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1750 English cricket season
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1749 1749 English cricket season 1751 1751 English cricket season
The 1750 English cricket season saw the deaths of Robert Colchin ("Long Robin") and Charles Lennox, 2nd Duke of Richmond. A total of twelve historically important matches were recorded. Single wicket remained popular; in the eleven-a-side form, Kent played Surrey in three inter-county matches.note status Any match listed in the ACS' Important Match Guide (1981) is historically important, and therefore of the highest standard, whether or not a scorecard might exist. The same applies to numerous matches discovered by researchers since 1981.ACS 1981 1–40 For further information, see First-class cricket.
Kent v Surrey
On Friday, 6 July, Kent played Surrey on Dartford Brent.ACS 1981 22 Surrey scored 57 and 36; Kent replied with 54 and 40/7 to win by 3 wickets. No individual scores are known, but the teams were:Maun 2009 204https://archive.acscricket.com/cricket/1900/73/ Ashley-Cooper F. S. F. S. Ashley-Cooper At the Sign of the Wicket Cricket: A Weekly Record of the Game Merritt & Hatcher Ltd London XIX 534 67–69 19 April 1900 ACS
Kent: William Hodsoll, Rawlings, James Bryant, John Bryant, Garrett, John Bell, Broad, Thomas Bell, Val Romney, Thomas Brandon, Howard.
Surrey: Stephen Dingate, Tom Faulkner, Joe Harris, John Harris, George Jackson, Robert Bartholomew, John Frame, Frame, Maynard, John Capon, Perry.
The first name of John Frame's brother is unknown. Kent were without Robert Colchin, who had died in April, aged 36.
There was a return match three days later on the Artillery Ground.ACS 1981 22 Kent scored 53 and 55; Surrey replied with 80 and 29/1 to win with some ease, by 9 wickets. The teams were unchanged from the first match but, again, no individual scores are known.
The third match, which may have been arranged as a decider, was played 20 July on the Artillery Ground.ACS 1981 22 Surrey scored 55 and 42; Kent replied with 63 and 35/9 to win a very tight contest by 1 wicket. Five runs were still needed when the penultimate wicket fell. The teams were unchanged from the two previous matches but again there are no individual scores. The London Club ruled beforehand that players must reside in the county they play for. The Frames still lived at Warlingham in 1750, though John Frame was latterly associated with Dartford.
Dartford v Addington
In a match played Tuesday, 17 July, Dartford hosted Addington on Dartford Brent.ACS 1981 22
Dartford scored 46 and 34; Addington replied with 39 and 35, so Dartford won by 6 runs. William Hodsoll and the two Bryants all played for Dartford as given men. According to the London Evening Post on Thursday, 19 July, Dartford lost five second innings wickets in five successive deliveries by a mixture of caught and bowled, but they still made enough to win. The source says: "It is remarkable Dartford had five men bowled and caught out in five succeeding bowls the last hands".Buckley 1935 24
Single wicket matches
On Thursday, 26 July, Five of Richmond played Five of London for a guinea a man on the Artillery Ground. No details are known.
During September, there was a series of "fives" between Stephen Dingate's Five and Tom Faulkner's Five. All three matches were played on the Artillery Ground. The first match on Monday, 10 September was played for fifty guineas. Faulkner's Five won this one. The teams were:
Stephen Dingate, James Bryant, John Bryant, John Bell, and Thomas Bell
Tom Faulkner, Joe Harris, John Harris, William Durling, and Perry.
The second match on Friday, 14 September ended in a tie, both teams totalling nine. As single-wicket rules applied, all batsmen were out. It is known they were all bowled (but not by whom), except for Dingate who was caught in the second innings; Thomas Bell, who was run out in the second innings; and Joe Harris who was caught in the second innings while he was apparently trying to hit the winning run.
The third and deciding game on Monday, 17 September was won by Faulkner's Five by an innings and one run. Dingate's Five scored 10 and 18, but Faulkner's Five scored 29. The individual figures in the recorded score of the Dingate second innings add up to 20, but 18 was definitely the correct total so one or more of the individual scores was wrong.
A game was announced for Monday, 24 September between Five of London and Five of Addington but nothing further is known.Maun 2009 208
Deaths
Robert Colchin (1713–1750), also known as "Long Robin", died at Deptford on or about Monday, 27 April. The cause was apparently smallpox.Maun 2009 203
Charles Lennox, 2nd Duke of Richmond (1701–1750), who was arguably the greatest of the game's early patrons, died at Godalming on Wednesday, 8 August.Maun 2009 206
Other events
Rowland Bowen recorded cricket being "played by the military" at Perth, the earliest known mention of the game in Scotland.Bowen 1970 264
In At the Sign of the Wicket, F. S. Ashley-Cooper gives the opinion that the Hambledon Club was founded in or about 1750, but there is no evidence to support this view, and the club's origin remains unknown.
A match between "Two Elevens" was arranged for Monday, 18 June, on the Artillery Ground. The unnamed teams played for 50 guineas, and were composed entirely of players from Kent, London, Middlesex, and Surrey. The result is unknown.ACS 1981 22
On Friday, 20 July, Bearsted played Hadlow at an unknown venue. There was a one-line announcement in the Kentish Weekly Post on Saturday, 21 June. No other details are known.Buckley 1935 24
On Wednesday, 8 August, London played Hampton on the Artillery Ground. No details were reported.ACS 1981 22
First mentions
Countries
Scotland (re a military match in Perth)Bowen 1970 264
Players
Robert Bartholomew (Surrey)Maun 2009 204
Thomas Brandon (Dartford/Kent)Maun 2009 204
Frame (Surrey)Maun 2009 204
Garrett (Kent)Maun 2009 204
Rawlings (Kent)Maun 2009 204
Notes
note
References
Bibliography
ACS Association of Cricket Statisticians and Historians A Guide to Important Cricket Matches Played in the British Isles 1709–1863 1981 ACS Nottingham https://archive.acscricket.com/online_library/match_guides/bi_imp_match_guide/index.html 85045528
Bowen Rowland Rowland Bowen Cricket: A History of its Growth and Development 1970 Eyre & Spottiswoode London 978-04-13278-60-9
Buckley G. B. G. B. Buckley Fresh Light on 18th Century Cricket 1935 Cotterell & Co. Birmingham 23450280
Maun Ian Ian Maun From Commons to Lord's, Volume One: 1700 to 1750 2009 Roger Heavens Cambridge 978-19-00592-52-9
Further reading
Altham H. S. Harry Altham E. W. Swanton E. W. Swanton A History of Cricket, Volume 1 (to 1914) 5th 1962 George Allen & Unwin London 894274808
Birley Derek Derek Birley A Social History of English Cricket 1999 Aurum Press London 978-18-54107-10-7 https://archive.org/details/socialhistoryofe0000birl_d1n5 Internet Archive
Major John John Major More Than A Game 2007 HarperCollins London 978-00-07183-64-7 https://archive.org/details/morethangamestor0000majo_b8t0 Internet Archive
Marshall John John Marshall (cricket writer) The Duke Who Was Cricket Frederick Muller Ltd London 1961 11214571
Category:1750s in cricket
Category:English cricket seasons in the 18th century
Category:1750 in England