170-400: George Giffen (27 March 1859 – 29 November 1927) was a cricketer who played for South Australia and Australia . An all-rounder who batted in the middle order and often opened the bowling with medium-paced off-spin, Giffen captained Australia during the 1894–95 Ashes series and was the first Australian to score 10,000 runs and take 500 wickets in first-class cricket . He was inducted into
340-593: A market garden known as Henderson's Nursery which had grown pineapples and tulips. The ground was subsequently threatened by the Manchester, Sheffield and Lincolnshire Railway 's attempts to purchase the area for their line into Marylebone station . After considering the company's offer, the MCC relinquished a strip of land bordering Wellington Road and was given in exchange the Clergy Orphan School to
510-456: A public school education who had then gone to one of Cambridge or Oxford University . Society insisted that such people were "officers and gentlemen" whose destiny was to provide leadership. In a purely financial sense, the cricketing amateur would theoretically claim expenses for playing while his professional counterpart played under contract and was paid a wage or match fee; in practice, many amateurs claimed more than actual expenditure, and
680-629: A ball to T. N. Pearce batting for the MCC on 3 July 1936. It also contains the battered copy of Wisden that helped to sustain E. W. Swanton through his captivity in a Japanese prisoner-of-war camp during the Second World War. It continues to collect historic artefacts and also commissions new paintings and photography. It contains the Brian Johnston Memorial Theatre, a cinema which screens historical cricket footage for visitors. The museum collaborates with
850-565: A collared shirt with short or long sleeves; long trousers; woolen pullover (if needed); cricket cap (for fielding) or a safety helmet; and spiked shoes or boots to increase traction. The kit is traditionally all white, and this remains the case in Test and first-class cricket, but in limited overs cricket, team colours are now worn instead. i) A used white ball. White balls are mainly used in limited overs cricket , especially in matches played at night, under floodlights (left). The essence of
1020-425: A convict colony". Dark proposed to part with his interest in the ground in 1863, for the fee of £15,000 for the remaining 29 + 1 ⁄ 2 years of his lease. An agreement was reached in 1864, with Dark, who was seriously ill, selling his interests at Lord's for £11,000. The landlord of the ground, Isaac Moses, offered to sell it outright for £21,000 in 1865, which was reduced to £18,150. William Nicholson , who
1190-454: A fence, part of the stands, a rope, a painted line, or a combination of these; the boundary must if possible be marked along its entire length. In the approximate centre of the field is a rectangular pitch (see image, below) on which a wooden target called a wicket is sited at each end; the wickets are placed 22 yards (20 m) apart. The pitch is a flat surface 10 feet (3.0 m) wide, with very short grass that tends to be worn away as
1360-423: A fine cut and glance. A slow to medium pace bowler he was brilliant with his deceptive off spin and the master in flight and changes of pace which he took many wickets. George though has often been accused of more than a sprinkling of nepotism, using his influence to try to help his brother Walter Giffen . Walter played Test cricket for Australia despite below average performances for South Australia and when George
1530-621: A highly popular format, putting the longer formats at risk. The new shorter format also introduced franchise cricket, with new tournaments like the Indian Premier League and the Australian Big Bash League . The ICC has selected the T20 format as cricket's growth format, and has introduced a T20 World Cup which is played every two years; T20 cricket has also been increasingly accepted into major events such as
1700-642: A magnificent bowling effort from Fred Spofforth and Harry Boyle , won the match by seven runs. The match was the origin of the term " The Ashes " for Test series between the two nations. A mock obituary placed in The Sporting Times lamented "the death of English cricket" and noted that "The body will be cremated and the ashes taken to Australia." Ivo Bligh and his English team arrived in Australia in 1882–83 determined to win back "the Ashes". In
1870-572: A match in which he also took a " hat-trick ". An English team led by Alfred Shaw toured Australia in 1884–85 to contest the Ashes . England won the First Test by eight wickets but the match was overshadowed by a dispute between the teams; the Australian team wished a larger share of the match profits. As a result, most of the Australian team, including Giffen, made themselves unavailable for
SECTION 10
#17327878485062040-607: A memorial to the fallen members of the MCC from the two world wars. They appointed Diana Rait Kerr , "to whom the game owes a great debt", to be the first full-time creator of the museum and library, a position she held from 1945 to 1968. The museum was officially opened to the public as the Imperial Memorial Collection by the Duke of Edinburgh in 1953. During her tenure as curator, Rait Kerr secured donations of pictures, equipment and other artefacts from around
2210-509: A new lodge and was constructed to replace an older lodge, along with a new workshop, stables and a store room at a cost of £1,000. To meet the ever increasing demand to accommodate more spectators, a temporary stand was constructed on the eastern side of the ground. After many years of complaints regarding the poor condition of the Lord's pitch, the MCC took action by installing Percy Pearce as Ground Superintendent in 1874. Pearce had previously held
2380-457: A new stand, which was built between 2015 and 2017. The new stand has improved facilities for match officials and reduced the number of restricted view spectator seats from 600 to 100. Phase two of the masterplan involved the demolition of the Compton and Edrich Stands in 2019, with their replacements being completed in 2021; these provided an extra 2,000 seats and for the first time were linked by
2550-519: A new upper tier designed by Michael Hopkins and Partners , which opened in time for the MCC's bicentenary in 1987. That bicentenary was celebrated with a five-day match between MCC and a Rest of the World team in August 1987, which ended in a draw after the final day was rained off. Graham Gooch made the first Test match triple-century at Lord's, scoring 333 against India in 1990. The final decade of
2720-514: A number of national museums and schools through active loans, in addition to community and tour programmes. It is a member of the Sporting Heritage network. Lord's also has one of the largest and most comprehensive collections of books and publications dedicated to cricket. The library includes over 20,000 volumes and grows by around 400 volumes a year. The library encourages donations from authors and publishers. The library operates as
2890-483: A player reaches the Long Room is approximately 30 paces from the swing door at the rear of the room to the steps which lead onto the playing field. The Long Room is decorated with paintings of famous cricketers and administrators from the 18th to the 21st century, predominantly English players. For an overseas player to have their portrait placed in the Long Room is a considerable honour. Amongst overseas players to have
3060-460: A portrait in the Long Room are four Australians: Don Bradman , Keith Miller , Victor Trumper and Shane Warne . Found in the players dressing rooms are the honours boards for commemorating centuries , five wicket hauls and ten wicket hauls in a match. Two honours boards for batting and bowling commemorate England players in the home dressing room, while the batting and bowling boards commemorating players from other nationalities are found in
3230-420: A private library for MCC members on match days, but is open by appointment on non-match days. It was expanded in the 1980s with the opening of a new library in the tennis court block to the rear of the pavilion, having previously been housed in a small office in the pavilion. In 2010, a selection of 100 duplicates from the library's collection was offered for auction by Christie's with proceeds going to support
3400-546: A running kick in the South Australian Football Association . "He would cap brilliant runs that paralysed all opposition with superb kicks, turning in a moment the whole tide of play.", an observer at the time said. He wrote an autobiography entitled With Bat and Ball . Cricketer First-class cricket One Day International Limited overs (domestic) Twenty20 International Twenty20 (domestic) Other forms Cricket
3570-598: A sell-out 24,000 crowd. It was the first such final held anywhere in the world. The tavern and its adjoining buildings were demolished in 1968 to make way for the construction of the Tavern Stand, again designed by Peacock. The tavern was subsequently re-sited next to the Grace Gates and was complemented with a banqueting hall. Lord's hosted its first One Day International (ODI) in 1972, with Australia defeating England by 5 wickets. Three years later Lord's hosted
