1771 English cricket season

The 1771 English cricket season was the 28th season following the earliest known codification of the Laws of Cricket. Details have survived of 19 eleven-a-side matches between significant teams. The Monster Bat Incident occurred during the season.

1771 English cricket season

Matches

19 eleven-a-side match between significant teams are known to have taken place.[1][2]

  • 4 June – Lewes v Henfield – Lewes Downs
  • 13 June – Henfield v Broadwater – The Common, Henfield
  • 20 June – Henfield v Lewes – The Common, Henfield
  • July – Coulsdon v Henfield – Smith Bottom
  • 3 July – Gentleman of Kent v Gentlemen of Sussex – Tenterden
  • 8 July – Chertsey v Richmond, Hampton & Brentford – Laleham Burway
  • 15 July – Richmond, Hampton & Brentford v Chertsey – Richmond Green
  • 30 July – Gentlemen of Kent v Gentlemen of Sussex – Tenterden
  • 5 August – Middlesex, Kent & Surrey v Coulsdon – Artillery Ground
  • 5 August – Gentlemen of Kent v Gentlemen of Sussex – New Romney
  • 12 August – All-England v Hambledon – Guildford Bason
  • 12 August – Henfield v Coulsdon – The Common, Henfield
  • 20 August – Gentlemen of Hampshire v Gentlemen of Sussex – Broadhalfpenny Down
  • 23 August – Gentlemen of Sussex v Gentlemen of Hampshire – Valdo Corner, Goodwood
  • 26 August – Nottingham v Sheffield – Forest Racecourse, Nottingham
  • 28 August – Bourne v Middlesex & Surrey – Bourne Paddock
  • 4 September – Duke of Dorset's XI v Horace Mann's XI – Artillery Ground
  • 23 September – Chertsey v Hambledon – Laleham Burway
  • 30 September – Hambledon v Chertsey – Broadhalfpenny Down

Monster Bat Incident

During the match between Chertsey and Hambledon on 23 September, a Chertsey batsman, described as "one White of Reigate", used a cricket bat the width of the wicket. This enabled White, who is usually identified as either Thomas White or Shock White,[upper-alpha 1][3] to block every ball from hitting the wicket, making it difficult for the opposition bowlers to get him out.[5][6][7][8]

At the time there was no limit on the width of a bat and the motivation for White's use of the bat is unknown – it may have been a deliberate attempt to gain an advantage, to challenge the Laws or as a joke.[3][4] Hambledon's players, led by leading bowler Thomas Brett, protested and two days later a formal written protest was submitted, signed by Brett, Hambledon captain Richard Nyren and leading batsman John Small.[3][5] Hambledon were the most influential cricket club of the time and quickly brought about a change in the Laws of Cricket covering the dimensions of bats. A metal gauge was created by the club to check the size of any bat used.[9][10] A formal change in the Laws of Cricket was agreed in 1774, restricting the width of a bat to 4.25 inches (10.8 cm), a size which remains in force today.[3][8][11]

First mentions

The match between Nottingham and Sheffield on 26 August is the first time cricket is known to have taken place in Nottinghamshire.

Players

Notes
  1. Thomas White is generally believed to be the more likely batsman involved.[3][4]

References
  1. ACS, p.24.
  2. Other matches in England 1771, CricketArchive. Retrieved 2019-02-10.
  3. Selvey M (2015) Thomas ‘Daddy’ White – a super-blade pioneer who resonates to this day, The Guardian, 2015-09-22. Retrieved 2019-02-12.
  4. Williamson M (nd) Thomas White, CricInfo. Retrieved 2019-02-12.
  5. Lahiri D (2015) Monster Bat Incident of 1771 – The event after which rules were made on bat size, Sportskeeda, 2015-09-11. Retrieved 2019-02-12.
  6. 5 Most Controversial Cricket Bats Ever, Cricheaven. Retrieved 2019-02-12.
  7. Frith D (1981) Grim prophecy fulfilled, Wisden Cricket Monthly. Retrieved 2019-02-12.
  8. Radhakrishnan V (2013) From 'monster bat' to 'aluminium bat', cricket has seen it all, Hindustan Times, 2013-08-10. Retrieved 2019-02-12.
  9. Williamson M (2007) The cradle of cricket, CricInfo, 2007-10-13. Retrieved 2019-02-13.
  10. Lynch S (2013) That can't be legal, CricInfo, 2013-04-15. Retrieved 2019-02-12.
  11. Wark S (2017) How a stick became a weapon of mass destruction, CricInfo, 2017-02-03. Retrieved 2019-02-12.

Bibliography
  • ACS (1981). A Guide to Important Cricket Matches Played in the British Isles 1709 – 1863. Nottingham: ACS.

Further reading
  • Altham, H. S. (1962). A History of Cricket, Volume 1 (to 1914). George Allen & Unwin.
  • Birley, Derek (1999). A Social History of English Cricket. Aurum.
  • Bowen, Rowland (1970). Cricket: A History of its Growth and Development. Eyre & Spottiswoode.
  • Major, John (2007). More Than A Game. HarperCollins.
  • Underdown, David (2000). Start of Play. Allen Lane.
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