Sir John Berry "Jack" Hobbs (16 December 1882 – 21 December 1963) was an English professional cricketer who played for Surrey from 1905 to 1934 and for England in 61 Test matches between 1908 and 1930. Known as "The Master", Hobbs is regarded by critics as one of the greatest batsmen in the history of cricket. He is the leading run-scorer and century-maker in first-class cricket, with 61,760 runs and 199 centuries.[notes 1] A right-handed batsman and an occasional right-arm medium pace bowler, Hobbs also excelled as a fielder, particularly in the position of cover point.
Hobbs was born in Cambridge on 16 December 1882, the eldest of 12 children born to John Cooper Hobbs, a slater, and his wife Flora Matilda Berry.[1][2] Hobbs was born in a cottage belonging to his maternal grandfather, situated in a poor, run-down area of the town, but the family moved into their own home shortly after his birth. However, throughout his childhood, Hobbs' family remained in poverty, and conditions for the working class in Cambridge were poor.[3] Hobbs later wrote that, although he had a happy childhood, he had envied those who lived a more privileged life in Cambridge's more affluent areas and his childhood experiences left him with an sense of inferiority.[4] The family moved house several times during this period.[5]
Hobbs' father had a great love of cricket and his performances playing for a short-lived club formed by him and his work colleagues led to an offer of employment as a professional cricketer at Fenner's, the cricket ground of Cambridge University. His main duties were umpiring matches on the ground and bowling in the cricket nets to undergraduates.[6] Although the pay was poor, Hobbs senior was happy to have achieved his lifetime ambition of a career in cricket.[5] In 1889, he was appointed to the more prestigious position of groundsman and umpire at Jesus College,[7] where Hobbs junior was able to watch cricket practice and occasionally become involved, although he received little formal coaching from his father, who was reluctant to exploit his position.[8] Nevertheless, Hobbs soon acquired a love of cricket from his father. Hobbs later claimed that his father rarely coached him,[9] but his mother once recounted that Hobbs senior "trained him carefully since he was old enough to hold a bat".[10] From an early age, Hobbs played cricket whenever he could and his first games were played in the streets near his house.[11] He and his father frequently discussed the game and Hobbs closely followed local cricket.[10]
Hobbs was educated at a primary school affiliated with his local Anglican church, St Matthew's. In 1891, he moved to York Street Boys' School, where in contrast to his previous school, his family had to pay fees for him to attend. He later wrote that he was a poor scholar but was more successful at sports.[11] Both he and his mother later recounted that he was rarely in trouble at home or school, except when carrying out practical jokes.[12] He was also heavily involved in St Matthew's Church, and was a member of the church choir.[12] Although his first appearance in a cricket match was as a last minute substitute playing for Jesus College choir, he played regularly for the St Matthew's choir team, which he went on to captain, and the York Street school team.[10] He was also a founder member of a team called the Ivy Club which played on Parker's Piece.[13] During holidays, he helped his father at work on the Jesus College ground.[14] In his final year at York Street, in order to supplement the family budget, he took a job working before school hours in the domestic service of a private house where his duties mainly involved cleaning.[15][16] When he left school in 1895, Hobbs initially worked as an errand boy before his father's connections at the university helped him to get a summer job as a college servant, chiefly assisting the cricket team.[16] Then, aged 16, he began a potentially more permanent career working as an apprentice gas fitter.[16]
He continued to practise hard, batting in the mornings and evenings on Parker's Piece; the cricket pitches here were poor quality and some critics have attributed Hobbs' later success to his formative years on difficult batting pitches.[17] Even so, he did not stand out as a cricketer at this time, in contrast to other successful batsmen who excelled from an early age. No coaches or teams approached him and he was 18 years old before hitting his first century. Hobbs later admitted that he was a slow developer, and there seemed little realistic prospect at this time of him pursuing a career as a professional cricketer like his father, although he continued to harbour the hope.[18]
Hobbs' breakthrough came in 1901,[19] and he began to believe he could succeed as a cricketer.[14] His batting improved throughout the season, during which he appeared for two local sides, Ainsworth and the Cambridge Liberals. Appearing for the former against the latter, he scored 102, his first century. His performances in the season meant that he was picked for an annual charity match played between a team representing Cambridge and a team of professional cricketers brought by the Cambridge-born Surrey cricketer Tom Hayward.[19] Hobbs was a last minute replacement,[14] and although he scored just 26 not out, was comfortable playing against the professionals; Hobbs was delighted that he could compete at a higher level,[19] and he began to understand the best way to bat effectively.[20] At the end of the season, he was invited to play as an amateur for Cambridgeshire, even though his record in club cricket was unremarkable. He was not particularly successful,[21] reaching double figures just once, but his experiences in the season increased his determination to pursue a career in cricket.[22]
Early in 1902, Hobbs successfully applied for the job of assistant professional at Bedford School, which he held throughout the summer term.[22] The work mainly consisted of working as a groundsman and bowling in the nets, which left him exhausted and unhappy.[20] Living away from home from the first time and working in a public school environment left him feeling socially out of his depth and he did not enjoy his cricketing duties, although he later admitted that the cricketing strength of the school improved his own batting.[23] In late August, Hobbs returned to Cambridge to play as a professional for the first time. For a fee of ten shillings, he appeared for a team from the nearby town of Royston against Hertfordshire Club and Ground. Appearing in his highest level of cricket to date, Hobbs scored 119. His success delighted his family and made him a local celebrity.[24] Hobbs' father had helped to arrange his appearance in the match but was already seriously ill with pneumonia, and he died a week after his son scored his century, on 3 September 1902.[24] His death left his wife and children facing great financial hardship.[2]
Given the local reputation and respect for Hobbs senior, a local committee formed to raise money to support his family. To this end, a fundraising match was organised on Parker's Piece. Tom Hayward brought a team of well-known professionals, including several of his Surrey team-mates; the match was a resounding financial success and went a long way to easing any financial difficulties for the Hobbs family.[25] Hobbs assumed his father's duties as groundsman at Jesus college in the winter of 1902–03. While working there, one of his colleagues and a friend of his father, F. C. Hutt, got in contact with Hayward to ask him to arrange a trial for Hobbs, with a view to joining Surrey. Consequently in late 1902, Hayward and Bill Reeves, an Essex cricketer born in Cambridge, bowled at Hobbs on Parker's Piece and he impressed Hayward.[26] Hobbs and Hutt were not certain that anything would come of this, and Hutt wrote to Essex asking for a trial, but the county never replied.[27]
Hobbs was summoned to a trial at Surrey in April 1903; after batting in the nets, he was chosen to appear in two trial matches in which he made scores of 37 and 13. The Surrey secretary subsequently offered him a position on the ground staff at the Oval with a basic wage of 30 shillings per week during the season.[notes 2][29] Hayward also persuaded the secretary to include a £10 at the end of the 1903 season to further support the Hobbs family.[28] Hobbs could not immediately play for Surrey owing to the qualification rules in place at the time for the County Championship. To appear for a county, a player had to be born in that county or to have lived there for two years.[30] To this end, Hobbs moved to London; he later wrote how much he enjoyed living in the city. He shared lodgings with a fellow Surrey youth player. Around this time he played football for local teams as a forward with some success. However, he struggled financially during the winter months despite the off-season pay provided by Surrey. In common with other Surrey cricketers at the time, Hobbs struggled to find employment outside of the cricket season.[31]
While qualifying, Hobbs played for Surrey's Colts side and for the "Club and Ground" Eleven, both of which were teams for young Surrey cricketers. He made some substantial scores, including 86 runs in his first match for the Club and Ground, but according to Hobbs' biographer, Leo McKinstry, "Just as he had done for much of his early life, [Hobbs] performed satisfactorily without doing anything startling".[32] He scored 480 runs at an average of 34.29, as well as taking 19 wickets as his bowling improved.[33] The following season, Hobbs played only for the Club and Ground, increased his average to 43.90, and impressed people connected with Surrey.[33] Hobbs' sudden improvement brought about his return to the Cambridgeshire team. He impressed many critics with his batting, particularly when he scored 195 and 129 in two matches against Hertfordshire. In total, he scored 696 runs in 13 innings for Cambridgeshire, averaging 58.00.[34] Wisden Cricketers' Almanack, in its review of Cambridgeshire's season, commented: "A new player in Hobbs rendered fine services as a batsman and came out with a remarkable average."[35]