SECTION 20
#17327878485063740-405: A separate entrance to the field. In the same year scorecards were introduced for the first time, from a portable press, and drainage was installed in 1849–50. The Australian Aboriginal cricket team toured England in 1868, with Lord's hosting one of their matches to a mixed response, with The Times describing the tourists as "a travestie upon cricketing at Lord's" and "the conquered natives of
3910-535: A series of two-day matches in the County Championship . 1923 saw the installation of the Grace Gates , a tribute to W. G. Grace who had died in 1915. They were inaugurated by Sir Stanley Jackson , who had suggested the inclusion of the words THE GREAT CRICKETER in the dedication. These gates replaced an earlier, less decorative, entrance to the ground. With attendances growing in number, it
4080-626: A walkway bridge. Lord's celebrated the two hundredth anniversary of its current ground in 2014. To mark the occasion, an MCC XI captained by Sachin Tendulkar played a Rest of the World XI led by Shane Warne in a 50-over match. Two matches of note were played at the ground in July 2019. The first of these was 2019 World Cup Final between England and New Zealand, which ended as a tie with both sides making 241 runs from their 50 overs. The final
4250-571: A wicket. Left out of the side for the Second Test in Sydney , he returned for the Third Test. Australia won the match by five wickets by Giffen made only two runs and was not given a chance to bowl. In the final Test of the series, Giffen captured his first Test wicket— William Scotton stumped by Jack Blackham for 27. He took 2/17 and, with the bat, made 14 in a drawn match. Australia won
4420-416: A winner or tie.) The wicket-keeper (a specialised fielder behind the batter) and the batters wear protective gear because of the hardness of the ball, which can be delivered at speeds of more than 145 kilometres per hour (90 mph) and presents a major health and safety concern. Protective clothing includes pads (designed to protect the knees and shins), batting gloves or wicket-keeper's gloves for
4590-524: A women's match at Lord's resulted from a campaign by Rachael Heyhoe Flint , and was given extra impetus by England's victory in the 1973 Women's Cricket World Cup . England had to wait another 11 years to play their second match at Lord's. The ground hosted the final of the ICC Women's Cricket World Cup in 1993 with England beating New Zealand to win the World Cup. The ground was not fully opened for
4760-403: Is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field , at the centre of which is a 22-yard (20-metre; 66-foot) pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails (small sticks) balanced on three stumps . Two players from the batting team, the striker and nonstriker, stand in front of either wicket holding bats , while one player from the fielding team,
4930-539: Is aimed at a mark (the wicket) and driven away from it". It is generally believed that cricket originated as a children's game in the south-eastern counties of England, sometime during the medieval period . Although there are claims for prior dates, the earliest definite reference to cricket being played comes from evidence given at a court case in Guildford in January 1597 ( Old Style , equating to January 1598 in
5100-453: Is certain that cricket was being played c. 1550 by boys in Surrey . The view that it was originally a children's game is reinforced by Randle Cotgrave 's 1611 English- French dictionary in which he defined the noun " crosse " as "the crooked staff wherewith boys play at cricket", and the verb form " crosser " as "to play at cricket". One possible source for the sport's name
5270-423: Is drawn four feet in front of the bowling crease and parallel to it; although it is drawn as a 12 ft (3.7 m) line (six feet on either side of the wicket), it is, in fact, unlimited in length. The return creases are drawn at right angles to the popping crease so that they intersect the ends of the bowling crease; each return crease is drawn as an 8 ft (2.4 m) line, so that it extends four feet behind
George Giffen - Misplaced Pages Continue
5440-420: Is found on the ground floor of the pavilion and has been described by Lawrence Booth as "the most evocative four walls in world cricket". Players walk through the Long Room on their way from the dressing rooms to the cricket field ; this walk is notoriously long and complex at Lord's. On his Test debut in 1975, David Steele got lost on his way out to bat "and ended up in the pavilion's basement toilets". Once
5610-656: Is known, through numerous references found in the records of ecclesiastical court cases, to have been proscribed at times by the Puritans before and during the Commonwealth . The problem was nearly always the issue of Sunday play, as the Puritans considered cricket to be "profane" if played on the Sabbath , especially if large crowds or gambling were involved. According to the social historian Derek Birley , there
5780-559: Is primarily for members of the MCC, who may use its amenities, which include seats for viewing the cricket, the Long Room and its Bar, the Bowlers Bar, and a members' shop. At Middlesex matches the pavilion is open to members of the Middlesex County Cricket Club. The Pavilion also contains the dressing rooms where players change, each of which has a small balcony for players to watch the play. The Long Room
5950-570: Is the Old English word " cryce " (or " cricc " ) meaning a crutch or staff. In Samuel Johnson 's Dictionary , he derived cricket from " cryce , Saxon, a stick". In Old French , the word " criquet " seems to have meant a kind of club or stick. Given the strong medieval trade connections between south-east England and the County of Flanders when the latter belonged to the Duchy of Burgundy ,
6120-464: Is the earliest mention of adult participation in cricket and it was around the same time that the earliest known organised inter-parish or village match was played, at Chevening, Kent . In 1624, a player called Jasper Vinall died after he was accidentally struck on the head during a match between two parish teams in Sussex. Cricket remained a low-key local pursuit for much of the 17th century. It
6290-708: Is the home of Middlesex County Cricket Club , the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), the ICC Europe and, until August 2005, the International Cricket Council (ICC). Lord's is widely referred to as the Home of Cricket and is home to the world's oldest sporting museum. Lord's today is not on its original site; it is the third of three grounds that Lord established between 1787 and 1814. His first ground, now referred to as Lord's Old Ground ,
6460-437: Is the only bowler in the world to snare 16 wickets in a match five times. He was the first to take 17. When he was 24 he became the first bowler outside England to get a whole side out with 10–66. He is the first Test cricketer to score 1000 runs and take 100 Test wickets. He is also the first Australian to take 1000 first-class wickets and score 10,000 runs. Giffen's best figures were 271 runs and 16 wickets (9/96 and 7/70) for
6630-442: Is thought to represent Lord Harris . The building consists of a long, two storey centre section with covered seating between two end towers which are capped with pyramidal roofs which have ornate wrought and cast iron lanterns. Running the full length of the rear of the second floor is the pavilion roof terrace, which provides views of the entire ground. It underwent an £8 million refurbishment programme in 2004–05. The pavilion
6800-402: Is thought, a " wicket gate " through which sheep were herded), that the batter must defend. The cricket historian Harry Altham identified three "groups" of "club ball" games: the "hockey group", in which the ball is driven to and from between two targets (the goals); the "golf group", in which the ball is driven towards an undefended target (the hole); and the "cricket group", in which "the ball
6970-400: The 1926 General Strike . Upon its completion, Baker presented Lord's with a weather vane Father Time removing the bails from a wicket , which was placed on top of the grandstand. The full weathervane is 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) tall, with the figure of Father Time standing at 5 ft 4 in (1.63 m). Baker further contributed to the landscape of Lord's by designing
George Giffen - Misplaced Pages Continue
7140-579: The Asian Games . The resultant growth has seen cricket's fanbase cross one billion people, with 90% of them in South Asia. T20's success has also spawned even shorter formats , such as 10-over cricket (T10) and 100-ball cricket , though not without controversy. Outside factors have also taken their toll on cricket. For example, the 2008 Mumbai attacks led India and Pakistan to suspend their bilateral series indefinitely. The 2009 attack on
7310-798: The Australian Cricket Hall of Fame on 26 February 2008. Giffen was born in the Adelaide neighbourhood of Norwood in 1859 to Richard Giffen, a carpenter and his wife Elizabeth (née Challand). He started his cricket career with Norwood Cricket Club, later moving to the West Adelaide club. In November 1877 Giffen made his first-class cricket debut, against Tasmania at the Adelaide Oval . Giffen made 47 runs, including South Australia's first runs in first-class cricket , and took four wickets for 16 runs in
