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History of Test cricket (to 1883)
Encyclopedia
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
matches today. The teams were rarely representative, and the boat trip between Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
and England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, which usually lasted about 48 days, was one that many cricket
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
ers (especially amateurs) were unable or unwilling to undertake. As such, the home teams enjoyed a great advantage.
Thirteen Test Match
Test cricket
Test cricket is the longest form of the sport of cricket. Test matches are played between national representative teams with "Test status", as determined by the International Cricket Council , with four innings played between two teams of 11 players over a period of up to a maximum five days...
es were played during the period, all between Australian and English sides. Most were not styled as representative "England v. Australia" contests, however: this description was only applied later by cricket statisticians. The same is true of their designation as "Test match
Test cricket
Test cricket is the longest form of the sport of cricket. Test matches are played between national representative teams with "Test status", as determined by the International Cricket Council , with four innings played between two teams of 11 players over a period of up to a maximum five days...
es", which did not enter into the vernacular
Vernacular
A vernacular is the native language or native dialect of a specific population, as opposed to a language of wider communication that is not native to the population, such as a national language or lingua franca.- Etymology :The term is not a recent one...
until 1885. Eleven of the thirteen matches played to 1883 were in Australia, where the colonials made the most of their home advantage, winning seven while England won four, and two matches were drawn.
By 1883, the tradition of England-Australia tours was well established, that year having concluded the first Ashes
The Ashes
The Ashes is a Test cricket series played between England and Australia. It is one of the most celebrated rivalries in international cricket and dates back to 1882. It is currently played biennially, alternately in the United Kingdom and Australia. Cricket being a summer sport, and the venues...
series. When England
English cricket team
The England and Wales cricket team is a cricket team which represents England and Wales. Until 1992 it also represented Scotland. Since 1 January 1997 it has been governed by the England and Wales Cricket Board , having been previously governed by Marylebone Cricket Club from 1903 until the end...
lost at home for the first time in 1882, The Sporting Times
The Sporting Times
The Sporting Times was a weekly British newspaper devoted chiefly to sport, and in particular to horse racing...
lamented the death of cricket in the mother country and declared that "the body will be cremated and the ashes taken to Australia". England captain
English national cricket captains
This is a list of all English national cricket captains, comprising all of the men, boys and women who have captained an English national cricket team at official international level. England played in the first Test match in 1877 and have played more Test matches, and had more captains, than any...
Ivo Bligh
Ivo Bligh, 8th Earl of Darnley
Ivo Francis Walter Bligh, 8th Earl of Darnley DL, JP , styled The Honourable Ivo Bligh until 1900, was a British cricketer who captained the English team in the first ever Test series against Australia with the Ashes at stake in 1882/83...
promised that on the tour to Australia in 1882–83 he would regain "the ashes" and the term began to be established. During that tour a small terracotta urn was presented to Bligh by a group of Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
women. The urn is commonly, but erroneously, believed to be the trophy
Trophy
A trophy is a reward for a specific achievement, and serves as recognition or evidence of merit. Trophies are most often awarded for sporting events, from youth sports to professional level athletics...
of the Ashes series, but it has never been formally adopted as such and Bligh always considered it to be a personal gift.
A number of the problems that continue to bedevil cricket
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
today had already surfaced by 1883: there were umpiring disputes, betting controversies, match-fixing, and even a riot
Sydney Riot of 1879
The Sydney Riot of 1879 was a civil disorder that occurred at an early international cricket match. It took place in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, at the Association Ground, Moore Park, now known as the Sydney Cricket Ground, during a match between a touring English team captained by Lord...
.
Genesis of Test cricket
There was a long build-up to what became the first Test tour. The inaugural overseas visit of leading English cricketers was organised by John Sackville, 3rd Duke of DorsetJohn Sackville, 3rd Duke of Dorset
John Frederick Sackville, 3rd Duke of Dorset was the only son of Lord John Philip Sackville, second son of Lionel Sackville, 1st Duke of Dorset. He succeeded to the dukedom in 1769 on the death of his uncle, Charles Sackville, 2nd Duke of Dorset...
, a strong player himself. Having recently been an ambassador to France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, where he promoted the game of cricket, Dorset arranged a tour to that country in 1789. Although it is unclear whom they were to play against, his men did get as far as an assembly in Dover
Dover
Dover is a town and major ferry port in the home county of Kent, in South East England. It faces France across the narrowest part of the English Channel, and lies south-east of Canterbury; east of Kent's administrative capital Maidstone; and north-east along the coastline from Dungeness and Hastings...
, ready for the cross-Channel trip to France. The Duke's timing was poor, however, for the French Revolution
French Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
had just broken out. His cricket tour became the first one to be abandoned for political reasons.
It was not until the 19th century that strong "England" teams began to form. By the late 18th, there were many games played by sides designated "England" — "England" vs "Hambledon" and "England" vs "Kent", for instance — but these were not truly representative. By 1846
1846 English cricket season
The 1846 English cricket season saw the foundation of William Clarke's famed All-England Eleven.-First-class matches:-Events:The earliest first-class match at the Oval was Surrey Club v. MCC on 25 & 26 May. Only 194 runs were scored in the match with a top score of 13. WR Hillyer took 14 wickets...
, however, William Clarke, a bricklayer from Nottingham
Nottingham
Nottingham is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England. It is located in the ceremonial county of Nottinghamshire and represents one of eight members of the English Core Cities Group...
, had formed the All-England Eleven
All-England Eleven
In cricket, the term All-England has been used for various non-international teams that have been formed for short-term purposes since the 1739 English cricket season and it indicates that the "Rest of England" is playing against, say, MCC or an individual county team...
, a mostly professional team of top cricketers who toured the country, taking on local sides. Leading amateurs such as Alfred Mynn
Alfred Mynn
Alfred Mynn was an English cricketer during the game's "Roundarm Era". He was a genuine all-rounder, being both an attacking right-handed batsman and a formidable right arm fast bowler. The noted cricket writer John Woodcock ranked him as the fourth greatest cricketer of all time. Simon Wilde...
also played on occasion. Matches were usually against the odds, with eleven men in their team versus 22 for the opposition, to make it a more interesting and even contest.
In 1852
1852 English cricket season
The 1852 English cricket season saw the introduction of a rival to the All-England Eleven-First-class matches:* -Events:The United All England Eleven was established as a rival to the AEE...
, together with fellow Sussex
Sussex County Cricket Club
Sussex County Cricket Club is the oldest of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Sussex. The club was founded as a successor to Brighton Cricket Club which was a representative of the county of Sussex as a...
man Jemmy Dean
Jemmy Dean
James "Jemmy" Dean was an English cricketer who played for Sussex County Cricket Club in the 19th century....
