Origins of Test Cricket

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Richie

Richie

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Many people believed that England and Australia played the first ever Test match back in 1844.. myself included. Not so says our resident Yank expert Steve when I asked him who in fact were the opposing teams.
 
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YankeeCricketer said:
The Canada vs US match in NY? I referenced that in an interview I did for a podcast on Wednesday. 10,000 people in attendance
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Now who'd have figured that. Surprised me when I first read it. So why didn't cricket take off in both countries on the back of that. Perhaps something to do with the part Britain played in America's past. Firstly the colonial occupation and later the War of Independence. Americans have always had an independent, stand alone nature so wanted a home grown sport to play, baseball, over cricket. At least that is my theory.
 
Steve can you tell me the story behind the creation of The Ashes, the two yearly competition played between Australia and England.
 
Ritchie said:
Now who'd have figured that. Surprised me when I first read it. So why didn't cricket take off in both countries on the back of that. Perhaps something to do with the part Britain played in America's past. Firstly the colonial occupation and later the War of Independence. Americans have always had an independent, stand alone nature so wanted a home grown sport to play, baseball, over cricket. At least that is my theory.
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The concept of “American exceptionalism” you reference was a big part of it (“exceptional” meaning “different,” not “best”), but not the only part. Timing had a bit to do with it.

Cricket was doing quite well for itself, even after the Revolution. Indeed, during the Revolution troops at Valley Forge played the game; George Washington himself is said to have had a wicket. As late as the 1850s, cricket was still dominating coverage in the New York Times.

Come the Civil War, though, the “new” game of baseball (really just a modified form of rounders) began to take hold, particularly in the Union Army; the fact it required less space and time made it a better recreational sport for soldiers.

After the War, cricket was still the more popular sport, but ironically helped contribute to its own demise by clubs encouraging baseball on their grounds. George and Harry Wright—two stars on the St. George’s club that played in the 1844 international match—were pioneers in baseball, having hands in refining baseball tactics (by importing defensive strategies from cricket), forming the first major pro side (Cincinnati Red Stockings) and inventing the box score (inspired, of course, by the cricket version)

Two other factors: a rise in anti-English feeling in the wake of significant Irish immigration and, perhaps most of all, a U.S. tour by an England XI that found them annihilating all the American sides they faced. The latter event likely cemented a feeling of “we’ll never be good at this game,” further cementing commitment to the “American” game of baseball

None of this explains why Canada embraced neither cricket nor baseball. Still looking into that.
 
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YankeeCricketer said:
The concept of “American exceptionalism” you reference was a big part of it (“exceptional” meaning “different,” not “best”), but not the only part. Timing had a bit to do with it.

Cricket was doing quite well for itself, even after the Revolution. Indeed, during the Revolution troops at Valley Forge played the game; George Washington himself is said to have had a wicket. As late as the 1850s, cricket was still dominating coverage in the New York Times.

Come the Civil War, though, the “new” game of baseball (really just a modified form of rounders) began to take hold, particularly in the Union Army; the fact it required less space and time made it a better recreational sport for soldiers.

After the War, cricket was still the more popular sport, but ironically helped contribute to its own demise by clubs encouraging baseball on their grounds. George and Harry Wright—two stars on the St. George’s club that played in the 1844 international match—were pioneers in baseball, having hands in refining baseball tactics (by importing defensive strategies from cricket), forming the first major pro side (Cincinnati Red Stockings) and inventing the box score (inspired, of course, by the cricket version)

Two other factors: a rise in anti-English feeling in the wake of significant Irish immigration and, perhaps most of all, a U.S. tour by an England XI that found them annihilating all the American sides they faced. The latter event likely cemented a feeling of “we’ll never be good at this game,” further cementing commitment to the “American” game of baseball

None of this explains why Canada embraced neither cricket nor baseball. Still looking into that.
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Very interesting read. Perhaps the Canucks embraced ice hockey over those other two sports as it was a reflection of their cool climate?
 
YankeeCricketer said:
This one you’ve got me on.
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This will fascinate you. It started as a kinda joke by a group of disgruntled English cricket supporters after 'colonial backwater' Australia defeated England in a single Test in 1882 . This is the story behind the naming of the Ashes.

The Ashes term originated in a satirical obituary published in a British newspaper, The Sporting Times, immediately after Australia's 1882 victory at The Oval, its first Test win on English soil. The obituary stated that English cricket "had died, and the body will be cremated and the ashes taken to Australia".[1] The mythical ashes immediately became associated with the 1882–83 series played in Australia, before which the English captain Ivo Bligh had vowed to "regain those ashes". The English media therefore dubbed the tour the quest to regain the Ashes.

More to come.
 
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The key characters in the birth of the actual Ashes - this wonderful romantic drama - are:
  • Ivo Bligh the England captain
  • His future wife Florence Morphy, and
  • Ivo's hosts and Florence's employers, Sir William and Lady Janet Clarke
The Ashes Bail interweaves all these Ashes originators.

Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC), wishing to preserve the mystique of the Ashes Bail - while also quite fearful of damaging the urn - do not believe testing the contents of the Ashes urn to be all that important. Over the years, inconsistent reports about what was burnt to create the Ashes - a cricket ball, a stump, the cover of a ball, or even a lady's veil - have continued to shroud the facts. The most used explanation of the Urn's contents has been a burnt bail.

more to come
 
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The famous Ashes Urn is made of terracotta and stands at a tiny 10.5cms. It is believed to contain the ashes of a burnt cricket bail and was presented to Ivo Bligh, the captain of the England cricket team, as a personal gift after a friendly match hosted at Rupertswood mansion in Sunbury during the 1882–83 tour in Australia.
 
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The Australian cricket X1 1882. Main destroyer Fred 'the demon' Spofforth is top row with the lush mo..
 
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