7480-702: The British Empire had been instrumental in spreading the game overseas, and by the middle of the 19th century it had become well established in Australia , the Caribbean , British India (which includes present-day Pakistan and Bangladesh ), New Zealand , North America and South Africa . In 1862, an English team made the first tour of Australia. The first Australian team to travel overseas consisted of Aboriginal stockmen who toured England in 1868 . In 1876–77, an England team took part in what
7650-465: The Dukes of Richmond , exerted their honour code of noblesse oblige to claim rights of leadership in any sporting contests they took part in, especially as it was necessary for them to play alongside their "social inferiors" if they were to win their bets. In time, a perception took hold that the typical amateur who played in first-class cricket, until 1962 when amateurism was abolished, was someone with
7820-556: The Golden Jubilee Celebrations for Queen Victoria in 1887, the Kings of Belgium, Denmark, Saxony , and Portugal attended Lord's. It was noted that none of them had any grasp of cricket. In the same year Lord's hosted the MCC's hundredth anniversary celebrations, with the MCC playing a celebratory match against England. With only a two-tiered covered grandstand and both increasing membership and spectator numbers, it
7990-472: The RIBA Stirling Prize for architecture in 1999. The Media Centre was originally sponsored by NatWest , with sponsorship being taken over by Investec in 2007. Since 31 May 2011, the media centre has been sponsored by J. P. Morgan . Purchased in two parts by the MCC in 1838 and 1887, the ground is primarily used as a practice ground and is considered to have some of the best grass nets in
8160-472: The West Indies . Women's cricket , which is organised and played separately, has also achieved international standard. The most successful side playing international cricket is Australia , which has won eight One Day International trophies, including six World Cups , more than any other country, and has been the top-rated Test side more than any other country. Cricket is one of many games in
8330-644: The White Conduit Club and backed against any losses by George Finch, 9th Earl of Winchilsea and Colonel Charles Lennox , Thomas Lord opened his first ground in May 1787 on the site where Dorset Square now stands, on land leased from the Portman Estate . The White Conduit moved there from Islington , unhappy at the standard of the ground at White Conduit Fields , soon afterwards and reconstituted themselves as Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC). It
8500-401: The "club ball" sphere that involve hitting a ball with a hand-held implement. Others include baseball (which shares many similarities with cricket, both belonging in the more specific bat-and-ball games category ), golf , hockey , tennis , squash , badminton and table tennis . In cricket's case, a key difference is the existence of a solid target structure, the wicket (originally, it
8670-485: The 1880s, which was in use at Lord's until 1945. A large bronze statue of W. G. Grace stands in the Coronation Garden. The garden is popular with picnickers during major matchdays. The Harris Garden, formerly tennis courts, was created as a rose garden in 1934 in memory of Lord Harris . The garden was restored and re-launched in 2018. The restoration included the exposing of the flint wall which runs along
SECTION 50
#17327878485068840-625: The 19th century. The game's governing body is the International Cricket Council (ICC), which has over 100 members, twelve of which are full members who play Test matches. The game's rules, the Laws of Cricket , are maintained by Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) in London . The sport is followed primarily in South Asia , Australia , New Zealand , the United Kingdom , Southern Africa , and
9010-427: The 20th–century saw rapid redevelopment of Lord's. The Compton and Edrich stands were completed in 1991, having run over time and budget. The indoor school closed in 1994, owing to the construction of a new state-of-the-art indoor cricket centre which opened in 1995. The old Grandstand was demolished in 1996, with a replacement designed by Nicholas Grimshaw & Partners being completed in 1998. Since 1997, Lord's
9180-636: The England first innings. England won the Fifth Test by an innings and 98 runs, retaining the Ashes in a 3–2 series victory. Giffen, in a sign of things to come, made a remarkable double for South Australia against Victoria in March 1886. He captured 17 wickets for the match—including 9/91 in the first innings—and made over 100 runs. Five years later, against Victoria in November 1891, he repeated
9350-575: The First Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground , Giffen made 36 runs, his highest Test score to date. He followed this with his best figures with the ball, capturing 4/38 in the England second innings, helping Australia to a nine wicket victory. In the Second Test, Giffen made a "golden duck", dismissed first ball without scoring but took 4/89 in England's only innings; the English won the Test by an innings and 27 runs. Giffen
9520-740: The Grand Stand, designed by Nicholas Grimshaw , in 1996. The Media Centre , opposite the Pavilion between the Compton and Edrich Stands, was added in 1999. Designed by Future Systems , it won the Royal Institute of British Architects' Stirling Prize for 1999. The redevelopment of the Compton Stand and Edrich Stands was completed in 2021, adding 2,600 seats and bringing the ground capacity to 31,100 spectators. The two ends of
9690-534: The Lord's pitches badly affected by crane fly larvae, known as leatherjackets. The larvae caused bald patches to appear on the playing surface and had to be removed by the ground staff, although spin bowlers did gain some benefit from the bare patches. In contrast to the First World War, Lord's was not requisitioned by the military during the Second World War . Lord's hosted matches throughout
9860-531: The MCC committee to fund the future £250 million development of the ground by constructing residential apartments and a luxury hotel along the Wellington Road and Grove End Road. The Lord's Masterplan was unveiled in 2013, which is a twenty-year plan to redevelop the ground and improve its facilities. The first phase of the masterplan involved the demolition and replacement of the Warner Stand with
10030-549: The MCC had a real tennis playing membership of 200. The playing of rackets at Lord's dates from 1844 and is currently played in the same building as real tennis. Lord's hosted the Public Schools Championship in 1866, with Harrow School triumphing. Since then the Championship has been held at Prince's Club , before moving to Queen's Club . With the advent of lawn tennis , a decision was made at
10200-464: The MCC. The 1998 decision to allow female MCC members represented a historic modernisation of the pavilion and its clubs. The decision to build the Media Centre was made during a meeting of the MCC committee in 1995. These plans sought to remove the inadequate media facilities mostly concentrated in the Warner Stand which could accommodate 90 journalists, along with wooden shacks dotted around
10370-584: The Middle Dutch phrase for hockey, " met de (krik ket)sen " ("with the stick chase"). Gillmeister has suggested that not only the name but also the sport itself may be of Flemish origin. Although the main object of the game has always been to score the most runs , the early form of cricket differed from the modern game in certain key technical aspects; the North American variant of cricket known as wicket retained many of these aspects. The ball
SECTION 60
#173278784850610540-616: The Q Stand next to the pavilion in 1934, while at the Nursery End stands were also erected. Careful consideration was taken to preserve the treeline dividing the main ground from the Nursery Ground. The West Indies under the captaincy of Karl Nunes played their first Test match at Lord's in 1928. The ground later hosted the first televised Test match during the Second Test of the 1938 Ashes series . The 1935 season saw
10710-575: The Sri Lankan team during their tour of Pakistan led to Pakistan being unable to host matches until 2019. In 2017, Afghanistan and Ireland became the 11th and 12th Test nations. In cricket, the rules of the game are codified in The Laws of Cricket (hereinafter called "the Laws"), which has a global remit. There are 42 Laws (always written with a capital "L"). The earliest known version of
10880-409: The Tasmanian first innings. Tasmania was forced to follow-on (bat twice in a row) and in the second innings Giffen captured another two wickets. Giffen, only 22 years old, made his Test debut in Melbourne against England in 1881–82 . Having just joined the postal service, Giffen was almost hesitant to ask for leave. Giffen made 30 runs before being bowled by Tom Emmett but was unable to take