, John Wisden
John Wisden
John Wisden was an English cricketer who played 190 first-class cricket matches for three English county cricket teams, Kent, Middlesex and Sussex...
founded the United All-England Eleven
United All-England Eleven
The United All-England Eleven was an English cricket team formed in 1852 by players breaking away from William Clarke's All-England Eleven . Key UEE players included John Wisden and Jemmy Dean, who became joint secretaries of the team....
, providing both financial and sporting competition to Clarke's side. The matches between these two became the highlight of every English season, and the teams, both essentially business ventures, went a long way to popularising the game in England.
The year 1859 saw the first main representative tour by an England team. It was captained by George Parr
George Parr (cricketer)
George Parr was an English cricketer, whose first-class career lasted from 1844 to 1870....
and comprised six players from the All-England Eleven, together with another six from the United All-England XI. The team toured North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
, where cricket was very popular — especially in the United States and Canada. The match in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, for example, is said to have been watched by 10,000 people, but this may well be an exaggeration. Even more saw the team when it played in Philadelphia, the spiritual home of North American cricket. All matches were played against the odds, and the tour was a financial success, the English players making £90 each.
The year 1861 brought the first English side to Australia. North America was avoided this time because of the Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
. It was a weak side, dominated by Surrey
Surrey County Cricket Club
Surrey County Cricket Club is one of the 18 professional county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Surrey. Its limited overs team is called the Surrey Lions...
players because George Parr and his Notts
Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club
Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Nottinghamshire, and the current county champions. Its limited overs team is called the Nottinghamshire Outlaws...
men would not accept £150 per head plus expenses. The Englishmen won half their twelve matches, losing two and drawing four, all against the odds. This was followed in 1863/64 by another tour to both Australia and New Zealand, led by George Parr and including the amateur EM Grace
E M Grace
Edward Mills Grace was a member of the famous cricketing Grace family and the elder brother of W G Grace and Fred Grace...
, older brother of WG
W. G. Grace
William Gilbert Grace, MRCS, LRCP was an English amateur cricketer who is widely acknowledged as one of the greatest players of all time, having a special significance in terms of his importance to the development of the sport...
.
In 1868
1868 English cricket season
-Events:* C A Absolom became the first player to be given out obstructing the field when playing for Cambridge University v. Surrey at The Oval.* A team of Australian Aboriginals was the first overseas side to tour England...
a team of Australian Aborigines
Australian Aborigines
Australian Aborigines , also called Aboriginal Australians, from the latin ab originem , are people who are indigenous to most of the Australian continentthat is, to mainland Australia and the island of Tasmania...
toured England — see Australian Aboriginal cricket team in England in 1868 — becoming the first Australians to visit England. Also in that year, an English side, led by Edgar Willsher
Edgar Willsher
Edgar "Ned" Willsher was an English cricketer who is famous for being the catalyst in the shift from roundarm to overarm bowling....
, toured North America and beat an XXII of the United States and an XXII of Canada. An English side toured North America for the third time, in 1872, led by RA Fitzgerald
Robert Allan Fitzgerald
Robert Allan "Fitz" Fitzgerald was an English cricketer and administrator who served as MCC Secretary....
. Among its number was WG Grace, who was already recognised as the greatest cricketer in England. In 1873/4, Grace himself led a tour to Australia which included four amateurs. The most important game was played and won against a XV of New South Wales and Victoria. Up to this point, all but one match had been played against odds.
The first Test tour: 1876/77
Two Englishmen tried to promote separate tours to Australia for the 1876/77 season: James LillywhiteJames Lillywhite
James Lillywhite was a first-class and Test cricketer and umpire. He was the first ever captain of the English cricket team in a Test match, captaining 2 Tests against Australia in 1876-77, losing the first, but winning the second.Lillywhite was born in Westhampnett in Sussex, the son of a...
pushed a tour of professional cricketers, while Fred Grace
Fred Grace
George Frederick Grace was the youngest of the three Grace brothers to play Test cricket for England.Although his elder brothers E. M. and W. G...
(another of that immortal kin) promoted one that would have included amateurs. Despite the many initial preparations for Grace's tour, it fell through, leaving Lillywhite's to go solo. It visited New Zealand first and then Australia. Its highlights were two games against a Combined Australia XI, which later came to be recognised as the first Test Matches.
Lillywhite's team was considered weak. It did not include any of the leading amateurs of the day, like "The Champion" WG Grace, and was further handicapped after its only specialist wicketkeeper, Ted Pooley
Ted Pooley
Edward William 'Ted' Pooley was an English cricketer. Ted Pooley's greatest claim to fame is that he should have been England's first Test match wicket keeper...
, was left behind in New Zealand facing a charge of assault. The Australasian wrote of Lillywhite's men that they were
by a long way the weakest side that have ever played in the colonies, notwithstanding the presence of ShawAlfred ShawAlfred Shaw was an eminent Victorian cricketer and rugby footballer, who bowled the first ball in Test cricket and was the first to take five wickets in a Test innings . He who organised the first British Isles rugby tour to Australasia in 1888...
, who is termed the premier bowler of England. If UlyettGeorge UlyettGeorge Ulyett was an English all-round cricketer, noted particularly for his very-aggressive batsmanship. A well-liked man , Ulyett was popularly known as "Happy Jack", once musing memorably that Yorkshire played him only for his good behaviour and his whistling...
, Emmett, and HillAllen HillAllen Hill played in the first-ever cricket Test, taking the first wicket. Hill also went on to umpire in the Test match played at Lord's in 1890....
are specimens of the best fast bowling in England, all we can say is, either they have not shown their proper form, or British bowling has sadly deteriorated.
The first Test, against a Combined Australia XI, was billed as the "Grand Combination Match", and was scheduled to be held at the East Melbourne Cricket Ground
East Melbourne Cricket Ground
The East Melbourne Cricket Ground was a sports venue located at the corner of Wellington Parade and Jolimont Parade, in East Melbourne, Victoria, Australia...
, because the Melbourne Cricket Ground
Melbourne Cricket Ground
The Melbourne Cricket Ground is an Australian sports stadium located in Yarra Park, Melbourne and is home to the Melbourne Cricket Club. It is the tenth largest stadium in the world, the largest in Australia, the largest stadium for playing cricket, and holds the world record for the highest light...
had been booked by Grace. With Grace having pulled out, however, Lillywhite moved his matches to the larger, and more profitable, MCG, to the considerable ire of the East Melbourne functionaries. The Combined Australia XI included cricketers from New South Wales
New South Wales Blues
The New South Wales cricket team are an Australian first class cricket team based in Sydney, New South Wales...
and Victoria
Victorian Bushrangers
The Victorian cricket team, nicknamed the Bushrangers, is an Australian cricket team based in Melbourne, that represents the state of Victoria. It is administered by Cricket Victoria and draws its players from Melbourne's Premier Cricket competition...
