It was once one of the biggest milestones in English sport: 1,000 first-class runs before the end of May. W.G. Grace called it the crowning point of his career. Bradman felt more anxious chasing it than for any Test match. For decades, it thrilled fans and symbolised the start of the season, but in recent years it seemed consigned to history — a casualty of rain, green pitches, and shrinking fixture lists. Yet now, in the unlikeliest of times, Marcus Harris is a genuine chance to join the likes of Grace, Bradman, Hammond and Hick. How did this forgotten feat come back into view?
Hey there. So, this is a bit of a history special, but it’s also very current because something that hasn’t happened since 1988 could be about to happen in the next couple of weeks. I’m talking about scoring a thousand runs before the end of May in English cricket, which used to be one of the really big things in English cricket, indeed in all of English sport. And my grandfather who was born in 1909 used to tell me about how it was a big thing in the 1930s in Australia when Australians were seeing whether Don Bradman would be able to do it or not. Hasn’t been done since 1988 when Graeme kick did it and that was the ninth time that it had been done. People were sort of thinking maybe it would never get done again. Lots of one-day games were getting scheduled uh in May and they don’t count. It’s got to be in in first class cricket. The ironic thing is that this most traditional of uh features of the English summer um or English spring as it were is potentially um a chance of happening again because of the most opposite to a traditional thing and that is the 100. The hundred has come in carved out a niche and it has forced the county championship to start earlier. So it’s now a real possibility again. It has been for the last four or so seasons since the the 100 was in place but it hasn’t happened yet. But Marcus Harris as I speak with two games left in the se in in uh prior to May has scored 749 runs. So he’s potentially going to have four bats and needs to score 251 runs and is if he does so he’ll be added to a magical list. So a little bit of history. It first happened in 1895 and it was done by none none other than WG Grace. And the reason it’s partially so impressive is that in May in England, it’s wet, it’s cold, the pitches are very green, everything is in favor of the bowlers. Well, in 1895, WG Grace was 46. And if you looked at his results in the previous few seasons, you’d have said, “Hey, doctor, you’re getting on a bit. You’re just not the player you were. Time to give it away.” Well, the 1895 season started on the 9th of May. And coming into the 30th of May, he needed only 153 to do something that had never been done before. He duly cracked 169. And he called it the crowning point of my cricketing career. And he wrote, “The feat had never been achieved before, and it was naturally a matter of supreme satisfaction to me that I should in my 47th year be enabled to surpass all the achievements of my youth.” And the editor of Wisdom, Sydney Pardon, wrote that it was a feat quite without parallel in the history of English cricket. And so it became a big thing from then on. At the start of every season, in addition to following along the county championship, which in those days was a little bit like the the way that people follow the Premier League today, especially in the seasons when Australia weren’t touring, it was the biggest show in town. And it was always well is someone going to be able to beat to to score a thousand before the end of May this season. Next happened in 1900 Tom Haywood did it. He’s not really famous today but he did score as did WG Grace 100 first class centuries. Then a long gap 1927 Walter Hammond did it and I think he’s probably England’s greatest ever cricketer probably their greatest ever batter. So it’s very fitting that he did it. Next year 1928 Charlie Hallows a decent county cricketer did it um obviously the high watermark of his career and he’s not no longer a famous name but then in 1930 Bradman arrived in England for the first time and there was a fair bit of question about his technique famously Percy Fender who was the captain of Surrey and had been a journalist on the 1928-29 tour of Australia by England had said that Braden was good but unsound and and suspected that he was going to struggle on English pitchers. Well, Bradman began with 236 against Worershir on the 30th 30th of April and on route scored a massive unbeaten double century against Surrey absolutely hammering Percy Fender. So coming into the the final game he had the last day of May in which to potentially get his thousand runs. He needed 47 more against Hampshire. But unfortunately for Bradman, Hampshire won the toss and battered and that looked like it would be it. George Brown, Hampshire’s B opening batter, was batting brilliantly and looked like he was in for a a big score. But Bradman somehow managed to bend history to his own will. He had a bit misfield, recovered, and then threw the stumps down, a direct hit from side on to run Brown out. Hampshire then duly not collapsed, but it were out fairly promptly. And in the late afternoon, Bill Woodville, aware of the Australian captain, aware of the fact that this history was on the line, promoted Bradman to open, but rain was in the offing. And Bradman famously just didn’t get nervous. Um, yet this is the one time kind of in his career. And he wrote a few months later, I must confess I was actually I’ll do the voice. I must confess I was more anxious than I had ever been. I felt the occasion and the special circumstances very much indeed. In fact, I was never more disturbed in my mind about getting runs. here was something I had to do today or perhaps never at all. I had the fear that