Jack Russell (Essex cricketer)
Encyclopedia
Charles Albert George "Jack" Russell (erroneously written during his playing career as Albert Charles Russell) (7 October 1887, Leyton
, Essex
, England
– 23 March 1961, Whipps Cross
, Leytonstone
, Essex, England) was one of the leading batsmen in county cricket
during the period after World War I
. Russell's main strength was his leg-side play, but he was asound batsmen whose watchfulness made him effective on very difficult pitches.
A son of Essex's first regular wicket-keeper
and a cousin of Kent bowler Tich Freeman
, Russell first played for Essex in 1908 but did not establish himself until 1913. In that year he reached 1,000 runs and repeated this for the next three years, but it was only a knock of 197 against Middlesex at Lord's in 1920 that elevated Russell to the rank of a top-class batsman. His 2,432 runs was third-highest in the country behind Hobbs
and Hendren
and he was an automatic choice for that winter's Ashes tour. Though the failure of England's professional bowling on the rock-hard Australian wickets meant England lost all five Tests
, Russell did well with an average of 58.42 for all matches , including 135 at Adelaide. When his batting the following year was even better than in 1920, scoring two centuries.
1922 was Russell's finest season: his 2,575 runs was a personal best and placed him ahead of Hobbs as the leading run-scorer in the country. He was nominated for Cricketer of the Year, and scored 16 2at Lord's cricket ground
.
That winter, Russell went to South Africa and on the biting matting pitches achieved his finest performance with 436 runs for an average of almost 63. In the last Test - which decided the series - Russell was suffering from a serious illness and, it was admitted, should not have been playing. Yet, he made 140 in the first innings and (going in late) 111 in four and a half hours in the second. He was the first batsman to score a century in both innings of the same Test match for England.
However, illness severely affected Russell's performance in 1923: only after a rest of two weeks in late June did he recover anything like his best form, and his average fell from 52 to 29.71. This placed him out of calculations for representative honours, especially as Sutcliffe
established himself as a representative player that year. Nonetheless, in 1925 Russell hit seven centuries and scored 2,080 runs, whilst in 1928 he scored 131 and 104 against Lancashire, who were County Champions for the third successive year that season.
After an injury-affected year in 1929, Russell only played one more season before retiring to become county coach and later a groundsman. In 1949, twelve years before he died, Russell was among the first professional cricketers to be given membership of the MCC.
Leyton
Leyton is an area of north-east London and part of the London Borough of Waltham Forest, located north east of Charing Cross. It borders Walthamstow and Leytonstone; Stratford in Newham; and Homerton and Lower Clapton in the London Borough of Hackney....
, Essex
Essex
Essex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...
, 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...
– 23 March 1961, Whipps Cross
Whipps Cross
Whipps Cross is an area of the London Borough of Waltham Forest in London, England. It is most famous for Whipps Cross University Hospital.-The environs:...
, Leytonstone
Leytonstone
Leytonstone is an area of east London and part of the London Borough of Waltham Forest. It is a high density suburban area, located seven miles north east of Charing Cross in the ceremonial county of Greater London and the historic county of Essex...
, Essex, England) was one of the leading batsmen in county cricket
County cricket
County cricket is the highest level of domestic cricket in England and Wales. For the 2010 season, see 2010 English cricket season.-First-class counties:...
during the period after World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. Russell's main strength was his leg-side play, but he was asound batsmen whose watchfulness made him effective on very difficult pitches.
A son of Essex's first regular 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...
and a cousin of Kent bowler Tich Freeman
Tich Freeman
Alfred Percy "Tich" Freeman was an English cricketer. A leg spin bowler for Kent and England, he is the only man to take 300 wickets in an English season, and is the second most prolific wicket taker in first class cricket history.-Career:Freeman's common name comes from his extremely short...
, Russell first played for Essex in 1908 but did not establish himself until 1913. In that year he reached 1,000 runs and repeated this for the next three years, but it was only a knock of 197 against Middlesex at Lord's in 1920 that elevated Russell to the rank of a top-class batsman. His 2,432 runs was third-highest in the country behind Hobbs
Jack Hobbs
Sir John Berry "Jack" Hobbs was an English professional cricketer who played for Surrey from 1905 to 1934 and for England in 61 Test matches from 1908 to 1930....
and Hendren
Patsy Hendren
Elias Henry Hendren better known as Patsy Hendren was an English cricketer. Patsy was one of the most prolific English batsmen of the period between the wars, averaging 47.63 in his 51 Test matches...
and he was an automatic choice for that winter's Ashes tour. Though the failure of England's professional bowling on the rock-hard Australian wickets meant England lost all five Tests
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...
, Russell did well with an average of 58.42 for all matches , including 135 at Adelaide. When his batting the following year was even better than in 1920, scoring two centuries.
1922 was Russell's finest season: his 2,575 runs was a personal best and placed him ahead of Hobbs as the leading run-scorer in the country. He was nominated for Cricketer of the Year, and scored 16 2at Lord's cricket ground
Lord's Cricket Ground
Lord's Cricket Ground is a cricket venue in St John's Wood, London. Named after its founder, Thomas Lord, it is owned by Marylebone Cricket Club and is the home of Middlesex County Cricket Club, the England and Wales Cricket Board , the European Cricket Council and, until August 2005, the...
.
That winter, Russell went to South Africa and on the biting matting pitches achieved his finest performance with 436 runs for an average of almost 63. In the last Test - which decided the series - Russell was suffering from a serious illness and, it was admitted, should not have been playing. Yet, he made 140 in the first innings and (going in late) 111 in four and a half hours in the second. He was the first batsman to score a century in both innings of the same Test match for England.
However, illness severely affected Russell's performance in 1923: only after a rest of two weeks in late June did he recover anything like his best form, and his average fell from 52 to 29.71. This placed him out of calculations for representative honours, especially as Sutcliffe
Herbert Sutcliffe
Herbert Sutcliffe was an English professional cricketer who represented Yorkshire and England as an opening batsman. Apart from one match in 1945, his first-class career spanned the period between the two World Wars...
established himself as a representative player that year. Nonetheless, in 1925 Russell hit seven centuries and scored 2,080 runs, whilst in 1928 he scored 131 and 104 against Lancashire, who were County Champions for the third successive year that season.
After an injury-affected year in 1929, Russell only played one more season before retiring to become county coach and later a groundsman. In 1949, twelve years before he died, Russell was among the first professional cricketers to be given membership of the MCC.