11050-428: The Twenty20 Cup match between Middlesex and Kent . Two weeks after the first use of the floodlights, Lord's hosted its first Twenty20 International in the World Twenty20 between England and the Netherlands , which resulted in a shock last-ball win for the associate nation. Lord's held the final of the competition between Pakistan and Sri Lanka , which Pakistan won by 8 wickets. In 2008 plans were drawn up by
11220-508: The advent of drop-in pitches . However, the MCC resisted these calls as levelling the pitch would require the rebuilding of Lord's and would mean Test cricket would not be able to be played there for five years. The outfield was notorious for becoming waterlogged due to the clay soil, which resulted in considerable lost match time. The entire outfield was relaid in the winter of 2002 with the clay soil being replaced with sand, which has improved drainage. Lord's hosted its first Twenty20 match in
11390-401: The annual general meeting of the MCC in May 1875 to construct a tennis court, although there was strong opposition from some members. A suggestion to standardise the rules of tennis was made at Lord's by J. M. Heathcote , who was himself a prominent real tennis player. On 3 March 1875 the MCC, in its capacity as the governing body for rackets and real tennis, convened a meeting at Lord's to test
11560-407: The architect Kenneth Peacock and replaced an area of raised ground lined with trees from where it was traditionally possible to watch a match from the comfort of ones own carriage . Prior to the construction of the Warner Stand, all stands at the ground were identified by letters of the alphabet. The record numbers of spectators who attended Test and County Championship matches began to decline by
11730-411: The away dressing room. Originally only these achievements in Test matches were commemorated, but since 2019 an honours board for ODIs has been introduced. As of 2024 167 players have made 240 Test centuries at Lord's and 130 players have taken 186 five wicket hauls . In ODI's 29 players have made 32 centuries at Lord's and 14 players have taken a five wicket haul . A separate "neutral" honours board
11900-468: The back of the garden, which displays a dedication to Lord Harris. The flower beds in the Harris Garden were replanted in 2018 with a floral design featuring flowers from all the Test playing nations . The Harris Garden is available for private hire and can host up to 300 people. Pelham Warner was of the opinion that the only other sport which had any real standing at Lord's was real tennis . A real tennis court began construction in October 1838, with
12070-454: The ball hits the striker's wicket and dislodges the bails, and by the fielding side either catching the ball after it is hit by the bat but before it hits the ground, or hitting a wicket with the ball before a batter can cross the crease line in front of the wicket. When ten batters have been dismissed, the innings (playing phase) ends and the teams swap roles. Forms of cricket range from traditional Test matches played over five days to
12240-474: The ball, which is a hard, solid spheroid made of compressed leather with a slightly raised sewn seam enclosing a cork core layered with tightly wound string. The earliest known definite reference to cricket is to it being played in South East England in the mid-16th century. It spread globally with the expansion of the British Empire , with the first international matches in the second half of
12410-449: The batting team are on the field at any given time. The order of batters is usually announced just before the match, but it can be varied. The main objective of each team is to score more runs than their opponents, but in some forms of cricket, it is also necessary to dismiss all but one of the opposition batters (making their team 'all out') in their final innings in order to win the match, which would otherwise be drawn (not ending with
12580-529: The bowler, bowls the ball toward the striker's wicket from the opposite end of the pitch. The striker's goal is to hit the bowled ball with the bat and then switch places with the nonstriker, with the batting team scoring one run for each of these exchanges. Runs are also scored when the ball reaches the boundary of the field or when the ball is bowled illegally . The fielding team tries to prevent runs from being scored by dismissing batters (so they are "out"). Means of dismissal include being bowled , when
12750-421: The bowling crease, but is also, in fact, unlimited in length. Before a match begins, the team captains (who are also players) toss a coin to decide which team will bat first and so take the first innings . "Innings" is the term used for each phase of play in the match. In each innings, one team bats, attempting to score runs , while the other team bowls and fields the ball , attempting to restrict
12920-500: The bowling with himself. George Giffen has a grandstand at the Adelaide Oval named after him. He died in Parkside, South Australia . In 2008 he was inducted into the Australian Cricket Hall of Fame Giffen also played Australian rules football at a high level, representing Woodville in the inaugural 1877 SAFA season and then Norwood Football Club from 1878 to 1885 for whom he is credited as kicking their first ever goal from
13090-424: The club Treasurer. These items were originally displayed in the pavilion, limiting access to the collection to MCC members. Following the Second World War the collection had outgrown its home in the pavilion, with a decision made to relocate the collection and open it to the public. The MCC moved the collection to a disused rackets court, which had fallen into disrepair during the war, with this location also acting as
13260-489: The code was drafted in 1744, and since 1788, it has been owned and maintained by its custodian, the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) in London . Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played on a cricket field (see image of cricket pitch and creases) between two teams of eleven players each. The field is usually circular or oval in shape, and the edge of the playing area is marked by a boundary , which may be
13430-611: The country". Giffen made only 60 runs for in the Tests and took only four wickets. In the other matches, however, Giffen was more successful. He made 1424 runs for the tour—only Sammy Jones scored more for the Australians—and took 154 wickets, including five wickets in an innings no less than 13 times. Giffen was emphatically the success of the tour, and the fact that he came out first in both batting and bowling speaks volumes for his excellence. Indeed it would be impossible at
13600-537: The damage. As the war progressed, the threat came not from the Luftwaffe but the newly developed V-1 flying bomb . Lord's had several near misses from these weapons in 1944, with one bomb landing 200 yards (180 m) short of the ground near to Regents Park . The Nursery Ground had been requisitioned by the Royal Air Force and converted into a barrage balloon site. The most high-profile damage during
13770-561: The derisive term "shamateur" was coined to describe the practice. The game underwent major development in the 18th century to become England's national sport . Its success was underwritten by the twin necessities of patronage and betting. Cricket was prominent in London as early as 1707 and, in the middle years of the century, large crowds flocked to matches on the Artillery Ground in Finsbury . The single wicket form of
13940-405: The earliest known contest that is generally considered a First Class match. The patrons and other players from the gentry began to classify themselves as " amateurs " to establish a clear distinction from the professionals, who were invariably members of the working class , even to the point of having separate changing and dining facilities. The gentry, including such high-ranking nobles as
14110-441: The end of the 1950s and cricket in England found itself from a position of 2.2 million paid County Championship spectators in 1947, dropping to 719,661 in 1963. To arrest this decline, List A one-day cricket was introduced in 1963, with Lord's hosting its first List A match in the 1963 Gillette Cup between Middlesex and Northamptonshire and later hosted the final of the competition between Sussex and Worcestershire in front of
14280-466: The end of the war attendances at cricket matches grew. The gross attendance of 132,000 and the gate receipts of £43,000 for the Second Test of the 1948 Ashes series was a record for a Test match in England at that time. This demand necessitated further expansion of the ground, with the construction of the Warner Stand in 1958, which included snack bars and a press box. This stand was the work of
14450-463: The existence of players like him who were nominally amateur but, in terms of their financial gain, de facto professional. Grace himself was said to have been paid more money for playing cricket than any professional. The last two decades before the First World War have been called the " Golden Age of cricket ". It is a nostalgic name prompted by the collective sense of loss resulting from
