1884 English cricket season
1884 was the 98th season of cricket in England since the foundation of Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC). Australia toured England to compete for the Ashes. It was the seventh test series between the two teams.[1] Fred Spofforth, an overseas bowler, took the most wickets, but England avenged its loss to the touring Australians in 1882 winning 1 test to 0.[note 1]
Ashes tour
| Cumulative record - Test wins | 1876-1884 |
|---|---|
| England | 5 |
| Australia | 7 |
| Drawn | 4 |
Champion County
Playing record (by county)
| County | Played | Won | Lost | Drawn |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Derbyshire | 10 | 0 | 10 | 0 |
| Gloucestershire | 12 | 1 | 8 | 3[b] |
| Hampshire | 8 | 2 | 6 | 0 |
| Kent | 16 | 7 | 7 | 2 |
| Lancashire | 12 | 7 | 4 | 1[b] |
| Middlesex | 10 | 4 | 3 | 3 |
| Nottinghamshire | 10 | 9 | 0 | 1 |
| Somerset | 6 | 1 | 5 | 0 |
| Surrey | 18 | 9 | 4 | 5 |
| Sussex | 14 | 8 | 5 | 1 |
| Yorkshire | 16 | 8 | 4 | 4 |
Derbyshire's ignominy of losing every game has been repeated since in county cricket only by the same club in 1920. [6]
Leading batsmen (qualification 20 innings)
| 1884 English season leading batsmen[7] | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Team | Matches | Innings | Not outs | Runs | Highest score | Average | 100s | 50s |
| Allan Steel | Lancashire England Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) |
16 | 28 | 3 | 967 | 148 | 38.68 | 2 | 2 |
| William Scotton | Nottinghamshire England Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) |
19 | 31 | 5 | 897 | 134 | 34.50 | 2 | 3 |
| WG Grace | Gloucestershire England Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) |
26 | 45 | 5 | 1361 | 116 | 34.02 | 3 | 2 |
| Lord Harris | Kent England Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) |
25 | 47 | 5 | 1417 | 112 not out | 33.73 | 3 | 6 |
| Billy Newham | Sussex | 12 | 23 | 0 | 741 | 137 | 32.21 | 2 | 5 |
Leading bowlers (qualification 1,000 balls)
| 1884 English season leading bowlers[8] | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Team | Balls bowled | Runs conceded | Wickets taken | Average | Best bowling | 5 wickets in innings |
10 wickets in match |
| Alfred Shaw | Nottinghamshire | 2968 | 744 | 71 | 10.47 | 8/28 | 7 | 2 |
| Tom Emmett | Yorkshire England |
4128 | 1250 | 107 | 11.68 | 8/32 | 10 | 3 |
| William Attewell | Nottinghamshire | 4600 | 1217 | 101 | 12.04 | 8/22 | 8 | 3 |
| John Crossland | Lancashire | 2100 | 893 | 71 | 12.57 | 7/35 | 6 | 3 |
| Fred Spofforth | Australians | 6308 | 2654 | 207 | 12.82 | 8/62 | 22 | 10 |
Notable events
- 31 July and 1 August: Alfred Shaw achieved the notable feat of doing the hat-trick in each innings against Gloucestershire.[9]
Labels
a An unofficial seasonal title sometimes proclaimed by consensus of media and historians prior to December 1889 when the official County Championship was constituted. Although there are ante-dated claims prior to 1873, when residence qualifications were introduced, it is only since that ruling that any quasi-official status can be ascribed.
b The match between Lancashire and Gloucestershire scheduled for 24 to 26 July was abandoned on the announcement of the death of Mrs Grace, mother of WG and EM Grace. It is shown as a draw.
Notes
- ^ Some eleven-a-side matches played from 1772 to 1863 have been rated "first-class" by certain sources.[2] However, the term only came into common use around 1864, when overarm bowling was legalised. It was formally defined as a standard by a meeting at Lord's, in May 1894, of Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) and the county clubs which were then competing in the County Championship. The ruling was effective from the beginning of the 1895 season, but pre-1895 matches of the same standard have no official definition of status because the ruling is not retrospective.[3] Matches of a similar standard since the beginning of the 1864 season are generally considered to have an unofficial first-class status.[4] Pre-1864 matches which are included in the ACS' "Important Match Guide" may generally be regarded as top-class or, at least, historically significant.[5] For further information, see First-class cricket.
References
- ^ Wynne-Thomas, Peter (1983). The Hamlyn A-Z of Cricket Records. Hamlyn Publishing Group. ISBN 0-600-34667-6.
- ^ "First-Class matches in England in 1772". CricketArchive. Retrieved 29 November 2025.
- ^ Wisden (1948). Preston, Hubert (ed.). Wisden Cricketers' Almanack (85th ed.). London: Sporting Handbooks Ltd. p. 813. OCLC 851705816.
- ^ ACS 1982, pp. 4–5.
- ^ ACS 1981, pp. 1–40.
- ^ Wynne-Thomas, Peter; The Rigby A-Z of Cricket Records; p. 54 ISBN 072701868X
- ^ First Class Batting in England in 1884
- ^ First Class Bowling in England in 1884
- ^ Nottinghamshire v Gloucestershire in 1884
Bibliography
- ACS (1981). A Guide to Important Cricket Matches Played in the British Isles 1709–1863. Nottingham: ACS. OCLC 85045528.
- ACS (1982). A Guide to First-class Cricket Matches Played in the British Isles. Nottingham: ACS. OCLC 10586869.
- Warner, Pelham (1946). Lords: 1787–1945. London: Harrap. OCLC 877106024.
Annual reviews
- John Lillywhite's Cricketer's Companion (Green Lilly), Lillywhite, 1885
- James Lillywhite's Cricketers' Annual (Red Lilly), Lillywhite, 1885
- Wisden Cricketers' Almanack, 1885
Further reading
- Altham, H. S.; Swanton, E. W. (1962). A History of Cricket, Volume 1 (to 1914) (5th ed.). London: George Allen & Unwin. OCLC 894274808.
- Birley, Derek (1999). A Social History of English Cricket. London: Aurum Press. ISBN 978-18-54107-10-7 – via Internet Archive.
- Bowen, Rowland (1970). Cricket: A History of its Growth and Development. London: Eyre & Spottiswoode. ISBN 978-04-13278-60-9.
- Major, John (2007). More Than A Game. London: HarperCollins. ISBN 978-00-07183-64-7 – via Internet Archive.