Hobbs qualified for Surrey by the beginning of the 1905 cricket season.[36] At this time, Tom Hayward was Surrey's opening batsman but lacked a regular opening partner; following the retirement of Bobby Abel, several batsmen had been tried without success. At the time, Hobbs had only rarely opened the batting and had not done so for Cambridgeshire.[37] Nor was Hobbs guaranteed a place in the team as Surrey had a large playing staff with great competition for places. Even so, the cricketing press regarded Hobbs as very promising, as did Tom Hayward.[36] When Hayward captained Surrey in their opening game of the season—the regular, amateur Surrey captain was absent—he ensured that Hobbs played in the game against a team representing the "Gentlemen of England". With none of the recognised opening batsmen available for the match, Hayward took Hobbs out to open the batting.[36][38] Making his debut on 24 April 1905,[39] Hobbs scored 18 runs in the first innings and a quick-scoring 88 in the second before rain ensured the match was drawn. Several of those who played in the game were impressed, including W. G. Grace, the captain of the opposing team, and the press commented favourably on his performance.[40] Following the game, the Surrey secretary, C. W. Alcock, called Hobbs into his office to congratulate him on his debut.[41]
The official Surrey captain, Lord Dalmeny, assumed control of the team for the following match against Essex, the club's opening County Championship match, beginning on 4 May.[39][42] Hobbs retained his place and scored 155 runs in around three hours during Surrey's second innings. Hobbs later held the catch which won the game for Surrey and he was cheered from the ground by the crowd.[42] Lord Dalmeny awarded Hobbs his County Cap as the players left the field;[43] it was very unusual for a player to be awarded a cap so quickly. Press reports over the following days recognised that he was potentially a very good player.[42] Hobbs maintained his form over the following weeks; he scored another century against Essex and hit 94 runs against the touring Australian cricket team.[44] However, from the beginning of June he was generally less successful. Although he scored 75 not out against Middlesex and 58 in a second match against the Australians, his next best score in the remainder of the season was 38.[45] He struggled to cope with a variety of bowlers and began to despair of scoring runs. The fatigue of playing cricket up to six days each week affected his batting, while in contrast to his subsequent career, his fielding was criticised by spectators and journalists.[46] To attempt to recapture his form, Surrey tried Hobbs in different positions in the batting order and occasionally left him out of the side, but nothing helped.[47]
In all first-class cricket in the season, Hobbs scored 1,317 runs at an average of 25.82, including two centuries and four other scores over fifty.[48] This placed him ninth in the Surrey batting averages.[49] McKinstry describes this as "a sound if hardly electrifying start."[50] As an occasional medium-paced bowler, he took six wickets.[50][51] Reviewing Surrey's season, Wisden singled Hobbs out for attention, praising his early-season form but noted how tiredness had affected him; it suggested that he was the best professional batsman Surrey had found for a long time. The Times noted that, although performing well, Hobbs had fallen short of the standards suggested by his start.[50] Hobbs proved generally popular with his team-mates, and established a reputation as a practical joker which he maintained through his career. However, according to McKinstry, at least one member of the team was less impressed and tried to undermine Hobbs by spreading gossip that he had insulted the captain while drunk.[52]
Hobbs spent the winter of 1905–06 practising his batting and fielding. Consequently, he displayed greater consistency in 1906. He scored 85 in the opening game of the season against the Gentlemen of England and maintained his form throughout the season.[53] Displaying a wider range of shots, he scored four centuries, including another against Essex, and established an effective opening partnership with Hayward, who set a record for the highest aggregate of runs in a season.[54] The pair shared a succession of substantial partnerships,[55] although Hayward was very much the dominant partner.[56] Hobbs later acknowledged Hayward's influence and inspiration to him at this time.[57] In total, Hobbs scored 1,913 runs at an average of 40.70 with a highest score of 162,[48] placing him second in the Surrey averages.[49] Wisden praised his improved fielding and commented that he was "one of the best professional bats of the year" and noted that he was likely to get even better.[58] Surrey climbed to third place in the County Championship but faced criticism for their recruitment of Hobbs; the press suggested that it was unethical for counties to include players from outside their boundaries and suggested that the club's perseverance with Hobbs stemmed from a wish to justify signing him.[59]
Following his marriage and honeymoon in the winter of 1906–07,[60] Hobbs made further advances as a batsman in 1907.[61] Unusually frequent rain during the season—Wisden described the season as the wettest ever—meant that pitches often favoured bowlers. Hobbs adapted his batting technique to suit the conditions, improving his defence and developing a method of playing off the back foot—with his weight transferred backwards rather than towards the ball.[62] After beginning the season in uncertain form, he began to bat with great consistency. Showing more control of off side shots, he batted through an entire innings against Warwickshire on a pitch damaged by rain that was difficult to bat on, shared four century partnerships with Hayward in the same week in June, and hit 150 in the home match against Warwickshire in an innings praised by critics.[61] These performances brought him to the attention of the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) selectors, and he was chosen for the Players in the prestigious Gentlemen v Players matches in July. He was unsuccessful in both games; in the first, at Lord's Cricket Ground, he scored 2 and 9 before being dismissed in both innings by the fast bowler Walter Brearley, and in the match at the Oval, he scored 5 and 19.[notes 3][64] Some commentators criticised Hobbs after these matches and suggested that he should bat more defensively as he was too cavalier in his batting.[63]
Hobbs scored a further three centuries in the season, and was selected to play in a Scarborough Festival match against the touring South African team. The South African googly bowlers had caused consternation among English batsmen that summer,[65] and the googly threatened to change the nature of cricket.[66] Against these bowlers, Hobbs scored 78, although as Ronald Mason writes, it was on "a bone-hard wicket against tired bowlers ... an enjoyment rather than a business".[67] By the end of the season, Hobbs had scored 2,135 runs, averaging 37.45.[48] He was one of only three men to pass 2,000 runs; he was second to Hayward in the Surrey averages,[68] and eighth in the national averages.[69] Wisden noted his improvement, the increase in the range of his strokes, particularly on the off side, and noted that "no one among young professional batsmen looks to have such a bright future before him."[70]
In August 1907, during the cricket season, Hobbs was selected to tour Australia with an MCC team—at the time, England teams toured under the name and badge of the MCC.[notes 4] Hobbs later remarked that until the improvement in his batting, he simply aimed to play for Surrey, but he realised during 1907 that a place in the England team was achievable. However, his chances of selection were increased through the rejection by four leading professional cricketers, including Hayward, of the financial terms offered for the tour.[68] In addition, several amateur batsmen including C. B. Fry were either not asked to tour or proved unavailable.[72] It was acknowledged at the time,[73] and by subsequent writers, that the team was not a strong one given the quality of English cricket at the time.[74] Even so, Hobbs was not a certain choice; the influential Archie MacLaren was critical of his batting at the time, and Hobbs may have owed his selection to the support of the Surrey amateur H. D. G. Leveson Gower.[69]
Having overcome initial reservations about leaving his wife and newly-born son, Hobbs accepted the invitation but throughout the voyage to Australia was severely affected by sea-sickness,[75] a condition which was to afflict him throughout his life.[74] To allow him to recover from his illness upon arrival in Australia, Hobbs missed the first two games of the tour, but once recovered, he played in only two of the remaining four fixtures before the Test series began. Hobbs later expressed the belief that the MCC captain, Arthur Jones was instrumental in his omission from the team as he did not rate Hobbs a good player. He also believed that Jones did not give him a chance to prove himself. But Hobbs failed with the bat on his two appearances and was subsequently left out of the team for the first Test match.[76] Even when Jones was taken ill before the game started, George Gunn, not a member of the touring team but present in Australia, was preferred to Hobbs and scored a century in the game. However, England lost the game and the performance of the amateur wicketkeeper and makeshift opening batsman Dick Young was singled out as detrimental to the team. Following effective batting performances by Hobbs in two matches after the Test, Frederick Fane, the stand-in England captain, chose Hobbs to open the batting in the second Test.[77] He made his Test debut on 1 January 1908 at Melbourne.[39][78] He went in to bat on the second day after Australia had scored 266; in 182 minutes, he scored 83 runs in his first innings and although he batted more slowly than usual, critics praised his defence.[79][80] Eventually, England needed 282 to win. Hobbs and Fane added 54 for the first wicket;[81] before Hobbs fell for 28 but England went on to win the match by one wicket.[39]
Hobbs retained his place for the rest of the series. In the third Test, he scored 26 and 23, although he was forced to retire hurt in the latter innings.[82] In the fourth match, he scored 57 on a pitch badly affected by rain, adopting a policy of attacking the bowling and hitting 10 fours. The MCC team manager commented on Hobbs' excellent technique and judgement in the difficult batting conditions.[83] He concluded his series with an innings of 72 in the final game, but could not prevent a third successive English defeat—the home side won the five-match series 4–1.[84] Hobbs had scored 302 runs at an average of 43.14.[85] In other first-class matches, Hobbs scored centuries against Tasmania and Victoria, totalling 876 runs at 41.71.[48] The MCC manager praised Hobbs after the tour, but Hobbs himself did not enjoy the tour. He found the travelling tiring and felt very homesick.[86]
