1798 English cricket season

First mentions

Henry Bentley

Capt. / Col. Peregrine Maitland, (MCC and Surrey; amateur) – played 27 matches to 1808

Charles Reed (Kent) – played 7 matches from 1798 to 1810

Williams (MCC cricketer) (MCC; amateur) – played 6 matches in 1798

J. Eavers (MCC) – played 5 matches from 1798 to 1802

James Bennett (Hampshire) – played 5 matches from 1798 to 1805

Bourke (MCC cricketer) (MCC; amateur) – played 2 matches in 1798

Donnithorn (MCC cricketer) (MCC; amateur) – played 2 matches in 1798

Greenham (Hampshire cricketer) – played 2 matches in 1798

Johnston (Middlesex cricketer) – played 2 matches in 1798

Leading batsmen

Note that many scorecards in the 18th century are unknown or have missing details and so it is impossible to provide a complete analysis of batting performances: e.g., the missing not outs prevent computation of batting averages. The "runs scored" are in fact the runs known.

Fewer matches were recorded in 1798 than in previous years. The batsmen who scored over 100 runs were:

Lord Frederick Beauclerk — 369 Andrew Freemantle — 217 Benjamin Clifton — 187 John Tufton — 185 Thomas Ray — 179 Jack Small — 177 Tom Walker — 164 William Fennex — 148 Robert Robinson — 147 T A Smith — 146 Hampton — 141 William Beldham — 136 John Wells — 135 Harry Walker — 127 John Hammond — 112

Leading bowlers

Note that the wickets credited to an 18th-century bowler were only those where he bowled the batsman out. The bowler was not credited with the wickets of batsmen who were caught out, even if it was "caught and bowled". In addition, the runs conceded by each bowler were not recorded so no analyses or averages can be computed.

Thomas Boxall just led the bowlers with 42 wickets, beating Lord Frederick Beauclerk who took 40

Other leading bowlers were John Wells 30; William Fennex 23; Tom Walker 16; David Harris 15; Thomas Lord 15

Leading fielders

Note that many scorecards in the 18th century are unknown or have missing details and so the totals are of the known catches and stumpings only. Stumpings were not always recorded as such and sometimes the name of the wicket-keeper was not given. Generally, a catch was given the same status as "bowled" with credit being awarded to the fielder only and not the bowler. There is never a record of "caught and bowled": the bowler would be credited with the catch, not with the wicket.

John Hammond with 9 ct, 9 st and John Wells with 10 ct, 8 st were the joint leading fielders in 1798

Lord Frederick Beauclerk took the most catches with 14, followed by William Fennex 11; Andrew Freemantle 8 ct, 2 st; William Beldham 7 ct, 1 st; Thomas Ray 7 ct.

Additional reading

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

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. 

Britcher, Samuel, A list of all the principal Matches of Cricket that have been played (1790 to 1805), annual series

Buckley, G. B. (1937). Fresh Light on pre-Victorian Cricket. Cotterell. 

McCann, Tim (2004). Sussex Cricket in the Eighteenth Century. Sussex Record Society. 

Major, John (2007). More Than A Game. HarperCollins.