14620-548: The feat even more impressively, scoring 271 runs in South Australia's innings and taking 9/96 and 7/70 in Victoria's two innings. The Australian team touring England in 1886 did not meet with much success, losing all three Tests. Wisden Cricketers' Almanack remarked that "there is nothing to place the [Australians] on any higher standard than would have been attained by any good county team that went playing about
14790-473: The final of the inaugural men's World Cup , with the West Indies triumphing over Australia. Four years later, Lord's held the final of the 1979 World Cup , with the West Indies once against triumphing, this time against England. The first women's cricket match at Lord's took place in August 1976 when England and Australia played a 60-over ODI which England won by eight wickets. The opportunity to play
14960-646: The first limited overs Cricket World Cup in 1975 . Sri Lanka joined the ranks in 1982. Meanwhile, South Africa was banned by the ICC due to apartheid from 1970 until 1992. 1992 also brought about the introduction of the Zimbabwe team . The 21st century brought with it the Bangladesh Team , who made their Test debut in 2000. The game itself also grew, with a new format made up of 20-over innings being created. This format, called T20 cricket , quickly became
15130-547: The first unified rules for lawn tennis, which were adopted by the club on 24 June. These rules were amended by the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club for the 1877 Wimbledon Championship , with the dimensions of the tennis courts being based on those at Lord's; the courts on which these were based are no longer used for tennis and are now part of the Harris Garden. The original intention for
15300-520: The foundation stone of the court being laid by Benjamin Aislabie . The court was built at a cost of £4,000, which at the time was exceptionally high. A real tennis competition was later established in 1867. The tennis court was demolished in 1898 to make way for the Mound Stand, with a replacement court being built behind the pavilion in 1900 in the back garden of number 3 Grove End Road. By 2005
15470-481: The game and only 5,000 spectators were able to attend. A new indoor cricket school was completed in 1973 at the Nursery End, funded by £75,000 from Sir Jack Hayward and additional funds raised by the Lord's Taverners and The Sports Council . The West Indies appeared in their third successive World Cup final in 1983, but were defeated by 43 runs by India . The Mound Stand's roof was removed in 1985 to make way for
15640-450: The game at county level led to the creation of the county clubs , starting with Sussex in 1839. In December 1889, the eight leading county clubs formed the official County Championship , which began in 1890. The most famous player of the 19th century was W. G. Grace , who started his long and influential career in 1865. It was especially during the career of Grace that the distinction between amateurs and professionals became blurred by
15810-424: The game progresses (cricket can also be played on artificial surfaces, notably matting). Each wicket is made of three wooden stumps topped by two bails . As illustrated, the pitch is marked at each end with four white painted lines: a bowling crease , a popping crease and two return creases . The three stumps are aligned centrally on the bowling crease, which is eight feet eight inches long. The popping crease
15980-432: The game quickly grew from 500 tests in 84 years to 1000 within the next 23. Cricket entered a new era in 1963 when English counties introduced the limited overs variant. As it was sure to produce a result, limited overs cricket was lucrative, and the number of matches increased. The first Limited Overs International was played in 1971, and the governing International Cricket Council (ICC), seeing its potential, staged
16150-421: The greatest Test batter of all time. To curb his dominance, England employed bodyline tactics during the 1932–33 Ashes series . These involved bowling at the body of the batter and setting a field, resulting in batters having to choose between being hit or risk getting out. This series moved cricket from a game to a matter of national importance , with diplomatic cables being passed between the two countries over
16320-573: The ground against a team of Iroquois Indians . A Canadian lacrosse team toured the United Kingdom again in 1883, with one exhibition match being staged at Lord's in front of several thousand spectators. It was later played again at Lord's in October 1953 when the Kenton and Old Thorntonians lacrosse clubs met there in a lacrosse championship match, with further fixtures following in November of
16490-502: The ground for commentators, and replace them with a new purpose built facility. It was then approved by members of the MCC at a special general meeting in December 1996. A gap between the Compton and Edrich Stands was selected, with space limitations requiring the centre to stand 15 metres (49 ft) above the ground on reinforced supports from the structure around its two lift shafts. This design allowed for uninterrupted access between
16660-529: The hands, a safety helmet for the head, and a box for male players inside the trousers (to protect the crotch area). Some batters wear additional padding inside their shirts and trousers such as thigh pads, arm pads, rib protectors and shoulder pads. The only fielders allowed to wear protective gear are those in positions very close to the batter (i.e., if they are alongside or in front of him), but they cannot wear gloves or external leg guards. Subject to certain variations, on-field clothing generally includes
16830-462: The incident. During this time, the number of Test nations continued to grow, with the West Indies , New Zealand and India being admitted as full Test members within a four-year period from 1928 to 1932. An enforced break during the Second World War stopped Test Cricket for a time, although the Partition of India caused Pakistan to gain Test status in 1952. As teams began to travel more,
17000-418: The introduction of the boundary system in 1866. Further crowd control measures were initiated in 1871, with the introduction of turnstiles. The pavilion was expanded in the mid-1860s and shortly thereafter it was decided to replace the original tavern with a new construction commencing in December 1867. At this time a nascent county game was beginning to take shape. With Lord's hosting more county matches,
17170-414: The last time in 2000, after which the match alternated between Fenner's at Cambridge and University Parks at Oxford. The fixture has continued at Lord's since 2001 as a one-day limited overs match. At the start of the 21st–century, the Lord's slope which provides a benefit to both seam bowlers and swing bowlers from the Pavilion and Nursery Ends respectively, was under threat of being levelled due to
17340-489: The library. Lord's has two gardens, the Harris Garden and the Coronation Garden. The Coronation Garden was created behind the A stand (Warner Stand) in 1952 to celebrate the Coronation of Elizabeth II . It contains weeping Ash trees and other trees, providing a shaded area under which benches are found. Preserved in the Coronation Garden is one of the first models of mass-produced, cast iron, heavy rollers dating from
17510-535: The lowest Test total at Lord's and lost the match by 143 runs. In August 2022 the ground's East Gate was renamed the Heyhoe Flint Gate in honour of Rachael Heyhoe Flint. As of 2024, the stands at Lord's are (clockwise from the Pavilion): Many of the stands were rebuilt in the late 20th century. In 1987 the new Mound Stand, designed by Michael Hopkins and Partners , was opened, followed by
17680-404: The main Lord's ground, but heavy rain had fallen and in the week leading up to the match this had led to the abandonment of a match between the MCC and Nottinghamshire. The heavy rain persisted during the MCC v Yorkshire match, with the players spending the first two days of the three-day match sat in the pavilion. However, it was deemed that the playing surface on the Nursery Ground was suitable for
17850-463: The main ground and the Nursery Ground, while also allowing the movement of ground staff and their equipment. It was designed by the Future Systems architectural practice led by Czech architect Jan Kaplický and was the first all-aluminium, semi- monocoque building in the world, costing about £5 million. Construction began in January 1997 and was completed in time for the 1999 World Cup. It
18020-437: The match for South Australia vs. Victoria in 1891. In all he scored 18 first-class centuries, 4 of them doubles. Giffen also performed well in English conditions. On each of his five tours he topped both the batting and bowling overall tour averages, yet another unique Giffen feat. The great all rounder led Australia in four of the five Tests during 1894 tour. His 34 Test wickets was a series record at that time and he also scored
18190-413: The modern calendar). The case concerned ownership of a certain plot of land, and the court heard the testimony of a 59-year-old coroner , John Derrick , who gave witness that: Being a scholler in the ffree schoole of Guldeford hee and diverse of his fellows did runne and play there at creckett and other plaies. Given Derrick's age, it was about half a century earlier when he was at school, and so it