Although batting conditions were generally better in 1908 than the previous season, Hobbs scored fewer runs.[87] Even so, he achieved a batting average over 40 in the County Championship and scored six centuries for Surrey.[88] One such century came in an innings of 106 on an extremely difficult pitch, which caused the ball to spin and bounce excessively, against the bowling of Colin Blythe, regarded as extremely effective in such conditions.[88] In the Gentlemen v Players match, Hobbs scored 81, in contrast to his lack of success during his first appearance.[89] On the other hand, he struggled against Yorkshire, the County Champions that year, scoring 33 runs in four innings against the team.[87] In all first-class games, Hobbs scored 1,904 runs at 37.33.[48] For his achievements that season, Hobbs was chosen as one of Wisden's Cricketers of the Year. The citation noted that "at the present time there is perhaps no better professional batsman in England except Hayward and Tyldesley".[90]
Hobbs began the 1909 season with a succession of large scores. In his second game, he scored a hundred before lunch on the first day against Hampshire. He eventually reached 205, his maiden double-hundred, sharing a partnership of 371 in 165 minutes with Ernie Hayes, albeit on an easy batting pitch against a team lacking effective bowlers.[87][91] In the following game, Hobbs scored 159 against Warwickshire and shared an opening partnership of 352 with Hayward, then top-scored in the first innings of Surrey's victory over the touring Australian team. Surrey then played Warwickshire again, and Hobbs scored a century in each innings before hitting 99 against Essex in the next match.[87] Such form placed him in contention for a place in the England team to play Australia, but the strength of English batting at the time meant that he was not a certainty. Furthermore, the England captain, Archie MacLaren, remained unconvinced that Hobbs possessed the required quality. However, the Surrey captain, Leveson-Gower, was a selector that year. He persuaded the committee to include Hobbs in the squad, then convinced a reluctant MacLaren to play him in the team.[notes 5][93]
In the first Test, played at Edgbaston, Hobbs opened the batting with MacLaren but was dismissed, from the first ball he received, by Charlie Macartney for a duck. However, the match was a low-scoring one on a pitch which made batting difficult, and Australia left England needing 105 to win. The task was not easy in the conditions, but Hobbs, this time opening the batting with C. B. Fry, hit 62 not out. He scored quickly off all the bowlers and England passed the target without losing a wicket.[94] This innings meant that he had scored 919 runs before the end of May, but he failed to emulate W. G. Grace's achievement of scoring 1,000 runs in May when Nottinghamshire batted throughout the day when Surrey played them on 31 May.[95] England lost the second Test by nine wickets, their team much changed to the bafflement of critics and spectators, and Hobbs scored just 19 and 9.[96] The home side also lost the third Test. Hobbs scored 12 and 30, the latter the highest score of the innings, but was involved in controversy in the first innings when he appeared to change his mind when about to walk off after apparently hitting his own wicket. The umpire ruled him not out, to the fury of the Australians who loudly protested for some time. Hobbs was out to a very straightforward delivery almost immediately after; some critics, including the Australian captain, believed he allowed himself to be dismissed because he thought the umpire was wrong, but Hobbs later wrote that the incident unsettled him and he lost concentration.[97]
In his next game, Hobbs badly injured his finger and missed the remainder of the Test series;[98] in three games, he scored 132 runs at an average of 26.40.[85] England lost the series when the remaining two matches were drawn. Hobbs struggled to regain his form when he recovered from the injury and his scoring was inconsistent,[98] but he still finished the season with 2,114 runs at 40.65.[48] However, nearly half of those runs came in the first month of the season,[98] and he passed 40 only four times in his last 20 innings.[99] Surrey also had a difficult season, falling from third to fifth and losing the services of three players including the amateur Jack Crawford following internal disciplinary issues.[99][100]
McKinstry notes that, by the end of the 1909 season, Hobbs had not really established himself at international level and his career "seemed in danger of stagnating".[101] Invited to tour South Africa that winter with the MCC, Hobbs had no hesitation in accepting, needing to support his family financially.[102] However, a tour to South Africa was not prestigious; many leading cricketers were missing from the touring team and others were selected who were a long way from the first-choice eleven. The team faced a challenging tour, playing on matting pitches, with which English players were unfamiliar, and against the South African googly bowlers,[103] who had caused tremendous difficulties for English batsmen both in 1907 and particularly on their home pitches on the last MCC tour in 1905–06. The leading players had found no answer to the four South African googly bowlers; critics and analysts believed a new batting method was needed to defeat the relatively new delivery.[104] In the absence of other players, Hobbs was expected to be the leading batsman on the tour.[104]
When the tour began, local press disregarded Hobbs on the evidence of his first practice sessions on matting pitches, but he subsequently scored centuries in the first two matches,[105] including one in a first-class match.[39] Hobbs was chosen for the first Test against South Africa; the MCC captain, Leveson-Gower, selected Wilfred Rhodes to open the batting with him.[105] Rhodes, who began his career as a bowler who batted down the batting order but steadily improved his batting until he became an opening batsman,[106] went on to establish a successful opening partnership with Hobbs in the years until the First World War. A particular hallmark of their association was quick running between the wickets, and when they batted on the first day in response to a South African total of 208, they immediately began to score singles by pushing the ball just past nearby fielders and running quickly. The tactic was initially a response to the difficulty of facing the bowlers on a matting pitch, but was successful as they added 159 runs for the first wicket.[107][108] Hobbs scored 89 in the first innings and 35 in the second, and although England lost narrowly, he appeared much more comfortable than the other English batsmen against the googly.[107] Hobbs and Rhodes followed up with a partnership of 207 in the match following the Test, and Hobbs scored 163.[109] England also lost the second Test, but Hobbs continued to impress critics; he scored 53 and 70, sharing two substantial opening partnerships of 94 and 48 with Rhodes in the process. The failure of the other batsmen, defeated by the googly bowlers, caused consternation in the English press.[110] As England had few effective pace bowlers on the tour, Hobbs opening the bowling in the first two Tests, as well as the batting.[111]
Hobbs failed in the first innings of the third Test, batting down the order owing to illness. In the second innings, he scored 93 not out in 130 minutes, batting at number five in the order, and despite another failure by the other English batsmen, guided England to a three-wicket victory. He received a rapturous welcome from the crowd and his team-mates.[112] However, the series was lost when England were defeated in the fourth match; Hobbs scored 0 and 1, the only time in his Test career that he failed to reach double figures in either innings, and his worst return in first-class cricket.[113] Then in the final game of the series, he scored his first Test hundred, opening the batting and sharing a partnership of 221 with Rhodes which was a record at the time for the first wicket in Test matches. Hobbs batted for 225 minutes in total and scored 187, an innings praised by Wisden for its "brilliancy".[114] Later, he once more opened the bowling,[115] dismissing Reggie Schwarz, his only Test wicket.[111] England won the match by nine wickets and the series finished 3–2.[114]
Hobbs scored 1,124 first-class runs at an average of 66.11 on the tour,[48] while in the Test matches, he scored 539 runs at 67.37.[85] Wisden commented: "Beyond everything else from the English point of view the feature of the trip was the superb batting of Hobbs, who easily adapted himself to the matting wickets and scored from the famous googly bowlers with amazing skill and facility. When they came home the other members of the team could not say too much in his praise."[116] Syd Gregory, an Australian Test batsman who was visiting South Africa, described Hobbs as the best batsman in the world in a press interview following the series.[114] His success against the googly arose from either reaching a long way forward or stepping back near his stumps in order to play the ball;this meant that he either smothered the ball so that it did not spin or allowed him time to see which way it would spin and play accordingly. He also adopted cautious tactics, preferring to wait for an easy delivery to hit for runs rather than play aggressively; the orthodox approach at the time was to attempt to hit googly bowling aggressively.[117] Hobbs also demonstrated an ability to judge very effectively where the ball would land after it had been bowled.[118] This judgement, allied to an instinctive knowledge of what the bowler was trying to do and an increasing ability to judge from the bowler's wrist allowed him to predict when a googly had been bowled. As such, he encountered far fewer difficulties than other batsmen in playing googly bowling.[117] According to Ronald Mason, after Hobbs' success, the South African googly bowlers were never as effective.[119]