, but there were also some notable absentees. Fred Spofforth
Fred Spofforth
Frederick Robert "Fred" Spofforth , also known as "The Demon Bowler", was arguably the Australian cricket team's finest pace bowler of the nineteenth century and was the first bowler to take 50 Test wickets, and the first to take a test hat-trick in 1879...
, Australia's legendary "Demon Bowler", did not play in the first Test as a show of dissent at the non-selection of Billy Murdoch
Billy Murdoch
William Lloyd Murdoch was an Australian cricketer, who captained the Australian team on tours to England in 1880, 1882 , 1884 and 1890...
, the New South Wales wicket-keeper
Wicket-keeper
The wicket-keeper in the sport of cricket is the player on the fielding side who stands behind the wicket or stumps being guarded by the batsman currently on strike...
to whom he then attributed much of his success. He declared that he would play only if Murdoch kept wicket, but Jack Blackham
Jack Blackham
John McCarthy Blackham was a Test cricketer who played for Victoria and Australia.A specialist wicket-keeper, Blackham played in the first Test match at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in March 1877 and the famous Ashes Test match of 1882...
had already been chosen. Spofforth's appeal was seen as a display of insolence shocking in a man of twenty-three. "As this could not be arranged," went the sardonic remark of the time, "this modest gentleman was left out." Despite the name of the Australian side, all but four of its members were British-born.
The first Test
At 13:00 on March 15, 1877, the first Test began. It was dominated by Charles BannermanCharles Bannerman
Charles Bannerman was an Australian Test cricketer, a right-hand batsman, who played domestic cricket for New South Wales....
, who scored the first single
Single (cricket)
In the sport of cricket, a single is scored when the batsman take one run, either following a successful shot or when running for a bye or leg bye ....
in Test history off Alfred Shaw's second ball, was dropped on ten by Tom Armitage
Tom Armitage
Thomas Armitage was an English cricketer, who played in two Tests for England. He holds the distinction, alphabetically sorted, of being the first capped England player.-Life and career:...
off the same bowler (who himself would drop Bannerman twice) and had 27 by lunch at 14:00, with the Combined XI 42 for three. Bannerman increased his scoring rate after the interval and reached his century at 16:25, by which time the crowd was around 4,500. By the close of play at 17:00, he had moved on to 126, and Combined Australia was 166 for six. Bannerman took his score to 165 on the second day before he was forced to retire hurt after a delivery from George Ulyett split the index finger of his right hand. Australia was 240 for 7 at that stage; the innings promptly collapsed to 245 all out.
Bannerman scored 67% of the runs in the innings
Innings
An inning, or innings, is a fixed-length segment of a game in any of a variety of sports – most notably cricket and baseball during which one team attempts to score while the other team attempts to prevent the first from scoring. In cricket, the term innings is both singular and plural and is...
, which remains a record today. His score is still the highest by an Australian on Test debut, and the ninth highest by all players. His performance so impressed the public that a subscription raised more than £80 for him.
On the third day, a Saturday, play started earlier at 12:15. There were approximately 12,000 spectators in the ground, a figure abetted by England's having conceded a first-innings lead. Lillywhite's XI fought back, though, with five for 38 from Shaw and three for 39 from Ulyett. By the close, Australia had been reduced to 83 for nine, a lead of just 132.
On the fourth morning, Australia's last-wicket stand extended the lead to 153, and Lillywhite's XI collapsed to 108 all out in just over two hours. Australia thus won by 45 runs, and the crowd was vociferous in its congratulations. Captain Dave Gregory
Dave Gregory (cricketer)
David William Gregory was an Australian cricketer of the 19th century. A right-handed batsman, Gregory was the first Australian national cricket captain, leading the side for the first three recognised Test matches between England and Australia in March and April 1877 and January 1879...
, was given a gold medal by the Victorian Cricket Association
Cricket Victoria
Cricket Victoria is the governing body for the sport of cricket in Victoria. It was formed on 29 September 1875 as the Victorian Cricket Association...
, while his team-mates received silver medals. Losing captain James Lillywhite
James Lillywhite
James Lillywhite was a first-class and Test cricketer and umpire. He was the first ever captain of the English cricket team in a Test match, captaining 2 Tests against Australia in 1876-77, losing the first, but winning the second.Lillywhite was born in Westhampnett in Sussex, the son of a...
was magnanimous in defeat. "The win," he said, "was [...] a feather in their cap and a distinction that no Englishman will begrudge them [...]."
The second Test
Following the success of the first Test, a second was quickly arranged, with the tourists taking a larger slice of the gate receipts. Melbourne Cricket ClubMelbourne Cricket Club
The Melbourne Cricket Club is a sporting club based in Melbourne, Australia. It was founded in 1838 and is regarded as the oldest sporting club in Australia....
contributed £50 to the cost of bringing New South Welshmen, such as Spofforth and Murdoch, down to Melbourne. Lillywhite's team proved itself stronger than The Australasian had suggested, and went on to win the match.
On the first day, Australia won the toss but was tied down completely by the English bowlers. Billy Midwinter
Billy Midwinter
William Evans Midwinter was a cricketer who played four Test matches for England, sandwiched in between eight Tests that he played for Australia...
top-scored with 31 as Australia struggled slowly to 122 in 112.1 four-ball over
Over (cricket)
In the sport of cricket, an over is a set of six consecutive balls bowled in succession. An over is normally bowled by a single bowler. However, in the event of injury preventing a bowler from completing an over, it is completed by a teammate....
s. Australia struck back immediately, however, leaving England seven for two at the close. The attendance that first Saturday was poor, with only 4,500 paying to get into the ground.
The second day was all England's, as a solid performance took the score to 261 all out at the close, a lead of 139. Lillywhite's XI was so dominant that there were rumours that they had deliberately underperformed in the first game so as to secure better odds from bookmakers on winning the second, or at the very least bolster gate receipts.
England was still on top on the third day, despite a better Australian performance: at stumps, the hosts were 207 for seven, Lillywhite himself having picked up four wickets. Only 1,500 were watching by the time his side was set 121 to win on the Wednesday. Victory was secured by early afternoon.
The Test Matches, particularly the first one, greatly excited the colonial press. There was little coverage in England, however, and it was only later, once they were recognised as Tests, that any real note was taken of them there.
