Herbert Sutcliffe in 1932–33 included the controversial "bodyline" series, in which Sutcliffe is perceived to have been one of Douglas Jardine's main supporters. Although close friends have stated that Sutcliffe did not approve of bodyline, he always acted out of fierce loyalty to his team captain and was committed to his team's cause. In statistical terms, Sutcliffe was one of the most successful Test batsmen ever; his completed career batting average was 60.73 which is the highest by any English batsman and the fifth-highest worldwide (i.e., of Test batsmen with 20 completed innings) behind only Don Bradman, Adam Voges, Graeme Pollock and
History of the England cricket team to 1939 touched the ball with the bat, he risked being caught by one of a large number of fielders placed on the leg side. "Main article: Bodyline" England won the series and the Ashes 4–1. But complaints about the Bodyline tactic caused crowd disruption on the tour, and threats of diplomatic action from the Australian Cricket Board, which during the tour sent the following cable to the Marylebone Cricket Club in London: Later, Jardine was removed from the captaincy and the laws of cricket changed so that no more than one fast ball aimed at the body was permitted per over,