18360-416: The most runs for that series. Giffen played his last Test in 1896 but remained a force at the first-class level for some time, at the age of 41 he captured 13 English wickets to steer South Australia to a victory over the tourists. Three years later he finished his career with scores of 81, 97 not out and 15 wickets (7/75 and 8/110) against Victoria. Giffen was a robust batsman noted for his driving he also had
18530-552: The name may have been derived from the Middle Dutch (in use in Flanders at the time) " krick " ( -e ), meaning a stick (crook). Another possible source is the Middle Dutch word " krickstoel " , meaning a long low stool used for kneeling in church that resembled the long low wicket with two stumps used in early cricket. According to Heiner Gillmeister, a European language expert of Bonn University , "cricket" derives from
18700-448: The newer Twenty20 format (also known as T20 ), in which each team bats for a single innings of 20 overs (each "over" being a set of 6 fair opportunities for the batting team to score) and the game generally lasts three to four hours. Traditionally, cricketers play in all-white kit , but in limited overs cricket , they wear club or team colours. In addition to the basic kit, some players wear protective gear to prevent injury caused by
18870-512: The next two Tests. This action was unpopular with the Australian public. Charles Kingston , then South Australian Attorney-General , said "the Australian eleven would have the reputation of having sacrificed the cricketing honour of their nation to monetary considerations". Giffen and the others returned for the Fourth Test in Sydney where Australia won by eight wickets; Giffen taking 7/117 in
19040-527: The nine Test matches in the ill-fated 1912 Triangular Tournament which was organised by the South African millionaire Sir Abe Bailey . The ground's centenary was commemorated in June 1914 with a match between MCC, whose team was selected from the touring party from the recent tour of South Africa , and a Rest of England team. The Rest of England won the three-day match by an innings and 189 runs. Lord's
19210-411: The north and west. Lord's was described by Lord Cottesloe in 1845 as being a primitive venue, with low benches put in a circle around the ground at a good distance providing seating for spectators. Improvements to the ground were gradually made, with the introduction of a telegraph scoreboard in 1846. A small room was built on the north side of the pavilion in 1848 for professionals, providing them with
19380-475: The original records of the MCC and the wider game. The pavilion was promptly rebuilt by Lord. In 1825, the future of the ground was placed in jeopardy when Lord proposed developing the ground with housing at a time when St John's Wood was seeing rapid development. This was prevented by William Ward, who purchased the ground from Lord for £5,000. His purchase was celebrated in the following anonymous poem: The first University Match between Oxford and Cambridge
19550-401: The outfield. The Cross Arrows Cricket Club play their home matches at the Nursery Ground toward the end of the cricket season. The construction of the new Compton and Edrich stands, beginning in August 2019, encroached on the Nursery Ground's playing area. In order to reclaim the playing area lost to the redevelopment of the stands, the temporary Nursery Pavilion will be demolished in 2025–26 and
19720-483: The pavilion from over the bowlers arm. The Media Centre was opened in April 1999 by then MCC President Tony Lewis . Lord's hosted its one-hundredth Test match in June 2000, with England defeating the West Indies by two wickets; the match was also notable for the 21 wickets which fell on the second day, the most to fall in a day in a Test at Lord's since 1888. The ground also hosted The University Match over three days for
19890-399: The pavilion is notoriously strict. Men are required to wear "ties and tailored coats and acceptable trousers with appropriate shoes" and women are required to wear "dresses; or skirts or trousers worn with blouses, and appropriate shoes". Until 1999 women – except Queen Elizabeth II – were not permitted to enter the pavilion as members during play, due to the gender-based membership policy of
20060-529: The pavilion, which the archers were positioned in front of, with the targets placed 70 metres away just past the square and in front of the Media Centre. Either side of the square temporary stands holding up to 5,000 spectators were erected. Lacrosse was first played at Lord's in 1833 by the Canadian pioneers of the sport. Lacrosse returned to Lord's in 1876, when a team of Canadian Gentlemen Amateurs led by William George Beers played an exhibition match at
20230-474: The pitch are the Pavilion End (south-west), where the main members' pavilion is located, and the Nursery End (north-east), dominated by the Media Centre. The current Grand Stand replaced the one built in 1926 by Sir Herbert Baker. Although the stand was described as "truly a thing of beauty, loved by all who gazed upon it", it did have limitations for spectators. 43% of the seats had an obstructed views of
20400-512: The pitches subsequently improved with the umpires being responsible for their preparation. Middlesex County Cricket Club , which had been founded in 1864, began playing their home games at Lord's in 1877 after vacating their ground in Chelsea , which had been considered a serious rival to Lord's given its noblemen backers. In 1873–74, an embankment was constructed which could accommodate 4,000 spectators in four rows of seats. Four years later
20570-483: The players. The lower tier of the centre provides accommodation for 118 journalists, with two hospitality boxes either side which accommodate 18 people each. The top tier has radio and television commentary boxes, consisting of two television studios, two large commentary and radio commentary boxes, each holding up to six people. The centre's only opening window is in the broadcasting box used by BBC Test Match Special . The building won eight architectural awards, including
20740-480: The playing area and the structure itself was becoming rotten. The current pavilion at Lord's is the third pavilion to stand at the ground and is the main survivor from the Victorian era, having been built in 1889–90. It has been a Grade II* listed building since September 1982. The pavilion was constructed using brick with ornate terracotta facing, which includes terracotta gargoyles, such as 'The Patriarch' which
20910-483: The playing area will be extended up to the perimeter wall running along the Wellington Road. Lord's is the home of the MCC Museum, which is the oldest sports museum in the world, and contains the world's most celebrated collection of cricket memorabilia , including The Ashes urn . MCC has been collecting memorabilia since 1864, the collection being originated by Sir Spencer Ponsonby-Fane , who subsequently became
21080-407: The present day to name his superior as an all-round cricketer. Giffen became the first player in Test history to complete the double of 1000 runs and 100 wickets. His first class performances include many achievements. Nine times he scored a century and took 10 wickets in the one match. Twice he scored a century and took more than a dozen wickets. No other cricketer in the world has ever done it. He
21250-448: The present ground on 29 July 1818. From 1822, the fixture has been almost an annual event at Lord's. Lord's witnessed the first double-century to be made in first-class cricket when William Ward scored 278 for the MCC against Norfolk in 1820. The original pavilion , which had recently been renovated at great expense, was destroyed by fire following the first Winchester v Harrow match on 23 July 1823, which destroyed nearly all of
21420-418: The purchase of the northern part of the Nursery Ground in 1838 was for it to serve as an archery venue. Archery is recorded as having been played at Lord's as far back as August 1844, when visiting Ioway Indians camped at Lord's and demonstrated their archery skills. Lord's was one of the venues for the 2012 Summer Olympics , hosting the archery competition . The archery competition took place in front of
21590-401: The rivalry between England and Australia. Lord's hosted its first Test match during the 1884 Ashes , becoming the third venue in England to host Test cricket after The Oval and Old Trafford . The match was won by England by an innings and 5 runs, with England's A. G. Steel and Edmund Peate recording the first Test century and five wicket haul at Lord's respectively. As part of
21760-465: The same position at the County Ground, Hove . His appointment vastly improved the condition of the wicket, with The Standard describing them as "faultless". The Australian cricket team captained by Dave Gregory first visited Lord's on 27 May 1878, defeating their MCC hosts by 9 wickets. This was considered a shock result and established not only the fame of the Australian team, but also
