Robert Samuel Langer (3 October 1948 – 14 September 2023) was an Australian cricketer who played for Western Australia in the 1970s and 1980s.
[12] There was instability in the Australian team that summer; Langer was discussed as a test prospect[13] but the selectors eventually went with Graham Yallop and Gary Cosier as the new batters in the side.
[19] In early December 1976 Ian Chappell said Langer should be picked in the Australian side to play Pakistan over other batters such as Yallop and Cosier, as well as emerging talents like Martin Kent and Kim Hughes, because he was more consistent.
[20] However the selectors decided to persist with Cosier, while Kim Hughes was selected as the back up batter on the 1976-77 tour of New Zealand.
[21]However Australian selectors overlooked Langer again in favour of Hughes, Craig Serjeant, and David Hookes.
He was selected to play for Australia in the third WSC international, at Adelaide, replacing David Hookes, who had been injured in the second game.
Playing against the West Indies, Langer scored 45 in the first innings, taking part in a partnership of 89 with Greg Chappell, and 8 in the second.
[29] In November 1981 Langer was recalled to the state side to replace Mark O'Neill, who had been dropped.
[31] He also scored 99 not out (being dropped six times and escaping a run out) in a McDonald's Cup game against Tasmania, winning the man of the match award.
After retiring from cricket, Langer went on to be Chief Executive Officer of the Western Australian Speedway Commission from 1999 until 2001, whereupon he became a Senior Consultant.
In June 2002, Langer was appointed High Performance Manager for the Western Australian Cricket Association.