As the leading batsmen of the previous decade fell into decline, Hobbs' success in South Africa meant he was, according to McKinstry, "beyond dispute, seen as the finest batsman in the country".[120] However, a combination of a wet summer, the effects of switching from matting pitches to grass ones, and tiredness from having played cricket for 18 months without a substantial break meant that Hobbs record was poor in 1910. He did not enjoy the season owing to fatigue and scored 1,982 runs at an average of 33.03, the lowest average of his career apart from his first season.[121][122] He was more effective during 1911, after a long rest during the winter.[121] The summer was hot and dry, leading to better batting pitches. Although Hobbs played few outstanding innings, he was consistently successful,[123] and scored 2,376 runs at 41.68.[48] Bowling more frequently than in other seasons, Hobbs also took 28 wickets.[51] Against Oxford University, Hobbs bowled throughout the second innings to take seven wickets for 56 runs, the best figures of his career.[39][123] While Hobbs may have been frequently dismissed having scored between 40 and 70 runs, his best innings were played in the most pressurised games.[122][124] In the Gentlemen v Players match at Lord's, Hobbs carried his bat through the second innings for 154 in 195 minutes against a varied bowling attack, containing highly regarded bowlers, on a very difficult pitch; the next highest score was 41 and the team were bowled out for 292.[124][125]
Hobbs was an automatic selection for the MCC tour of Australia in the winter of 1911–12,[125] and in previewing the series, former Australian captain Harry Trott saw Hobbs as the key batsman.[126] Hobbs once more suffered from sea-sickness on the journey, even travelling by land to meet the team's ship at Marseilles to reduce his time on the water.[127] After scoring 43 when the team stopped in Colombo on the way, Hobbs and the MCC arrived in Australia in October 1911.[128] The side faced immediate difficulties when their captain, Pelham Warner became seriously ill shortly after scoring 151 in the opening game. Warner named Johnny Douglas his replacement as leader, a decision which pleased the team and Hobbs, an admirer of Douglas, in particular. However, several leading batsmen struggled for form in the opening games, including Hobbs.[129] Affected by sunstroke,[129] Hobbs highest score, and only fifty, in seven innings before the Tests began was 88.[39] Nor did Douglas' captaincy convince Australian critics at first.[130] Problems continued during the first Test, which Australia won by 146 runs, and Douglas faced severe criticism of his leadership. Hobbs scored 63 in the first innings, although by his own admission he did not play well, and 22 in the second. Although Rhodes was in the team, he did not open the batting owing to his poor form, and Hobbs opened with Septimus Kinneir.[131]
For a time following the Test defeat, Douglas' position was under threat. Douglas met with Hobbs and two other senior professionals to discuss how he could improve as captain, and Warner summoned Hobbs and the leading professionals to his sickbed to discuss the captaincy. Several thought Douglas should be replaced but Hobbs argued in his favour and Douglas remained in the post following a vote.[132] England went on to win the second Test; after bowling Australia out for 184 in the first innings, the visiting team faced a target of 219 to win in the fourth innings. Hobbs and Rhodes, restored to the opening position, began with a partnership of 57. Hobbs scored 126 not out, his first century against Australia, and scored particularly well from the bowling of Ranji Hordern, a googly bowler who had taken 12 wickets in the first Test.[133] Wisden commented that Hobbs "played one of the finest innings of his life", and England won by eight wickets.[134] Australia were once more bowled out for a low score in the third Test; this time Hobbs and Rhodes added 147 for the first wicket and Hobbs scored 187. Clem Hill, the Australian captain, attempted to slow the scoring through the placement of his field,[135] a tactic Hobbs combated by careful placement of the ball past the fielders. Hobbs played more attacking cricket after passing 100, scoring more quickly but making more mistakes. The intense heat also affected him and he was exhausted when finally dismissed. England reached a total of 501 and won the match by seven wickets. The press praised Hobbs and the Manchester Guardian noted that the batsmen seemed to have finally conquered the googly.[136]
Australia, already behind in the series, faced disruption within the team before the fourth Test when Hill, the captain, came to blows with Peter McAlister, the chairman of selectors, over a dispute regarding the control of the Australian team.[137] Then in damp conditions, Australia were bowled out for 191 in their first innings. At the end of the first day, Hobbs and Rhodes had scored 54 together, and the next day they took their partnership for the first wicket to 323, setting a new record for the highest partnership for any wicket in Test matches. Their partnership remained an overall Test record for 22 years and the highest for the first wicket until 1948.[138] As of 2012, this remains England's highest opening partnership against Australia.[139] The pair scored easily from the bowling but faced criticism for slow batting. Even so, Hobbs reached a century in 133 minutes and proceeded to play more aggressively afterwards. He was dismissed for 178 after batting for four-and-a-half hours.[140] The press and players praised the partnership and in particular the quality of the running between the wickets.[141] England reached a total of 589 and bowled Australia out for 173 to win the match by an innings and regain the Ashes. In a speech following the game, Hill identified the batting of Hobbs as the crucial factor in the English victory.[142] England also won the final Test to take the series 4–1; Hobbs scored 32 and 45, sharing a partnership of 76 with Rhodes in the second innings.[143]
Hobbs ended the series with an aggregate of 662 runs at an average of 82.75, setting a new record number of runs for an individual batsman in a Test series. Jack Crawford, now living in Australia, was struck by the improvement in Hobbs since they had played together at Surrey, noting that he seemed to possess no weaknesses.[143] In his review of the tour, Warner said: "I have long since exhausted my vocabulary of praise in favour of Rhodes and Hobbs, and, thanks in a very large degree to their superlative work, our batting was eminently successful. Too much stress cannot be laid on what they accomplished, for in innings after innings they gave us a wonderful start. They were the backbone of the batting."[144] In addition, Hobbs ran out 15 batsmen and Warner praised his fielding at cover point.[145] The Australians did not dare run when he fielded the ball for fear of the speed of his throw.[146] In all first-class matches, Hobbs scored 943 runs at 55.47.[48]
The 1912 season was unusually wet,[147] which caused many games to be rained off and produced some very difficult batting wickets.[148] For Surrey, Hobbs was as successful as in previous years. Surrey had a poor season and Wisden remarked that Hobbs did not bat as well for his county as for his country.[149] His batting approach also differed from that which he adopted for England; he tried to attack at all times and attempted shots he dare not risk in a Test. Consequently, he lost his wicket on several occasions trying to score quickly, and the press criticised him for recklessness, although spectators responded well to his tactics.[150] Wisden also described his batting in the Gentlemen v Players match as "reckless", but he scored 94 for the Players at Lord's and 54 in 20 minutes at the Oval.[150]
During the summer, both Australia and South Africa toured England, taking part in the Triangular Tournament. The competition was not a success owing to the poor weather and the inability of South Africa to compete with the other two teams. Also, several leading players were absent from the Australian team owing to the continuing dispute between them and the Australian Board of Control. In addition, spectators lost interest in the tournament because it took too long to complete. As a result, England's eventual victory lacked the prestige that had been expected before the season.[147][151] Hobbs made a slow start to the competition when he was bowled in the first over in England's opening match against South Africa, and his batting form in all matches was uncertain in the early part of the season.[152] However, he scored a century against Australia at Lord's on a very difficult batting pitch in England's next game, sharing a partnership of 112 with Rhodes. He continued with scores of 55 and 68 in the next two games against South Africa, and his batting was praised by the press; for the first time, in the Times, he was referred to as "a great master".[153] South Africa were defeated in all three Tests played against England, and in two out of three (the third was drawn) by Australia. With the first two games between England and Australia drawn, the final match between these teams was designated as the deciding match for the tournament.[154][155] Hobbs and Rhodes opened with 107, and Hobbs scored 66. These runs were crucial and England won the game by 244 runs. Hobbs also ran out Warren Bardsley in Australia's second innings, although there was controversy over the umpire's decision to rule him out.[156]
Hobbs came top of the batting averages for the tournament,[157] and in the final Test passed 2,000 runs in Test matches.[150] In judging his performance in the season, Sydney Pardon, the editor of Wisden, wrote:
Hobbs was magnificent—just as good, allowing for the difference in the wickets, as he had been during his Australian and South African tours ...It was a great point in our batting that we had in Hobbs and Rhodes such a splendid pair to go in first. Thanks to constant association in South Africa and Australia the two men understood each other so well that they could with safety attempt short runs that in ordinary circumstances would have savoured of madness. They never seemed to let a chance escape them, and yet they seldom looked to be in any danger. Better running between the wickets has not often been seen.