England in Australia 1876/7. Match length: Timeless. Balls per over: 4. Series result: Drawn 1-1.
| No. | Date | Home captain | Away captain | Venue | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 15,16,17,19 March 1877 | Dave Gregory Dave Gregory (cricketer) David William Gregory was an Australian cricketer of the 19th century. A right-handed batsman, Gregory was the first Australian national cricket captain, leading the side for the first three recognised Test matches between England and Australia in March and April 1877 and January 1879... |
James Lillywhite James Lillywhite James Lillywhite was a first-class and Test cricketer and umpire. He was the first ever captain of the English cricket team in a Test match, captaining 2 Tests against Australia in 1876-77, losing the first, but winning the second.Lillywhite was born in Westhampnett in Sussex, the son of a... |
Melbourne Cricket Ground Melbourne Cricket Ground The Melbourne Cricket Ground is an Australian sports stadium located in Yarra Park, Melbourne and is home to the Melbourne Cricket Club. It is the tenth largest stadium in the world, the largest in Australia, the largest stadium for playing cricket, and holds the world record for the highest light... |
AUS by 45 runs |
| 2 | 31 March, 2,3,4 April 1877 | Dave Gregory Dave Gregory (cricketer) David William Gregory was an Australian cricketer of the 19th century. A right-handed batsman, Gregory was the first Australian national cricket captain, leading the side for the first three recognised Test matches between England and Australia in March and April 1877 and January 1879... |
James Lillywhite James Lillywhite James Lillywhite was a first-class and Test cricketer and umpire. He was the first ever captain of the English cricket team in a Test match, captaining 2 Tests against Australia in 1876-77, losing the first, but winning the second.Lillywhite was born in Westhampnett in Sussex, the son of a... |
Melbourne Cricket Ground Melbourne Cricket Ground The Melbourne Cricket Ground is an Australian sports stadium located in Yarra Park, Melbourne and is home to the Melbourne Cricket Club. It is the tenth largest stadium in the world, the largest in Australia, the largest stadium for playing cricket, and holds the world record for the highest light... |
ENG by 4 wkts |
The tours of 1878Australian cricket team in England and North America in 1878In 1878, an Australian cricket team made the inaugural first-class tour of England by a representative overseas side. The tour followed one made by an England cricket team to Australia in 1876/77, during which the first Test matches were played....
, 1878–79 and 1880Australian cricket team in England in 1880The Australian cricket team in England in 1880 played nine first-class matches including one Test, which was the first ever played in England. They were captained by W.L. Murdoch...
Marylebone Cricket Club
Marylebone Cricket Club is a cricket club in London founded in 1787. Its influence and longevity now witness it as a private members' club dedicated to the development of cricket. It owns, and is based at, Lord's Cricket Ground in St John's Wood, London NW8. MCC was formerly the governing body of...
team that included Grace by nine wickets. Although the MCC is considered stronger than Lillywhite's 1876-77 men, the match has not been accorded Test status. Still, its result did much to increase the reputation of Australian cricket in England.
The success of the tour encouraged Lillywhite and Shaw to raise another team to visit Australia, but they both withdrew when the MCC asked Lord Harris
George Harris, 4th Baron Harris
George Robert Canning Harris, 4th Baron Harris, GCSI, GCIE was a British politician, cricketer and cricket administrator...
to lead a tour. The captaincy was first offered to Monkey Hornby
A. N. Hornby
Albert Neilson Hornby, commonly designated A. N. Hornby, nicknamed Monkey Hornby was one of the best known sportsmen in England during the nineteenth century excelling in both rugby and cricket...
, but he demurred to his Lordship. The team was originally intended to be all amateur, but, in the end, professionals Emmett and Ulyett were added to the squad, mostly for bowling duties. Harris and Hornby brought their wives with them.
The highlight of the tour was the match billed as an "English XI" versus "Dave Gregory's Australian XI", which was later recognised as a Test. Harris's side was weak, with a long batting tail. The game was largely unremarkable, decided as it was primarily by the weather. Harris won the toss and elected to bat after thunderstorms struck on the morning before the opening afternoon's play. His side fell foul of this error and was soon all out for 113, Spofforth taking the first Test hat-trick
Test cricket hat-tricks
This is a list of all hat-tricks in Test cricket; that is, the occasions when a bowler has taken three wickets in consecutive deliveries in Test cricket matches. As of 30 July 2011, a hat-trick has been taken 39 times since the first Test match in 1877, most recently by English fast-medium bowler...
. Australia was 95 for three by stumps.
Australia was well ahead by the end of the second day. Around 7,000 spectators, the same as on the opening day, saw the score taken to 256. English round-arm fast bowler Tom Emmett secured a Test career-best of seven for 68. With England 103 for six at the close, it was clear that the third day would not last long. England reached 160, and Australia knocked off the nineteen required runs in only eleven deliveries. The early finish led to an impromptu second match between an MCC XI and a New Zealand team from Canterbury
Canterbury, New Zealand
The New Zealand region of Canterbury is mainly composed of the Canterbury Plains and the surrounding mountains. Its main city, Christchurch, hosts the main office of the Christchurch City Council, the Canterbury Regional Council - called Environment Canterbury - and the University of Canterbury.-...
.
Five weeks after the match, one of cricket's early riots
Sydney Riot of 1879
The Sydney Riot of 1879 was a civil disorder that occurred at an early international cricket match. It took place in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, at the Association Ground, Moore Park, now known as the Sydney Cricket Ground, during a match between a touring English team captained by Lord...
took place and led to the cancellation of the return match. It was widely reported in England, as a consequence of which the 1880 Australian tour to England was guaranteed a frosty welcome. The team found it difficult to secure good opponents, with most counties turning it down, although Yorkshire
Yorkshire County Cricket Club
Yorkshire County Cricket Club represents the historic county of Yorkshire as one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure....
took it on in two unofficial matches; indeed, so sparse did the fixture list become that the side resorted to advertising itself, offering to play any team that would accept it. The English public was more sympathetic towards the Australian captain Billy Murdoch
Billy Murdoch
William Lloyd Murdoch was an Australian cricketer, who captained the Australian team on tours to England in 1880, 1882 , 1884 and 1890...
than his predecessor Dave Gregory
Dave Gregory (cricketer)
David William Gregory was an Australian cricketer of the 19th century. A right-handed batsman, Gregory was the first Australian national cricket captain, leading the side for the first three recognised Test matches between England and Australia in March and April 1877 and January 1879...
, however, and this led Harris to be persuaded by the secretary of Surrey County Cricket Club
Surrey County Cricket Club
Surrey County Cricket Club is one of the 18 professional county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Surrey. Its limited overs team is called the Surrey Lions...
, C. W. Alcock
C. W. Alcock
Charles William Alcock was an influential English sportsman and administrator. He was a major instigator in the development of both international football and cricket, as well as being the creator of the FA Cup....
