booth brought himself into contention for the test selection with a series of strong displays in 1960–61. he aggregated 981 runs at an average of 65.40, with three centuries. only five players scored more runs, all at lower averages. two of the centuries were in combined australian xi matches at the end of the season for expected test squad members. in a match against the tasmanian tigers, booth struck a breezy 100 from 104 balls in 90 minutes of batting. another highlight was an 87 against the touring west indies, helping new south wales to complete an innings win. booth's productivity helped his state to another sheffield shield win.