💡 Interesting Facts
American John Thayer is the only known first-class cricketer to have died on the RMS Titanic?Irish cricketer Leslie Kidd played his first first-class cricket matches for Cambridge University and played his last against them?cricketers Charles Winter, Charles Winter, and Charles Winter all failed to make double-figure scores when batting on their first-class debuts?Sydney Rippon, father of a UK Cabinet minister, played in a first-class cricket match under an assumed name so that his employer, the Inland Revenue, would not find out?Lennard Stokes, a 19th-century rugby union international who captained England on five occasions, also played first-class cricket for Kent and later worked as a surgeon?Jim Hutchinson, who died in 2000, was the longest-lived first-class cricket player, at 103 years and 344 days?Ken Cranston began playing Test cricket for the English cricket team within 8 weeks after his debut in first-class cricket in 1947, but retired in 1948 to concentrate on his career as a dentist?despite describing county cricket as being "a little over done", Joseph Gibbs made five first-class appearances for Somerset County Cricket Club?in 1935, David Townsend was the last England Test cricketer not to have played for one of the English first-class cricket counties?the father and two brothers of Pakistani cricketer Wasim Raja also played first-class cricket?when Ireland bowler Peter Connell took a hat-trick on his debut in first-class cricket, he was the first player to do so in an international match?the Irish cricket team didn't become an official member of the International Cricket Council until 1993, despite having played first-class cricket matches since 1902, including games against Scotland, Australia and New Zealand?the 1888/9 South African cricket season marks the beginning of first-class cricket in South Africa?in 1975 Zimbabwean Kantilal Kanjee became the first non-white umpire to stand in a first-class cricket match in South Africa?in a 1933 first-class cricket match, Jack Lee claimed the wicket of his older brother Harry, with the catch being taken by younger brother Frank?Henry Martyn was described by Wisden as "one of the finest wicket-keepers ever seen in first-class cricket"?Ernie Robson played his final first-class cricket match for Somerset aged 53, less than a year before his death?Kermit Roosevelt's co-brother-in-law Mervyn Herbert played first-class cricket for Somerset County Cricket Club and died in the British Embassy in Rome, Italy?Philadelphian Nelson Graves was only 14 years old when he made his first-class cricket debut?Irish cricketer Scott Huey was the last bowler to dismiss Sir Len Hutton in first-class cricket?Hampshire and England cricketer Derek Shackleton took over 100 wickets in 20 consecutive seasons of first-class cricket?first-class cricketer Bryan Lobb was such a poor judge of a run that he was once run out by a fielder who overtook him as he strolled down the wicket?Glamorgan County Cricket Club's 1921 promotion to first-class status was strongly aided by early fund-raisers organised by Vernon Hill?Abhimanyu Mithun was called up to the India Test squad only ten weeks after making his first-class cricket debut?Adrienne Beames, the daughter of Australian rules footballer, first-class cricketer, and journalist Percy Beames, was the first woman to break the 3-hour barrier in the marathon?Bob McLean, who is a member of the Australian Football Hall of Fame, also played first-class cricket and scored a double century in the Sheffield Shield?Edward Cawston made his first-class cricket debut for Sussex whilst he was still at school?Bill Ashdown is the only person to have played first-class cricket both before the First World War and after the Second World War?Andrew Jordaan was the first cricketer to be timed out in a first-class match after poor weather delayed him in reaching the ground to start his innings?Alex Cusack, on his debut in first-class cricket, partnered with Andre Botha to break a 111 year record?Alexander Wilkinson managed to play 74 more first-class cricket matches despite an injured hand that almost had to be amputated after World War I?English Test cricketer Graham Roope was batting at the non-striker's end when Geoff Boycott reached his 100th first-class century, but not when John Edrich achieved the same record one month earlier, despite many claims to the contrary?