Royal Corps of Signals as a second lieutenant,^[2] with promotion to lieutenant coming in August 1939.^[3] In the year prior to his promotion to lieutenant, Hayles played two first-class cricket matches as a wicket-keeper for the British Army cricket team against Cambridge University at Fenner's, and Oxford University at Camberley.^[4] He played a further first-class match for the Army in 1939 against Cambridge University.^[4]

He served during the Second World War, during which he was promoted to the rank of captain in August 1944.^[5] Following the war, Hayles played first-class cricket for the Combined Services cricket team, making two appearances in 1947 against the touring South Africans at Portsmouth, and Oxford University at Oxford.^[4] He also played minor counties cricket for Norfolk in the same year.^[6] He followed these up with two further first-class appearances in 1949 against Hampshire at Aldershot, and Kent at Gillingham.^[4] Across seven first-class appearances, Hayles scored 69 runs with a high score of 40.^[1] He was promoted to the rank of major following the war in August 1949.^[7] He was promoted to the rank of lieutenant colonel in January 1957.^[8] He was made a colonel in February 1964, with seniority to June 1963.^[9]

Hayles retired from military service in October 1971.^[10] He died 36 years later in November 2007 at Aldeburgh, Suffolk.