—Sydney Pardon,
Wisden, 1913[151]
In Tests, Hobbs averaged 40.75 against South Africa and 56.00 against Australia.[85] In all first-class cricket his aggregate was 2,042 runs at 37.81.[48]
As there was no major cricket tour in the winter of 1912–13, Hobbs took the opportunity to have a break. He took a job as a private cricket coach to a wealthy South African's son. He and his family also moved into their own property, Hobbs now being able to afford to buy, rather than rent a house.[158] In 1913, Hobbs scored 2,605 runs at an average of 50.09, placing him second in the national averages to Phil Mead.[48][159] Unlike the previous season, Hobbs was more controlled in his aggression. Even so, he continued to score quickly, twice scoring 100 runs before lunch on the first day of a match. He and Hayward also shared an opening partnership of 313 in 190 minutes against Worcestershire.[159] One of his most high-profile achievements was an innings of 72 not out on a difficult pitch to guide the Players to victory over the Gentlemen at Lord's in a run-chase where time was short.[159] Wisden described him as "the best bat" in England,[157] and "one of the greatest bats of his generation";[160] it also paid tribute to both his consistency and ability to score runs in many different batting conditions and types of pitch.[161]
In the winter of 1913–14, the MCC sent a team to South Africa under the captaincy of Johnny Douglas. The team was strong, but the South African side had few effective players and the previously dominant googly bowlers were either unavailable or had lost form.[162] The tour encountered some difficulties; South Africa was experiencing industrial disputes which resulted in several strikes, and there were uncomfortable diplomatic incidents in Boer territory. Nor did the team get along with their manager, appointed by the South African Cricket Association.[163] Hobbs also experienced some uncomfortable personal incidents. In Kimberley, he was the victim of attempted fraud by an impersonator, and at Amanzimtoti, he and two team-mates were involved in a road accident as a result of which Hobbs was thrown from their car. Neither Hobbs nor the other players were seriously hurt.[164] On the field, England won the five-Test series 4–0, mainly as a result of the bowling of Sydney Barnes.[165] Hobbs scored 443 runs at an average of 63.28 in the series;[85] he did not score a century, but accumulated scores of 82, 92 and 97. With Rhodes, he shared two century opening partnerships and another of 92, although Hobbs did not open the batting in the second Test for tactical reasons.[166] Critics pointed out that Hobbs was more defensive in his approach than he was for Surrey,[166] and Wisden noted that he was "not quite so brilliant as in England" but said that he was "an absolute master on matting wickets [pitches]."[167] In all first-class matches, he scored 1,489 runs at 74.45.[48]
Shortly after the team returned home, the 1914 season began and Hobbs was praised in press previews of the season as the world's best batsman. [168] Hobbs was awarded a benefit match by Surrey.[169] He made a slow start to the season but innings of 100 and 74 on a difficult pitch in a close win over Yorkshire marked the beginning of a series of high scores. Against Essex, he hit the highest score of his career to that point when he scored 215 not out; the next highest score was 27. He scored 183 against Warwickshire, 163 against Hampshire, 156 for the Players against the Gentlemen and two other centuries before the end of July.[39][170] At the same time, war in Europe was becoming more and more likely throughout the season. The day before Britain entered the First World War, against a background where it was uncertain if cricket would continue, Hobbs scored 226 against Nottinghamshire, surpassing his previous highest score despite suffering badly from a migraine.[171] Cricket continued once the war began, but Hobbs' benefit was moved from the Oval to Lord's. This move, and the public's greater concern for the war, meant that the match was a failure; in total Hobbs' benefit raised £657 which was lower than most benefits and far less than raised for cricketers of Hobbs' standing. The Surrey committee attempted to increase the amount raised but eventually agreed to give him another benefit when the war concluded.[172] Cricket continued for a little longer, and Hobbs scored his 11th century of the season before public pressure to cease caused Surrey to cancel their final fixtures. However, Surrey were declared County Champions for the only time in Hobbs' career.[173] In all first-class games, he scored 2,697 runs at 58.63.[48] McKinstry notes that during the season: "With his free-scoring method, [Hobbs] had dazzled in a way that he was never to do again."[173]
Hobbs did not join the army, although many sportsmen and cricketers in particular did so early in the war.[174] At some point before 1916, he began to work at a munitions factory; although he was later vague over his occupation at this time, there is some evidence he worked as a clerk rather than on the machinery. Hobbs later wrote that he faced criticism for not joining up, but claimed that he did not realise how serious the war would be, and that he was aware of his obligations to his family.[notes 6] Hobbs initially remained on the Surrey staff, but from March 1915 he found extra work as coach at Westminster School, and it is possible that he had not begun to work in the factory by this stage.[176] In May 1915, Hobbs began to play on Saturdays in the Bradford Cricket League as a professional for Idle. The continuation of competitive cricket in Bradford, when all other such cricket had ceased, was controversial. Several clubs hired top-class professionals, including Sydney Barnes, and matches became very popular. Hobbs' arrival was eagerly anticipated but he never reached the heights expected, averaging 36.63 throughout the season.[177] However, Hobbs signing for Idle provoked an angry exchange of views in correspondence between Yorkshire president Lord Hawke, who was highly critical of the employment of professionals, and John Booth, the president of the Bradford League. It is possible that Hawke's criticism was the reason for their poor relationship in later years.[178] Hobbs never publicly commented on the matter, but he was instrumental in recruiting Frank Woolley to play in the league in 1916. Hobbs contract at Westminster was not renewed for 1916, and Surrey reduced its playing staff, but he continued to play for Idle, receiving special dispensation from the munitions factory to leave early on Saturdays allowing him to travel to Bradford. His family, including his brothers who served in the war, resented this apparent favouritism towards Hobbs.[179] Hobbs was more successful at Idle in 1916, scoring 790 runs at 52.60 and taking 65 wickets at 6.27,[180] but his conscription into the Royal Flying Corps meant this was his final season of regular cricket in the league.[181]
Hobbs joined the Corps in October 1916 as an air mechanic and after training was posted to London then Norfolk; at first he had time to appear in charity cricket matches and in several games for Idle. In November 1917, he joined 110 Squadron which remained in England despite plans to send it to fight in France. By 1918, the cricket authorities began to arrange more matches and Hobbs played successfully several times at Lord's.[182] In September 1918, 110 Squadron, as part of the newly formed Royal Air Force, was sent to France and took an active part in the fighting, but Hobbs never discussed his career in the RAF. Even so, some of his family remained critical and felt that the worst of the war was over when Hobbs went to France.[183] He was demobilised in February 1919.[184]
When first-class cricket resumed in 1919, county matches were reduced to two days in a short-lived experiment that many players, including Hobbs, disliked.[185] Hobbs, awarded a five-year contract worth £400 per year,[186] made runs in pre-season trial games and made a good start in first-class games. However, he initially tried to be too aggressive and, according to Wisden, "he had a brief spell of comparative failure, due to a little overeagerness and overconfidence".[187] After this, he batted consistently throughout the season, scoring a double century for Surrey against a touring Australian Imperial Forces cricket team, centuries in each of the three Gentlemen v Players matches—the only player ever to do so in one season—and 101 for the "Rest of England" against Yorkshire, the County Champions, at the end of the season.[188][189] Hobbs rescheduled benefit match raised £1,670. The match ended when Hobbs and Jack Crawford scored the 95 runs required for victory in the final innings in 30 minutes; 45 minutes had been available and in most circumstances such a required rate of scoring made a draw almost inevitable. Hobbs scored 47 not out.[190] All of the benefit money, supplemented by a £100 grant from Surrey, was given directly to Hobbs. Usually, the committee invested part of the sum on the player's behalf but they waived this practice for Hobbs. He used it to open a sports shop in London which he ran for the rest of his life.[191][192] Also during the season, Hobbs first opened the batting with Andy Sandham, who succeeded to Hayward's position as Hobbs' partner. Sandham was initially unsuccessful, and Hobbs' partner later in the season was Donald Knight, but the pair later established an extremely effective opening partnership.[193] In total that year, Hobbs scored 2,594 runs in first class matches, more than anyone else, at an average of 60.32.[48][194]