, to put a team together to play them at Surrey's home ground, The Oval
The Oval
The Kia Oval, still commonly referred to by its original name of The Oval, is an international cricket ground in Kennington, in the London Borough of Lambeth. In the past it was also sometimes called the Kennington Oval...
.
In view of what had happened at Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
, this was a generous gesture by his Lordship. Hornby, Emmett and Ulyett, three of the players who saw the riot, refused to play, but Harris assembled a strong team that included the Grace brotherhood, making for the first instance of three sibling playing in the same Test. Australia was without star bowler Spofforth, who had sustained a hand injury in Yorkshire from a decidedly illicit local bowler.
The 1880 Test match was well attended: there were 20,814 paying spectators on the Monday, 19,863 on Tuesday and 3,751 on Wednesday. For the first two days, it was a one-sided affair. WG Grace hit 152 as England piled up 420, all but ten of which came on the first day.
On the second day, Australia scored 149 and was forced to follow-on, slumping to 170 for six at the close, still 101 behind. A chanceless and undefeated 153 by Murdoch lifted Australia to 327, forcing England to bat again. The hosts, chasing a target of just 57, sunk to 31 for five before WG saw them to a five-wicket victory. Significantly, the animosity that arose from the Sydney Riot was overcome, this match helping to cement the custom of cricket tours between England and Australia.
England in Australia 1878/9. Match length: Timeless. Balls per over: 4. One-off Test. Result: Australia win.
| No. | Date | Home captain | Away captain | Venue | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 2,3,4 January 1879 | Dave Gregory Dave Gregory (cricketer) David William Gregory was an Australian cricketer of the 19th century. A right-handed batsman, Gregory was the first Australian national cricket captain, leading the side for the first three recognised Test matches between England and Australia in March and April 1877 and January 1879... |
Lord Harris | Melbourne Cricket Ground Melbourne Cricket Ground The Melbourne Cricket Ground is an Australian sports stadium located in Yarra Park, Melbourne and is home to the Melbourne Cricket Club. It is the tenth largest stadium in the world, the largest in Australia, the largest stadium for playing cricket, and holds the world record for the highest light... |
AUS by 10 wkts |
Australia in England 1880. Match length: Timeless. Balls per over: 4. One-off Test. Result: England win.
| No. | Date | Home captain | Away captain | Venue | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | 6,7,8 September 1880 | Lord Harris | Billy Murdoch Billy Murdoch William Lloyd Murdoch was an Australian cricketer, who captained the Australian team on tours to England in 1880, 1882 , 1884 and 1890... |
The Oval The Oval The Kia Oval, still commonly referred to by its original name of The Oval, is an international cricket ground in Kennington, in the London Borough of Lambeth. In the past it was also sometimes called the Kennington Oval... |
ENG by 5 wkts |
Lillywhite, Shaw and Shrewsbury's first tour 1881/2
James Lillywhite
James Lillywhite was a first-class and Test cricketer and umpire. He was the first ever captain of the English cricket team in a Test match, captaining 2 Tests against Australia in 1876-77, losing the first, but winning the second.Lillywhite was born in Westhampnett in Sussex, the son of a...
invited Shaw
Alfred Shaw
Alfred Shaw was an eminent Victorian cricketer and rugby footballer, who bowled the first ball in Test cricket and was the first to take five wickets in a Test innings . He who organised the first British Isles rugby tour to Australasia in 1888...
to join him in promoting and managing a tour to Australia. Shaw was concerned that the financial burdens may be too great for two men, so Arthur Shrewsbury
Arthur Shrewsbury
Arthur Shrewsbury was an English cricketer, and rugby football administrator, who organised the first British Isles rugby tour to Australasia in 1888, and who was widely rated as competing with W. G...
was brought in as a third backer. After Lord Harris's intervening tour, the three men put together their first tour to Australia in 1881, going via America. At the time Shaw was rated England's best defensive bowler and Shrewsbury England's best defensive batsmen. Lillywhite no longer played, but did umpire in a number of games. All the tourists were professional players.
They lost money on the American leg of the tour, and could only scrape together less than £1,000 to pay for their steamship journey to Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
. This was made worse as the Americans refused to accept Bank of England banknotes as payment, and the captain of their ship, the SS Australia, a Sydneysider himself, personally agreed to guarantee their fare.
Betting scandals have been part of cricket from its earliest days, and it was in a match against Victoria before the first Test of the tour that they surfaced. There was very heavy betting on the match. Victoria needed 94 runs to win in the last innings when the tourists' boat was due to leave, meaning that the match would be a draw. The Victorians, anxious for a win, asked Shaw and Lillywhite to play out the game. They agreed, but only if the sailing of their boat was delayed till 7pm after the match; to their surprise, the boat company consented. However, there were rumours that two Englishmen had tried to throw the game. In response Shaw bet £1 on an England victory and made every other member of his team do likewise. Remarkably, the Victorians were bowled out for 75, leaving Shaw's side the winner by 18 runs. But the rumours of match-fixing did not go away: On the boat journey to Adelaide, Billy Midwinter
Billy Midwinter
William Evans Midwinter was a cricketer who played four Test matches for England, sandwiched in between eight Tests that he played for Australia...
, who is the only man to play Test cricket for England against Australia and Australia against England, made accusations that led to a scuffle with the two men believed to have been implicated. Discretion from those reporting the tour means that the names of the alleged match-fixers cannot be identified with any certainty, but it was suggested that one of the players had dropped the simplest of catches, the other taken a catch only after the ball got into his shirtsleeve and became stuck.
Later Shaw said, "It was a remarkably curious circumstance." The Australasian wrote, "Professional cricketers who keep late hours, make bets to some and are seen drinking champagne at an early hours with members of the betting tent cannot be surprised if people put a wrong construction on their conduct."
When the Test matches were played, for the first time a South Australian, George Giffen
George Giffen
George Giffen was a cricketer who played for South Australia and Australia. An all-rounder who batted in the middle order and often opened the bowling with medium-paced off-spin, Giffen captained Australia during the 1894–95 Ashes series and was the first Australian to score 10,000 runs and...
, was selected to play. The first Test saw the biggest crowds then on record: 16,500 on the Saturday; 20,000 on the Monday and 10,000 on the Tuesday. England had the better of a game that was drawn after the fourth day as Shaw's side needed to catch a steamship for New Zealand at 6.30pm. Chasing 277 Australia had made 127 for 3 by the end of the game.