the feat was impossible. So he got to 28 when rain came pouring down in sheets of rain and he thought, “Oh well that’s it.” But just before stumps the rain sort of stopped. Wasn’t really good enough to go back on. But Bradman was really impressed with the sportsmanship of the Hampshire captain Lord Tennyson who said no we can go back out there. Bradman raced along to um needing only seven more. And then the rain really came back. But Tennyson said, “No, we’ll have one more over.” He had a quick word to the bowler, Jack Newman, and Bradman sort of suspected that he’d said, “Make it easy for him.” He dished up a full toss, a long hop. Bradman smacked them both to the boundary. And he had done it. Finished the day 47, not out. Went on and finished with 191 the next day. And Bradman did it again eight years later. So he’s the only player to have done it twice. So when you think of all the other players who did it, they had loads and loads of county seasons in which to try. Bradman had just the four opportunities in his career, did it twice, and that second time in 1938, he did it in just seven innings. A little uh quirk of history that the first game of that um tour against Worershir, the BBC radio said, “Oh, Braden was scratching around. He’s out for 34.” And then they had to come back and say, “Oh, actually, sorry, now we got that wrong. It was McCabe who was scratching around, was out for 34. Bradman’s gone on and got 258. Anyway, he did it in just seven innings. And in 1938, he wasn’t the only story because a young Bill Eldrich was on the verge of doing it as well. And in fact, they were playing his Middle Sex side was playing Australia when it was going to be his final opportunity to do it. Um, and he needed 19 runs. the game was going to go on the last three days of May. Unfortunately for Edrich, he got bowled by Bill O’Reilly for nine in the first innings. And in a game that was very, very badly affected. Australia was only two out in their second innings. Bradman 30 not out, it was petering to a draw. And with a few minutes to go, the players left the field early. And the crowd at Lords booed, thinking, “Ah, they’ve shaken hands and and robbed us of a few minutes of entertainment.” But then the booze turned to cheers because because it turned out that Bradman had deliberately declared the innings early to give young Bill Eddrich a chance, just a few minutes chance to get the um the runs that he needed. And Bill Edrich later wrote, “And then Don Bradman, grim-faced, unsmiling, the man they say is a cricketer without a heart and never gives an opponent a chance, declared their innings closed for the sole purpose of letting a miserable youngster who throw who had thrown away his own golden chances get his thousand runs before the end of May.” “Good luck, Bill,” said Bradman. we’re not going to give them to you. So the Australians made the declaration early, but then tried their hardest to stop him getting the runs, but he did get them to the great satisfaction of all. And Bradman later on said that part of his declaration had been in honor of the great spirit that Lord Tennyson and sportsmanship that Lord Tennyson had shown him eight years earlier earlier. So you’d think, well, it’s happened twice in 1938. It’s probably going to happen quite regularly. Well, in the 87 years since, it’s only happened twice. Glenn Turner did it in 1973 playing for the New Zealand touring side. Uh they had lots of matches up and down the country so he took 18 innings but still he did it. And then most recently Graham Hick in 1988 helped by 405 not out in one innings did it as well. And then radio silence 2012 Nick Compton needed just 59 runs and the rain came down. 1st of June, next day he Julie went out, got the runs, but just missed out. 10 years later, his cousin Ben Compton, and these are both the grandsons of Dennis Compton, the great English player, who incidentally was the opening partner with Bill Edrich, who got those in 1938, the thousand runs before the end of May. Ben Compton, 878 runs in the county championship, and 158 runs against the New Zealand touring side. But we are into the era by then where those touring games weren’t aren’t counted as first class because they use more than 11 players. So he didn’t get it. And we now come to as I said when 2021 when the hund began and people started saying hey these matches are starting earlier in April. It’s a real possibility but no one’s done it yet. And along comes Marcus Harris. So this is this season 138 and 52 for Lancasher against Middle Sex. Then 43 and 50 at Northampton against Northampton share 77 and 34 not out against Leicester 167 and 24 against Glstershare and then 121 and 43 versus Northampton Shere. So he has scored 749 runs at an average of 83.2 and as I said there are two games remaining. Read an article today saying that the weather is set fair in England. Um he’s playing Darbasher on the 16th through the 19th of May and then Leicester on the 23rd to the 26th of May. That 26th of May incidentally is the latest date that he can do it this this season. If he does do it, he will become the earliest person to do it because the earliest so far is Bradman in 1938 when he did it on the 27th of May. Although I should mention that in that 1938 tour, Bradman skipped one game to go and watch the Rugby League Challenge Cup final at um Wembley where he presented the trophy to the winning captain. In any case, I think it’s pretty cool and I’ll be cheering Marcus Harris on for a chance to make history once more and I think that is very cool. Hope you enjoyed this little mini episode. Um please subscribe to the podcast. Please comment on Apple or wherever you listen to the podcast. Give a comment of what you think about it and tell your friends. Speak to you next time. Bye.