After a winter working in his shop, Hobbs' good form continued into 1920, when county matches reverted to three days' duration.[195] He scored a century in the opening game and 215 against Middlesex, the County Champions, at the end of the season.[39][195] In June, he scored four centuries in consecutive innings, followed by 70 in the next.[196] Hobbs also took five wickets for 21 runs against Warwickshire, and his 17 wickets at an average of 11.82 meant that, according to his biographer John Arlott, "to his amusement ... he was top, not only of Surrey's, but also of the national, bowling averages".[197] After some initial hesitation owing to his concerns for his business, Hobbs accepted an invitation to tour Australia with the MCC that winter.[198]
Australia dominated the five-Test series, beating England 5–0. The England players, led by Johnny Douglas, faced a strong bowling attack, featuring pace bowlers Jack Gregory and Ted McDonald, and the spinner Arthur Mailey. In addition, the bowlers proved ineffective on hard pitches and struggled to dismiss a strong Australian batting line-up.[199][200] After defeat in the second Test, Frederick Toone the MCC manager, suggested Douglas should be replaced as captain by Percy Fender. Hobbs supported such a move, but other professionals in the team were less certain. Although Fender was included in the team for the remainder of the series, Douglas retained the captaincy.[201]
Hobbs began with two centuries in the opening three first-class games,[39] and in the first Test, had the highest score in both England innings with 49 and 59. But Australia established their dominance in this match, winning by 377 runs after totalling 581 in their second innings.[39][202] In this game, Hobbs had opened with C. A. G. Russell in place of Rhodes, who was out of form.[203] For the remainder of the series, Rhodes was restored to partner Hobbs, but they could not replicate their former successes.[204] In the third Test, their partnership was ended by a run out for the only time in Tests,[205] and they had only one stand worth more than 50.[204] Nevertheless, in the second Test Hobbs scored 122 on a very difficult pitch which had been affected by rain.[206] Wisden commented that this was "from the English point of view, the finest innings of the tour".[207] Even so, England followed on in reply to Australia's total of 499 and lost by an innings.[206] Hobbs also scored a century in defeat in the third Test, hitting 123 in the final innings as England failed to score 489 to win the game.[201] Hobbs did not pass 50 again in the series; in the fourth Test, he scored 27 and 13.[39] Then in a match against New South Wales before the final Test, he tore a muscle in his thigh. Persuaded by Douglas to play despite suffering from restricted mobility, Hobbs scored 40 and 34 in the final Test. But after one incident in the field when he struggled to chase the ball, Hobbs was jeered by the some of the crowd. Both Fender and another member of the team, Rockley Wilson, wrote scathingly about the incident in their dual role as journalists covering the Tests. Later in the match, the crowd, who gave Wilson a hostile reception following his writing, loudly cheered Hobbs; in Hobbs' view, this was to make amends for the earlier mockery of his hampered fielding.[208] Hobbs scored a total of 924 first-class runs on the tour, at an average of 51.33;[48] In Test matches, he scored 505 runs at 50.50.[85] Wisden noted in its review of the tour that many English batsmen failed in the Test series, and that "our batting on the big occasions fell far short of what might reasonably have been expected. Hobbs and Douglas alone were up to their form at home."[199]
Hobbs played just five first-class matches in 1921.[48] In his opening first-class game, Hobbs played for a team selected by businessman Lionel Robinson against the Australian touring team,[209] which had travelled to England on the same boat as the returning MCC team.[210] After scoring 85, he tore the same thigh muscle injured in Australia and missed the remainder of the match.[209] The injury forced Hobbs to miss the opening two Tests against Australia, but once recovered, he immediately scored 172 against Yorkshire; with England already trailing 2–0 in the five-Test series, the selectors chose him for the third Test.[211] In the days approaching the match, played in Leeds, Hobbs suffered from increasing stomach pain but reluctantly played. However, the pain forced him to leave the field on the first day and after a day of rest, it worsened. A prominent surgeon, Sir Berkley Moynihan, was based in Leeds and Hobbs consulted him over the pain. Moynihan diagnosed acute appendicitis and operated the same day; in the opinion of the surgeon, Hobbs would not have lived another five hours without surgery.[212] Hobbs missed the rest of the season, and upon recovering from surgery took a family holiday.[213]
Hobbs returned to cricket in 1922 and batted very effectively throughout the first months of the season and scored 10 first-class centuries in total.[214][215] One of the centuries came in the Gentlemen v Players match at Lord's, in which Hobbs captained the Players team for the first time. But his innings of 140 was slow by his previous standards and he received some criticism in the press for his more laboured approach.[214] Towards the end of the season, his form faded owing to the lingering effects of his illness and operation the previous year. Wisdenobserved that Hobbs frequently tired during longer innings in 1922 and that he often tried to get out soon after reaching three figures;[216] this habit of giving up his innings continued throughout the remainder of his career.[215] Hobbs himself believed that the operation reduced his stamina and that he was never as physically strong afterwards.[216] The season also marked a turning point in his batting approach where he preferred to score more slowly and take fewer risks, in contrast to his adventurous pre-war tactics.[217] Even so, Hobbs finished second in the national batting averages,[216] and scored 2,552 runs at an average of 62.24,[48] but declined an invitation to tour South Africa that winter with the MCC.[216] Hobbs was less successful in 1923 during a wet season; he failed with the bat on many occasions and was unsuccessful in both Gentlemen v Players games. He was still struggling with the after-effects of his operation and Wisden noticed he once more tried to score too quickly early in an innings.[218] However, against Somerset, Hobbs scored the 100th century of his first-class career, the third man to reach the landmark after Grace and Hayward.[219] Overall, he scored 2,087 runs at 37.95.[48]
Hobbs' form recovered in 1924 to the extent that Arlott described it as the beginning of "his quite phenomenal second lease of cricketing life".[220] Batting conditions were good throughout the summer and Hobbs' opening partnership with Sandham for Surrey began to approach its peak of effectiveness.[221] Having signed a new contract worth £440 per season,[222] Hobbs began the season well and scored the seventh double-hundred of his career in a match against Nottinghamshire. More significantly for the future, Hobbs established an opening partnership with Herbert Sutcliffe. The pair had opened together in a festival match in 1922, in two Gentlemen v Players matches during 1923 and in a "Test trial match" played to assess potential members of the Test match team, also in 1923. The pair were chosen to open in another Test trial early in 1924, and the success of their partnership persuaded the selectors to include them in the team for the first Test against South Africa.[223] When England batted first, Hobbs and Sutcliffe added 136 for the first wicket; Hobbs, playing a Test innings in England for the first time since 1912, scored 76. England won the match by a large margin.[224] In the second Test, Hobbs and Sutcliffe opened with 268 runs for the first wicket. Hobbs scored quickly throughout, increasing until he was dismissed for 211, his highest Test score. At the time, the innings was the highest played at Lord's in a Test and equalled the highest in a Test match in England.[225] England scored 531 for the loss of two wickets and won the match by an innings.[39] Amid a growing reputation, Hobbs and Sutcliffe shared 70 in the next Test, and Hobbs then scored 118 for the Players against the Gentlemen, although he faced more criticism for slow scoring.[226]