In the second Test, England made a tortuous 133 in 115 four-ball overs, with Eugene Palmer
Eugene Palmer
Eugene Palmer is a Jamaican born British artist. His work uses archival records, photographs, and contemporary media imagery as basis for his paintings. Palmer has had a long association with art curators and exhibitors Eddie Chambers and Keith Piper and is recognised as one of the leading Black...
taking 7 for 68. By close of play on the first day, Australia were in the driving seat at 86 for 1. Whilst England recovered to dismiss them for 197 and then made 232 themselves, they were never going to stop Australia getting the 169 runs they needed to win. The third Test was even more one-sided. England got 188. Then Australia made 262, with Percy McDonnell
Percy McDonnell
Percy Stanislaus McDonnell was an Australian cricketer who captained the Australian Test team in six matches, including the tour of England in 1888....
making 147, Alec Bannerman 70, and no other batsman scoring more than 7! England again collapsed to 134, and Australia won by 6 wickets.
Although the fourth Test was billed as being "timeless", in practice, because of Shaw's team's other engagements, the game could only last four days. After three days only 22 wickets had fallen, with the most notable performance being a Test-career best 149 for George Ulyett
George Ulyett
George Ulyett was an English all-round cricketer, noted particularly for his very-aggressive batsmanship. A well-liked man , Ulyett was popularly known as "Happy Jack", once musing memorably that Yorkshire played him only for his good behaviour and his whistling...
. The fourth day of the fourth Test was wiped out by rain, and so the Test was drawn. The Englishmen went to their other commitments, and the Australians set sail to England.
England in Australia 1881/2. Match length: Timeless. Balls per over: 4. Series result: Australia win 2-0.
| No. | Date | Home captain | Away captain | Venue | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | 31 December 1881, 2,3,4 January 1882 | Billy Murdoch Billy Murdoch William Lloyd Murdoch was an Australian cricketer, who captained the Australian team on tours to England in 1880, 1882 , 1884 and 1890... |
Alfred Shaw Alfred Shaw Alfred Shaw was an eminent Victorian cricketer and rugby footballer, who bowled the first ball in Test cricket and was the first to take five wickets in a Test innings . He who organised the first British Isles rugby tour to Australasia in 1888... |
Melbourne Cricket Ground Melbourne Cricket Ground The Melbourne Cricket Ground is an Australian sports stadium located in Yarra Park, Melbourne and is home to the Melbourne Cricket Club. It is the tenth largest stadium in the world, the largest in Australia, the largest stadium for playing cricket, and holds the world record for the highest light... |
DRAWN by agreement |
| 6 | 17,18,20,21 February 1882 | Billy Murdoch Billy Murdoch William Lloyd Murdoch was an Australian cricketer, who captained the Australian team on tours to England in 1880, 1882 , 1884 and 1890... |
Alfred Shaw Alfred Shaw Alfred Shaw was an eminent Victorian cricketer and rugby footballer, who bowled the first ball in Test cricket and was the first to take five wickets in a Test innings . He who organised the first British Isles rugby tour to Australasia in 1888... |
Sydney Cricket Ground Sydney Cricket Ground The Sydney Cricket Ground is a sports stadium in Sydney in Australia. It is used for Australian football, Test cricket, One Day International cricket, some rugby league and rugby union matches and is the home ground for the New South Wales Blues cricket team and the Sydney Swans of the Australian... |
AUS by 5 wkts |
| 7 | 3,4,6,7 March 1882 | Billy Murdoch Billy Murdoch William Lloyd Murdoch was an Australian cricketer, who captained the Australian team on tours to England in 1880, 1882 , 1884 and 1890... |
Alfred Shaw Alfred Shaw Alfred Shaw was an eminent Victorian cricketer and rugby footballer, who bowled the first ball in Test cricket and was the first to take five wickets in a Test innings . He who organised the first British Isles rugby tour to Australasia in 1888... |
Sydney Cricket Ground Sydney Cricket Ground The Sydney Cricket Ground is a sports stadium in Sydney in Australia. It is used for Australian football, Test cricket, One Day International cricket, some rugby league and rugby union matches and is the home ground for the New South Wales Blues cricket team and the Sydney Swans of the Australian... |
AUS by 6 wkts |
| 8 | 10,11,13,14 March 1882 | Billy Murdoch Billy Murdoch William Lloyd Murdoch was an Australian cricketer, who captained the Australian team on tours to England in 1880, 1882 , 1884 and 1890... |
Alfred Shaw Alfred Shaw Alfred Shaw was an eminent Victorian cricketer and rugby footballer, who bowled the first ball in Test cricket and was the first to take five wickets in a Test innings . He who organised the first British Isles rugby tour to Australasia in 1888... |
Melbourne Cricket Ground Melbourne Cricket Ground The Melbourne Cricket Ground is an Australian sports stadium located in Yarra Park, Melbourne and is home to the Melbourne Cricket Club. It is the tenth largest stadium in the world, the largest in Australia, the largest stadium for playing cricket, and holds the world record for the highest light... |
DRAWN by agreement |
Australia win in England 1882
Billy MurdochBilly Murdoch
William Lloyd Murdoch was an Australian cricketer, who captained the Australian team on tours to England in 1880, 1882 , 1884 and 1890...
's Australian side only played one Test in their 1882 tour. As hosts, Surrey County Cricket Club
Surrey County Cricket Club
Surrey County Cricket Club is one of the 18 professional county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Surrey. Its limited overs team is called the Surrey Lions...
asked A N Hornby to captain the side against them. It turned out to be Spofforth's
Fred Spofforth
Frederick Robert "Fred" Spofforth , also known as "The Demon Bowler", was arguably the Australian cricket team's finest pace bowler of the nineteenth century and was the first bowler to take 50 Test wickets, and the first to take a test hat-trick in 1879...
match, however, as Australia's "Demon bowler" took fourteen wickets for ninety runs to bowl England out for 77 and give Australia victory by seven runs.
The rain-damaged pitch helped England's two left-arm bowlers, Barlow and Peate, who dismissed Australia for 63 in two-and-a-quarter hours. England made 101 in reply, with Spofforth taking 7 for 46. After more rain on the second day, Australia lifted its score to 122, thanks to a quickfire 55 from Massie
Hugh Massie
Hugh Hamon Massie was a cricketer who played for New South Wales and Australia.Massie's role in the 1882 Ashes Test at The Oval was almost as pivotal in deciding the result as Fred Spofforth's celebrated performance with the ball...
. The match was fiercely contested, as evidenced by WG Grace's gamesmanship in running out the naïve 21-year-old Sammy Jones
Sammy Jones
Samuel Percy "Sammy" Jones was an Australian cricketer who played twelve Tests between 1882 and 1888....