21930-566: The same year. Baseball was first played at Lord's in 1874 when the MCC hosted a touring party of 22 baseball players from the Boston Red Stockings and the Philadelphia Athletics , who were the two leading American baseball teams of the time. The Red Stockings defeated The Athletics 24–7 in front of a crowd of 5,000 spectators. A baseball game was held at Lord's during the First World War to raise funds for
22100-412: The scoring and dismiss the batters. When the first innings ends, the teams change roles; there can be two to four innings depending upon the type of match. A match with four scheduled innings is played over three to five days; a match with two scheduled innings is usually completed in a single day. During an innings, all eleven members of the fielding team take the field, but usually only two members of
22270-776: The second edition of the Twenty20 Cup in 2004. In 2005 the International Cricket Council (formerly the Imperial Cricket Conference) headquarters, which had been located at Lord's since its foundation in 1909, were closed and moved to the Dubai Sports City in the United Arab Emirates. Temporary floodlights were installed at the ground in 2007, but were removed in 2008 after complaints of light pollution from local residents. In January 2009, Westminster City Council approved
22440-473: The series two Tests to nil. Giffen was selected to tour England with the Australian team in 1882 . He was moderately successful, taking 32 wickets at an average of 21.84 and making 699 runs averaging 19.02. In the celebrated match against England—later designated a Test match—Giffen made 2 runs in the first innings but was dismissed by Ted Peate for a duck in the second. Australia, through
22610-484: The south. In order to build the railway into Marylebone station, the Nursery Ground had to be dug up to allow tunnels to be constructed between 1894 and 1898 using the cut-and-cover method. Once completed the railway company laid a new pitch. It was rumoured that subsequent tunnelling under Wellington Road provided the banking for the Mound Stand, which was constructed in 1898/99 on an area previously occupied by tennis and rackets courts. The rapid development of Lord's
22780-443: The sport attracted huge crowds and wagers to match, its popularity peaking in the 1748 season . Bowling underwent an evolution around 1760 when bowlers began to pitch (bounce) the ball instead of rolling or skimming it towards the batter. This caused a revolution in bat design because, to deal with the bouncing ball, it was necessary to introduce the modern straight bat in place of the old "hockey stick" shape. The Hambledon Club
22950-413: The sport is that a bowler delivers (i.e., bowls) the ball from their end of the pitch towards the batter who, armed with a bat , is "on strike" at the other end (see next sub-section: Basic gameplay ). The bat is made of wood, usually Salix alba (white willow), and has the shape of a blade topped by a cylindrical handle. The blade must not be more than 4.25 inches (10.8 cm) wide and
23120-442: The third day of the match to be played there, with both sides batting for an innings each and Yorkshire's Wilfred Rhodes making an unbeaten 98. The Women's University Match has been played on the Nursery Ground since 2001, however following calls for gender equality, the 20-over fixture will be played on the main Lord's ground for the first time from 2022 alongside the men's fixtures. On big match days crowds are allowed onto
23290-401: The three Test series one Test to nil, but had the best of the two drawn matches. In the Second Test at Lord's , Giffen top-scored in the first innings, making 63 runs;. England won the Test by an innings and 5 runs. Giffen took 81 wickets in England at an average of 19.60, however he "tended to be expensive". His best batting performance for the tour was 118 against Lancashire ;
23460-412: The time was recorded as sloping down 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) from north-west to south-east, though in actuality the slope is 8 ft 1 in (2.46 m). The new ground was opened in the 1814 season, with the MCC playing Hertfordshire in the first match on the ground on 22 June 1814. A tavern was built for Lord in 1813–14, followed by a wooden pavilion in 1814. First-class cricket
23630-456: The total length of the bat not more than 38 inches (97 cm). There is no standard for the weight, which is usually between 2 lb 7 oz and 3 lb (1.1 and 1.4 kg). Lord%27s Lord's Cricket Ground , commonly known as Lord's , is a cricket venue in St John's Wood , London. Named after its founder, Thomas Lord , it is owned by Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) and
23800-440: The use of new 48 metre high retractable floodlights designed to minimise light spillage into nearby homes. Conditions of the approval included a five-year trial period during which up to 12 matches and 4 practice matches could be played under the lights from April to September. The lights must be dimmed to half-strength at 9.50 pm and be switched off by 11 pm. The floodlights were first used successfully on 27 May 2009 during
23970-521: The various versions of lawn tennis which existed with the aim to fully standardise the game's rules. Amongst the various versions of lawn tennis which were demonstrated were Major Clopton Wingfield's Sphairistikè , and John H. Hale's Germains Lawn Tennis. After the meeting, the MCC Tennis Committee was tasked with framing the rules. On 29 May 1875 the MCC issued the Laws of Lawn Tennis ,
24140-507: The war for the London Counties cricket team , amongst others, which attracted large crowds. The ground was spared major damage from The Blitz . An oil bomb landed in the Nursery Ground in 1940, with a high-explosive bomb also narrowly missing the Nursery End stands in December of the same year. The grandstand and the pavilion were hit by incendiary bombs, damaging their roofs. The in-house Lord's firefighters reacted quickly and limited
24310-563: The war for the manufacture of hay nets for horses on the Western Front . Though requisitioned, Lord's held several charity cricket matches during the war, featuring military teams from the various territories of the British Empire . These matches were well attended and one such match in 1918 between England and the Dominions was attended by George V and the Duke of Connaught . First-class cricket returned to Lord's in 1919, with
24480-577: The war was that to Father Time , which was damaged by a one such balloon which had broken loose and drifted toward the grandstand, catching Father Time and depositing it into the seating at the front of the stand. International cricket resumed at the end of the war, with Lord's hosting one of the Victory Tests (though the matches did not actually have Test status) between the Australian Services cricket team and England. Following
24650-535: The war, but the period did produce some great players and memorable matches, especially as organised competition at county and Test level developed. In 1844, the first-ever international match took place between what were essentially club teams, from the United States and Canada , in Toronto ; Canada won. In 1859, a team of English players went to North America on the first overseas tour . Meanwhile,
24820-489: The world. In 1895 the Middlesex Volunteers requested the use of the Nursery Ground as a drill ground, but this was declined by the MCC. The Nursery Pavilion, which was constructed in 1999, overlooks the playing area of the Nursery Ground and is one of London's largest venues. The ground has hosted one first-class cricket match in 1903, when the MCC played Yorkshire ; the match was originally to be played on
24990-442: The world. Rait Kerr was succeeded as curator by Stephen Green in 1968. The museum today welcomes around 50,000 visitors per year. Amongst the items on display include cricket kit used by Victor Trumper , Jack Hobbs , Don Bradman , Shane Warne , and others; many items related to the career of W. G. Grace ; and curiosities such as the stuffed sparrow that was 'bowled out' by Jahangir Khan of Cambridge University in delivering
25160-655: Was bowled underarm by the bowler and along the ground towards a batter armed with a bat that in shape resembled a hockey stick ; the batter defended a low, two-stump wicket ; and runs were called notches because the scorers recorded them by notching tally sticks. In 1611, the year Cotgrave 's dictionary was published, ecclesiastical court records at Sidlesham in Sussex state that two parishioners, Bartholomew Wyatt and Richard Latter, failed to attend church on Easter Sunday because they were playing cricket. They were fined 12 d each and ordered to do penance . This
25330-544: Was a "great upsurge of sport after the Restoration " in 1660. Several members of the court of King Charles II took a strong interest in cricket during that era. Gambling on sport became a problem significant enough for Parliament to pass the 1664 Gambling Act, limiting stakes to £ 100, which was, in any case, a colossal sum exceeding the annual income of 99% of the population. Along with horse racing , as well as prizefighting and other types of blood sport , cricket