Hobbs was left out of the team for the fourth Test; he had declined an invitation to tour Australia with the MCC in the coming winter, and the selectors wished to try players who might tour. Hobbs' official reason for refusing a place was his uncertain health. Part of the reason, though, was the MCC's position that the wives of professionals could not accompany a touring team; when Hobbs later accepted a place on a privately organised tour of South Africa, on which his wife would accompany him, the MCC and its treasurer, Lord Harris, agreed to change their rules and approached Hobbs again to offer him and his wife a place. He agreed to tour, but only as an extra player so that no other professional was deprived of his place.[227] With the matter concluded, Hobbs returned to the England team for the fifth Test and scored 30.[228] In the series, he scored 355 runs at an average of 71.00,[85] while in all first-class matches he totalled 2,094 runs at 58.16.[48] He finished second in the national averages,[220] and the cricket press noted that, although Hobbs scored more slowly and in less spectacular fashion than previously, he batted in a safer, more secure style which was more successful in terms of run-scoring. R. C. Robertson-Glasgow also noted that Hobbs had transformed his technique to suit the modern style of batting with the batsman's weight on the back foot.[228]
Jack Hobbs (left) and Herbert Sutcliffe walking out to bat at Sydney Cricket Ground in 1924–25
The MCC team which toured Australia in 1924–25 was captained by Arthur Gilligan. Australia won the Test series 4–1, but critics thought the winning margin flattered the host country and the English team were very popular.[229] Much of the prestige of the team came from the batting partnership of Hobbs and Sutcliffe. Between them in the Test matches, they scored seven centuries and shared four opening partnerships which passed 100 runs.[229] Hobbs was boosted by the presence of his wife and felt more relaxed than usual; she was also instrumental in his decision not to drink alcohol any more, taken on the outward journey.[230]
In the opening first-class match of the tour, Hobbs and Sutcliffe opened the innings with a partnership of 89 in difficult batting conditions; Hobbs scored 50,[231] and scored consistently in the other warm-up games.[39] Amid great public interest, the Test series began at Sydney; in reply to Australia's first innings of 450, Hobbs and Sutcliffe opened with 157 runs.[231][232] Hobbs played the Australian bowling easily and he went on to his seventh century against Australia, beating the previous record in England-Australia Tests held by Victor Trumper. Hobbs subsequently lost concentration and looked uncomfortable until he was out for 115 and the remaining England batting failed. Australia eventually set England a target of 605 runs. Hobbs and Sutcliffe shared their second century opening partnership of the game, and Hobbs scored 57, but England lost by 193 runs.[233] During the match, Hobbs became the leading run-scorer in Test cricket, passing the previous record of 3,412 runs set by Clem Hill in 1912.[234] In the second Test, Australia scored 600 during the opening two days. In reply, Hobbs and Sutcliffe batted throughout the third day without being separated, scoring 283. They concentrated on defence and scoring quick singles, and both men reached centuries. The press praised their achievements, and there was speculation they might beat the opening partnership record set by Hobbs and Rhodes in 1912; meanwhile, the Australian team despaired of dismissing either man.[235] In the event, Hobbs was dismissed by an accidental full toss from Arthur Mailey, having scored 154. Once more, the remaining batsmen failed and Australia won the game by 81 runs.[236] In the aftermath of the defeat, Cecil Parkin, a former Test bowler and vocal critic of Gilligan's captaincy, wrote a newspaper article suggesting that Hobbs should assume the leadership of the side, albeit under the nominal captaincy of Percy Chapman. This suggestion provoked a reaction from Lord Hawke: "Pray God, no professional will ever captain England".[237] This caused a press outcry, with some writers supporting the idea of Hobbs as captain; the professionals in the MCC team protested that Hawke had been "disparaging", a reaction the Australian press described as "moderate and dignified".[238] In reality, Hobbs had no desire to captain England and did not like leading teams.[39][239]
Australia once more batted first in the third Test, scoring 489; Hobbs bowled three overs owing to injuries to other bowlers. For tactical reasons, Hobbs did not open the batting and came in at number five. He shared a partnership of 90 with Sutcliffe, who batted at number six, and Hobbs went on to score 119 through cautious batting. Wet weather altered the course of the match and left England needing 375 to win. Hobbs and Sutcliffe, opening once more, began with 63 before Hobbs was dismissed for 27. The other batsmen played well but Australia won a narrow victory by 11 runs.[240] The opening batsmen shared their fourth century partnership of the series in the fourth Test; Hobbs scored 66 out of a total of 548 and England won by an innings.[241] But Australia won the final match to win the series 4–1 and in a heavy defeat, Hobbs failed in both innings.[241] In the series, Hobbs scored 573 runs at an average of 63.66.[85] Critics in Australia and England recognised him as the best batsman in the world.[242] Hobbs and Sutcliffe far outscored the remaining MCC batsmen and Wisden judged that with better support from other batsmen they may have won the series. The report in the almanack said: "Finer and more consistent batting than that of Hobbs and Sutcliffe in the first four Test matches could not well be conceived ... Figures do not necessarily mean a great deal, but those of Hobbs and Sutcliffe are so remarkable, especially in view of the circumstances in which they were compiled, that they demand special mention."[243] Hobbs did not play in any other matches once the Test series began but still scored 865 first-class runs at 54.06.[48][244]
By the middle of the 1920s, cricket in England was extremely popular and the players famous. Hobbs was the biggest attraction and a combination of his cricket earnings (estimated to be around £780 each year), the income from his business, product endorsement and ghostwritten books and articles made him relatively wealthy. According to McKinstry, his annual earnings probably reached £1,500 a year by 1925, more than a family doctor at the time.[245]
In contrast to previous seasons following an Australian tour, Hobbs was extremely successful in 1925. Early in the season, Hobbs scored three consecutive centuries at the Oval and the press began to speculate that he may soon pass the record of 126 first-class centuries held by Grace. He continued to score a string of hundreds in away matches and by mid-June had become the first man in the season to reach 1,000 first-class runs.[246] Against Cambridge University, Hobbs hit centuries in both innings, and followed with centuries in his next two innings to give him four in succession. Hobbs played with great freedom during this spell, and after a brief lull in his run-scoring, hit 140 in the Gentlemen v Players match at Lord's, playing a range of shots.[247] His 12th century of the season, against Kent on 20 July, took him to 125 first-class centuries and one short of Grace's record.[173] By now, the press and public were eagerly following Hobbs' progress in the expectation he would break the record, and great publicity surrounded his every move. Amid the pressure, and as fatigue set in, Hobbs lost form. Although he continued to make substantial scores, he could not reach a century; after one innings of 54, a newspaper headline proclaimed that "Hobbs Fails Again".[248]
Feeling considerable anxiety, Hobbs later wrote that he was tired of the publicity which surrounded the wait for him to score his 126th century. Finally, against Somerset on 15 August, Hobbs reached the landmark, scoring 101. Having made an unsteady start, he was 91 not out after the first day's play, and betrayed great nervousness in scoring the required nine runs the next day. The achievement was widely celebrated and Hobbs received many congratulatory telegrams. Then on the final day of the match, Hobbs scored another century to become the outright record holder. Over the following weeks, Hobbs was praised and feted throughout the country.[249] He ended his season with 266 in a Gentlemen v Players match at the Scarborough Festival, his highest to date and the best score made in the Gentlemen v Players series, and 104 for the Rest of England against Yorkshire, the County Champions.[250] In total, he scored 16 centuries and totalled 3,024 runs at an average of 70.32, placing him on top of the national averages for the first time in his career.[48][250] Wisden commented that "Hobbs will go down to posterity as one of the greatest figures in cricket history".[250] Following the season, Hobbs gave speeches at several formal occasions, an obligation which terrified him, and several presentations in his honour. He also rejected offers to appear on stage, in film and to stand as a Liberal MP.[251]