, who had been batting well with his captain. Murdoch hit one into the legside, and Jones reached the other end comfortably in time to make the single. He then left his crease to go and attend to a divot on the wicket. Grace whipped off the bails and appealed. Square-leg umpire Bob Thoms delivered his verdict: "If you claim it, Sir! Out!" Murdoch's protests fell on deaf ears; the run-out was quite legitimate, but Grace's unsporting behaviour irked the Australians, whose collective will to win was fired-up by it.
During the interval, Spofforth made an announcement to his team-mates in the dressing-room: "This thing can be done.!" In spite of being reduced to fifteen for two early on, England made a good start in its pursuit of a victory target of 85. The score rose to 51 for two, with Grace and Ulyett hitting out strongly. Spofforth changed ends, and Neville Cardus wrote thus of this move: "Now I was behind his arm; I could see his superb break-back. And he bowled mainly medium pace at this time. With each off-break I could see his right hand, at the end of the swing over, finish near the left side, 'cutting' under the ball. Sometimes his arm went straight over and continued straight down in the follow-through – and then the batsmen had to tackle fierce topspin. There was the sense of the inimical in his aspect now. He seemed taller than he was half an hour ago, the right arm more sinuous. There was no excitement in him he was ... cold-blooded."
Spofforth presently claimed Ulyett, and Boyle had Grace caught by Bannerman at mid-off, making it 53 for four. Now, amidst great tension, Lucas and Lyttleton played out twelve maiden overs in succession. "Suddenly", wrote CP Moody (the man famous for compiling the first accepted list of Test Matches), "a new phase came over the innings. The batsmen could not get the ball past fieldsmen. Spofforth was bowling the most remarkable break-backs at tremendous pace; Boyle, from the other end, maintained a perfect length; Blackham with matchless skill took every ball that passed the batsmen ... every fieldsman strained his nerves to the utmost." It was now that Spofforth suggested to his captain Murdoch that they allow the batsmen to change ends. Alec Bannerman deliberately misfielded a stroke from Lyttleton, allowing the batsmen to take a single and end the monotony. "Something of the spirit of the struggle", wrote Moody, "pervaded the thousands of spectators, and their oppressive silence was punctuated by a mighty shout when Lyttleton broke the spell with a single." This meant that Spofforth could now have a go at him. After four more runless overs, Spofforth knocked over Lyttleton's stumps. That made it 66 for five, England needing nineteen more to win.
"I observed the incoming batsmen", Tom Horan wrote later. "They had ashen faces and parched lips."." England had collapsed to 75 for 8, at which time Charles Studd
Charles Studd
Charles Thomas Studd, often known as C. T. Studd, was born 2 December 1860, Spratton, Northamptonshire, England, and died 16 July 1931, Ibambi, Belgian Congo....
, a batsman who had twice scored centuries against the Australians that summer arrived at the wicket. Studd had earlier been seen shivering, covered in a blanket in the pavilion. Studd denied the story that was put about that he was the victim of nerves, saying that he was cold due to the freezing weather.
"Now Boyle's perinacious accuracy was rewarded", wrote Moody. "Off the first ball of his over Barnes was caught off the glove by Murdoch at point." Last man Ted Peate came to the wicket now. "The scorer's hand shook so that he wrote Peate's name like 'Geese'", Horan tells us. Unfortunately, this can not be verified, as the England scorecard has been lost, and the Australian one reads very clearly and certainly does not say "Geese".
"Peate", wrote Moody, "swished the first ball to leg for two, flukily played the next one, tried to hit the last ball of the over, but missed, and it bowled him. The game was won by seven runs." Studd had not faced a delivery. Peate later explained his actions, although there are numerous accounts of his actual words. Thankfully, they do not vary much from "Ah couldn't troost Maister Stood!"
One spectator died of heart failure at the end of the Australian innings (rather than during the tense finishing stages, as has often been claimed); another is said to have bitten through his brother-in-law's umbrella handle. For the first time, an England side had lost a Test Match in England.
Spofforth, having taken seven for 44 in this innings (making it fourteen for ninety in the match), bowled his last eleven overs for two runs and four wickets, those two runs and four wickets coming off his last seven deliveries. He was carried shoulder-high from the field. His break-backs had been almost unplayable on this wicket; indeed, Giffen believed that every single one of them would have destroyed the stumps had not the bat got in the way.
After the match, a mock obituary was famously inserted in the Sporting Times, which read:
- "In Affectionate Remembrance of ENGLISH CRICKET, which died at the Oval on 29th AUGUST, 1882, Deeply lamented by a large circle of sorrowing friends and acquaintances R.I.P.
- N.B. - The body will be cremated and the ashes taken to Australia."
Australia in England 1882. Match length: 3 days. Balls per over: 4. One off Test. Result: Australia win.
| No. | Date | Home captain | Away captain | Venue | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9 | 28,29 August 1882 | A N Hornby | Billy Murdoch Billy Murdoch William Lloyd Murdoch was an Australian cricketer, who captained the Australian team on tours to England in 1880, 1882 , 1884 and 1890... |
The Oval The Oval The Kia Oval, still commonly referred to by its original name of The Oval, is an international cricket ground in Kennington, in the London Borough of Lambeth. In the past it was also sometimes called the Kennington Oval... |
AUS by 7 runs |
Bligh reclaims the Ashes 1882/3
Bligh originally intended to tour Australia in 1882/3 with a team consisting only of Cambridge UniversityCambridge University Cricket Club
Cambridge University Cricket Club is a first-class cricket team. It now plays all but one of its first-class cricket matches as part of the Cambridge University Centre of Cricketing Excellence , which includes Anglia Ruskin University...
cricketers. (Oxford and Cambridge Universities had very highly-rated teams at the time.) This plan did not come fully to fruition, however, and Bligh ended up taking a team of eight amateurs and four professionals on the long voyage. Bligh was contracted to play three games against the same team that had beaten A N Hornby's side in England during the 1882 season, and he responded to the joke about the Ashes at dinner parties by saying his team would "beard the kangaroo in his den and try and recover those ashes". In response, at a banquet at the Melbourne Town Hall, Australian captain Billy Murdoch said, "Our boys fairly won the ashes and we confidently rely on them to retain possession or at least for the present. When, as we hope, we have shown our visitors that they cannot recover the ashes, we can then place the sacred dust in a suitable urn in our Public Library, as a curiosity to be shown to visitors with respect and esteem as the result of the Australian prowess in the cricket field."
Whilst Bligh's team was strong, it did miss three or four of the leading English cricketers, most notably WG Grace. On the way to Australia the side also survived a collision between their vessel, the SS Peshawaur and the Glen Roy 500 km south of Colombo
Colombo
Colombo is the largest city of Sri Lanka. It is located on the west coast of the island and adjacent to Sri Jayawardenapura Kotte, the capital of Sri Lanka. Colombo is often referred to as the capital of the country, since Sri Jayawardenapura Kotte is a satellite city of Colombo...