25500-413: Was a member of the MCC committee at the time advanced the money on a mortgage, with his proposal for the MCC to buy the ground being unanimously passed at a special general meeting on 2 May 1866. Following the purchase, a number of developments took place. These included the addition of cricket nets for players to practise and the construction of a grandstand designed by the architect Arthur Allom , which
25670-527: Was built in 32 sections and fitted out by Pendennis Shipyard in Falmouth in combination with Centraalstaal from the Netherlands. These pieces were then delivered to Lord's where they were lowered into place during the 1998 season . The glazing on the front of the centre is inclined 25° so as to eliminate reflections and glare on the pitch to minimise the visual barrier between members of the media and
25840-410: Was built in the winter of 1867–68 and also provided accommodation for the press. This was funded by a private syndicate of MCC members, from whom the MCC purchased the stand in 1869. The wicket at Lord's was heavily criticised in the 1860s due to its poor condition, with Frederick Gale suggesting that nine cricket grounds out of ten within 20 miles of London would have a better wicket; the condition
26010-480: Was created in 2010 to coincide with Lord's hosting a Test match between Australia and Pakistan . The Australians Warren Bardsley and Charlie Kelleway were the first two names added to this board, commemorating their centuries against South Africa in 1912. They were joined by the Australians Shane Watson and Marcus North , who both took five wicket hauls against Pakistan. The dress code in
26180-419: Was decided to build a new pavilion at a cost of £21,000. Construction on this pavilion , which was designed by Thomas Verity , took place in 1889–90. The pavilion it replaced was relocated and painstakingly rebuilt on an estate in Sussex , where it lived out its days as a glorified garden shed. Soon after this, the MCC purchased the land to the east, known today as the Nursery Ground; this had previously been
26350-542: Was deemed so poor as to be dangerous that Sussex refused to play there in 1864. By the 1860s and 1870s, the great social occasions of the season were the public schools match between Eton and Harrow, the University Match between Oxford and Cambridge, and the Gentlemen v Players , with all three matches attracting great crowds. Crowds became so large that they encroached on the playing area, which necessitated
26520-487: Was first played on the present ground in July 1814, with the MCC playing St John's Wood Cricket Club . The first century to be scored at the ground in first-class cricket was made by Frederick Woodbridge (107) for Epsom against Middlesex, with Epsom's Felix Ladbroke (116) recording the second century in the same match. The annual Eton v Harrow match, which was first played on the Old Ground in 1805, returned to
26690-592: Was founded in the 1760s and, for the next twenty years until the formation of Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) and the opening of Lord's Old Ground in 1787, Hambledon was both the game's greatest club and its focal point. MCC quickly became the sport's premier club and the custodian of the Laws of Cricket . New Laws introduced in the latter part of the 18th century include the three-stump wicket and leg before wicket (lbw). The 19th century saw underarm bowling superseded by first roundarm and then overarm bowling . Both developments were controversial. Organisation of
26860-432: Was held at Lord's in 1827, at the instigation of Charles Wordsworth , establishing what would be the oldest first-class fixture in the world until 2020. The ground remained under the ownership of Ward until 1835, after which it was handed over to James Dark . The pavilion was refurbished in 1838, with the addition of gas lighting . Around this time Lord's could still be considered a country ground, with open countryside to
27030-553: Was home to the European Cricket Council (ECC) till 2010 and currently is home to ICC Europe, which administers cricket outside of the European full-member nations. With Lord's hosting three matches in the 1999 World Cup , including the final , the MCC set about improving press facilities by constructing the Media Centre at the Nursery End between the Compton and Edrich stands, offering commanding views towards
27200-400: Was named Captain of the 1894 tour Walter having made 11 runs in his three Tests to date and a poor domestic season was also named, many believing because of George's influence over the selection. He has also been accused of causing the demise of cricketer Charlie Turner who was the country's leading wicket taker at the time, and then, in the following test which Australia needed to win, opening
27370-435: Was not well met by some, with critics suggesting Thomas Lord would 'turn in his grave' at Lord's expansion. 1899 saw Albert Trott hit a six over the pavilion while playing for the MCC against the touring Australians, remaining as of 2024 the only batsman to do so. The Imperial Cricket Conference was founded by England, Australia and South Africa in 1909, with Lord's serving as its headquarters. Lord's hosted three of
27540-490: Was perceived to be a gambling sport. Rich patrons made matches for high stakes, forming teams in which they engaged the first professional players. By the end of the century, cricket had developed into a major sport that was spreading throughout England and was already being taken abroad by English mariners and colonisers—the earliest reference to cricket overseas is dated 1676. A 1697 newspaper report survives of "a great cricket match" played in Sussex "for fifty guineas apiece",
27710-595: Was promoted to open the batting for the Third Test at the Sydney Cricket Ground , where he made 41 and 7 England won the Test by 69 runs, winning the first Ashes series 2–1. In February 1884, Giffen became the first Australian to take all ten wickets in a first-class innings, taking 10/66 for an Australian XI against the Rest. Later that year, he was once again included in the Australian team to tour England , led by Billy Murdoch . The Australians lost
27880-621: Was requisitioned by the army during the First World War , accommodating the Territorial Army, Royal Army Medical Corps (RAMC) and Royal Army Service Corps . Both cooking and wireless instruction classes were held at the ground for military personnel. Once the RAMC departed, the War Office used the Nursery Ground and other buildings as a training centre for Royal Artillery cadets. The pavilion and its long room were used throughout
28050-405: Was retrospectively recognised as the first-ever Test match at the Melbourne Cricket Ground against Australia . The rivalry between England and Australia gave birth to The Ashes in 1882, which remains Test cricket's most famous contest. Test cricket began to expand in 1888–89 when South Africa played England. The inter-war years were dominated by Australia 's Don Bradman , statistically
28220-560: Was short-lived because it lay on the route decided by Parliament for the Regent's Canal , in addition to the ground being unpopular with patrons. The "Middle Ground" was on the estate of the Eyre family, who offered Lord another plot nearby; and he again relocated his turf. This new ground was originally a duck pond on a hill in St. John's Wood , which gives rise to Lord's famous slope, which at
28390-405: Was suggested that Lord's aim to accommodate crowds of up to 40,000 for Test matches; however, the stands at the ground were considered inadequate with the grandstand described as "hopelessly out of date". To accommodate these crowds, the old grandstand was demolished and a new one was built in its place in 1926, designed by the architect Sir Herbert Baker . Completion of the stand was delayed due to
28560-486: Was then decided by a Super Over , which also ended in a tie. Therefore, the winner was decided on the number of boundaries scored in the game and Super Over; this was England's first World Cup triumph. A second match of note followed four days later when Ireland played their first Test match at Lord's , where they bowled England out for 85 on the first morning of the match with Tim Murtagh taking 5 for 13. Despite this, in their second innings Ireland were dismissed for 38,
28730-456: Was thought that the establishment of a new ground would offer more exclusivity to its members, with White Conduit Fields considered too far away from fashionable Oxford Street and the West End . The first match played at the new ground saw Middlesex play Essex . In 1811, feeling obliged to relocate because of a rise in rent, Lord removed his turf and relaid it at his second ground . This
28900-545: Was where Dorset Square now stands. His second ground, Lord's Middle Ground , was used from 1811 to 1813 before being abandoned to make way for the construction through its outfield of the Regent's Canal . The present Lord's ground is about 250 yards (230 m) north-west of the site of the Middle Ground. The ground can hold 31,100 spectators, the capacity having increased between 2017 and 2022 as part of MCC's ongoing redevelopment plans. Acting on behalf of members of
#505494