. Fast bowler Fred Morley
Fred Morley
Frederick Morley was a professional cricketer who was reckoned to be the fastest bowler in England during his prime...
suffered a broken rib and severe bruising, which limited his appearances on the tour and contributed to his early death two years later. Walter Read
Walter Read
Walter William Read was an English cricketer, who was a fluent right hand bat. An occasional bowler of lobs, he sometimes switched to quick overarm deliveries. He captained England in two Test matches, winning them both...
had this to say: "It was altogether a terrible affair, and it is a wonder we were not all drowned."
The first two representative games were styled as the "Honourable Ivo Bligh's Team versus Mr Murdoch's XI". The Aussies took £200 per player in each of these games as record-breaking crowds poured into the M.C.G., and the New Year's Day attendance was 23,000. The highlight of the first Test was an innings of 85 in 135 minutes from George Bonnor
George Bonnor
George John Bonnor was an Australian cricketer, known for his big hitting, who played between 1880 and 1888.-Career:...
as Australia made 291 in its first innings. Rain came down during the England innings, making the pitch more difficult than it had been. England, struggling to cope with this, made only 177 and was forced to follow on 114 runs behind. Mr Murdoch's XI won easily by 9 wickets, and the Colonial press saw the victory as confirmation of Australia's superiority. Bligh, however, later commented, "Some of us still cherished the hope that our turn was yet to come."
The second game was more controversial. As the pitch deteriorated there were arguments as to which bowlers were responsible for encroaching onto it. When Bates, an occasional spin bowler on the tour, took England's first Test cricket hat-trick
Test cricket hat-tricks
This is a list of all hat-tricks in Test cricket; that is, the occasions when a bowler has taken three wickets in consecutive deliveries in Test cricket matches. As of 30 July 2011, a hat-trick has been taken 39 times since the first Test match in 1877, most recently by English fast-medium bowler...
, there were suggestions that he had been aided by Barlow's footmarks. Bligh asked Barlow to change his shoes to pacify things, although the English later accused Spofforth of damaging the pitch too. Bligh's success at the toss helped England enormously, however, and Australia capitulated to an innings defeat.
After the controversy in the second Test at Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
, it was agreed to use two pitches at Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
in the third match of the series, which stood at one-all now. After winning the toss, England made 247, and Australia replied with 218. In the latter innings, Alec Bannerman batted just over four hours to score 94. Figures of seven for 44 from Fred Spofforth
Fred Spofforth
Frederick Robert "Fred" Spofforth , also known as "The Demon Bowler", was arguably the Australian cricket team's finest pace bowler of the nineteenth century and was the first bowler to take 50 Test wickets, and the first to take a test hat-trick in 1879...
saw England collapse to 123, before Dick Barlow's seven for 40 had the Australians collapsing themselves to 83 and losing by 69 runs. Bligh had won the three match series 2-1, and England's pride was restored.
A fourth match was played against a "United Australian XI", which was even stronger than Murdoch's team that had lost the Ashes. As an experiment, a separate pitch was prepared for each innings. Australia won the game by 4 wickets, but it was (and still is) not recognised as a part of the Ashes
The Ashes
The Ashes is a Test cricket series played between England and Australia. It is one of the most celebrated rivalries in international cricket and dates back to 1882. It is currently played biennially, alternately in the United Kingdom and Australia. Cricket being a summer sport, and the venues...
series of 1882/83. England won the toss once again and batted first, 135 Allan Steel scoring 135 to see the tourists to 263. Australia's response was one less at 262, but England's 197 in the second innings did not set much of a target, and Australia won comfortably. A fifth match was proposed and discussed, but it did not materialise.
England in Australia 1882/3. Match length: Timeless. Balls per over: 4. Series result: England win 2-1.
| No. | Date | Home captain | Away captain | Venue | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 | 30 December 1882,1,2 January 1883 | Billy Murdoch Billy Murdoch William Lloyd Murdoch was an Australian cricketer, who captained the Australian team on tours to England in 1880, 1882 , 1884 and 1890... |
Ivo Bligh | Melbourne Cricket Ground Melbourne Cricket Ground The Melbourne Cricket Ground is an Australian sports stadium located in Yarra Park, Melbourne and is home to the Melbourne Cricket Club. It is the tenth largest stadium in the world, the largest in Australia, the largest stadium for playing cricket, and holds the world record for the highest light... |
AUS by 9 wkts |
| 11 | 19,20,22 January 1883 | Billy Murdoch Billy Murdoch William Lloyd Murdoch was an Australian cricketer, who captained the Australian team on tours to England in 1880, 1882 , 1884 and 1890... |
Ivo Bligh | Melbourne Cricket Ground Melbourne Cricket Ground The Melbourne Cricket Ground is an Australian sports stadium located in Yarra Park, Melbourne and is home to the Melbourne Cricket Club. It is the tenth largest stadium in the world, the largest in Australia, the largest stadium for playing cricket, and holds the world record for the highest light... |
ENG by Inns&27 runs |
| 12 | 26,27,29,30 January 1883 | Billy Murdoch Billy Murdoch William Lloyd Murdoch was an Australian cricketer, who captained the Australian team on tours to England in 1880, 1882 , 1884 and 1890... |
Ivo Bligh | Sydney Cricket Ground Sydney Cricket Ground The Sydney Cricket Ground is a sports stadium in Sydney in Australia. It is used for Australian football, Test cricket, One Day International cricket, some rugby league and rugby union matches and is the home ground for the New South Wales Blues cricket team and the Sydney Swans of the Australian... |
ENG by 69 runs |
England in Australia 1882/3. Match length: Timeless. Balls per over: 4. One off Test. Result: Australia won.
| No. | Date | Home captain | Away captain | Venue | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13 | 17,19,20,21 February 1883 | Billy Murdoch Billy Murdoch William Lloyd Murdoch was an Australian cricketer, who captained the Australian team on tours to England in 1880, 1882 , 1884 and 1890... |
Ivo Bligh | Sydney Cricket Ground Sydney Cricket Ground The Sydney Cricket Ground is a sports stadium in Sydney in Australia. It is used for Australian football, Test cricket, One Day International cricket, some rugby league and rugby union matches and is the home ground for the New South Wales Blues cricket team and the Sydney Swans of the Australian... |
AUS by 4 wkts |
Continued on: History of Test cricket (1884 to 1889)
History of Test cricket (1884 to 1889)
The history of Test cricket between 1884 and 1889 was one of English dominance over the Australians. England won every Test series that was played. The period also saw the first use of the word "Test" to describe a form of cricket when the Press used it in 1885...