Hobbs was given a third benefit by the Surrey committee in 1926, with unusually generous financial guarantees given which reflected the county authorities' high opinion of him. The benefit eventually raised £2,670.[252] Further recognition came when he, along with Wilfred Rhodes, joined the England selection committee for the season; for professional cricketers to serve as England selectors was unprecedented.[252] The Australians toured that year and Arthur Carr was chosen to captain the England team, although Hobbs had some reservations over his leadership.[253] Hobbs began the season well, scoring a century and several fifties in the lead-up to the Test series, although he received press criticism for the slowness of his batting in a Test trial.[254] The first Test was badly affected by rain and there was little play. Hobbs remained in form by scoring 261 against Oxford University, sharing an opening partnership of 428 with Sandham; this remains a Surrey first wicket record in 2012.[255][256] Then in the second Test, Hobbs and Sutcliffe shared an opening stand of 182. Hobbs scored 119 but was criticised for batting more slowly as his innings progressed, and some commentators accused him of selfishness—showing more concern for reaching a century than batting for the benefit of England. Although the bowling was very accurate, most critics believed Hobbs was too slow, and some suggested his approach deprived England of the opportunity to win the match; Australia batted throughout the third and final day to draw the game.[257] The third Test was also drawn but presented difficulties for Carr and England. The composition of the team was criticised and Carr was not entirely happy with the team chosen; Hobbs accepted some responsibility for the decisions taken. Australia posted a large total and England, despite an opening partnership of 59 by Hobbs and Sutcliffe, followed on. This time the pair began with 156, Hobbs personally scored 88 and the game was saved.[258]
During the fourth Test, Hobbs assumed the captaincy when Carr withdrew from the match owing to illness after the first day. The selectors initially asked Herbert Strudwick to take over on the grounds of seniority but he declined so they turned to Hobbs. Although Hobbs expected Greville Stevens, the only amateur remaining in the team, to take over, he became the first professional to captain England at home. The selectors and players on both teams believed Hobbs performed well tactically as captain, although Carr did not approve. Hobbs scored 74 in England's innings, but heavy rain on the first day had ensured a fourth successive draw in the series.[259]
As everything depended on the final game, the Imperial Cricket Conference agreed to a request that the match be played to a finish with time no object. The England selectors, conscious that the team had not beaten Australia in a series for 14 years, and had won just once in 19 Tests since 1920, made several changes. Carr was replaced as captain by Percy Chapman, a decision which proved enormously controversial in the press but of which Hobbs approved; Rhodes was also recalled to the team, aged 48.[260] Amid huge public interest and excitement, the deciding match began; Hobbs and Sutcliffe shared an opening stand of 53 on the first day, but after both sides had batted once, the match was evenly balanced at the end of the second day.[261] Overnight rain seriously damaged the pitch before the third morning; batting became extremely difficult, and few critics—including members of the England team—expected England to score many runs.[262] Instead, Hobbs and Sutcliffe, who had scored 49 on the second evening, began to bat confidently before the effects of a hot sun drying a damp pitch made batting even more hazardous. Concentrating on careful defence, but scoring where possible, the pair added 172 in total.[263][264] Arthur Richardson, a spin bowler, was expected to be the main threat, but while it often looked like Hobbs would be dismissed, he faced most of Richardson's bowling and survived. Some critics believed that, through his batting, Hobbs had deliberately exaggerated the difficulties of facing Richardson to prevent the Australian captain putting on a more difficult bowler.[notes 7] Commentators praised the skilful defence of both batsmen, Hobbs in particular.[263] Immediately after reaching 100, Hobbs was out and received a prolonged ovation from the crowd. Many critics believed that, given the conditions, match situation and pressure, this was the greatest innings of Hobbs' career.[266] England continued batting to build up a large lead and bowled Australia out to win the Ashes.[267]
Late in the season, Hobbs made the highest score of his career, 316 not out for Surrey against Middlesex at Lord's, establishing a record individual innings for Lord's which survived until 1990.[268] In total, Hobbs scored 2,949 runs at 77.60, including 12 centuries.[48] This placed him at the head of the national batting averages.[269]
Hobbs missed a large part of the 1927 season; after beginning in good form, he missed five weeks of cricket with a skin infection. When he returned, he was left out of the Gentlemen v Players game, to his irritation as he believed he had been dropped owing to his age. He responded with a series of large scores, in which he played very aggressively, but then tore a thigh muscle. He resumed cricket at the end of the season and scored his sixth and seventh centuries of the year.[270] He scored 1,641 runs at 52.93,[48] but his absences led to speculation that age was catching up with Hobbs.[271] Hobbs began the 1928 season with four centuries in the first month, but another leg injury kept him out of cricket for six weeks. When he recovered, he played in the last two of three Tests played against West Indies, playing in their first Test series. In his first game, he and Sutcliffe shared another century partnership before Hobbs was out, playing casually, for 53.[272] In the third Test, Hobbs scored 159, having opened with a 155-run partnership with Sutcliffe.[273] England won both matches in which Hobbs played, and won the series 3–0; Learie Constantine, the West Indian bowler, was very impressed with Hobbs' batting, but Hobbs did not consider West Indies up to international standard and did not take the series very seriously.[274] Hobbs maintained his batting form until the end of the season. Even though many batsmen were successful that year, given very favourable batting pitches throughout the season, Hobbs finished second in the batting averages,[275]scoring 2,542 runs at an average of 82.00 and hitting 12 centuries.[48] Critics believed that he remained the best batsman in England.[276]
Hobbs was eager to tour Australia in 1928–29; his wife again accompanied him and he wished to renew acquaintance with the many good friends he had previously made there. In addition, improvements in the design of ocean liners reduced his sea-sickness. Hobbs was part of the selection committee for the tour and critics recognised the MCC team as a strong one, particularly in batting.[277] He began the tour with some substantial scores, although some critics noted that he did not bat well,[278] but did not make a major contribution to England's large victory in the first Test.[279] In the second Test, Hobbs scored 40 runs and was given a presentation to mark his 46th birthday which fell during the game.[280] He was involved in controversy over the dismissal of Australian batsman Alan Kippax; the batsman had been initially given not out, but Hobbs let a prolonged appeal to the umpire and accused Kippax of cheating. Kippax was then ruled to be out, but there was some ill-feeling between the teams for a time, particularly towards Hobbs, who later apologised to Kippax for his language.[281]
England won the match, but some critics noticed a decline in Hobbs' batting, a judgement reinforced when he was out to a poorly-chosen shot in the first innings of the third Test for 20. Australia were able to build up a substantial lead, and overnight rain before the sixth day of the match made them likely winners according to most commentators. England were left needing 332 to win, but local observers believed that, on a pitch that was growing more and more difficult to bat on, a team would be unlikely to reach a total of 100.[280][282] The ball bounced at varying heights and many of the England team regarded it as the most difficult pitch they had seen. Hobbs offered a catch when he had scored 3, but the ball was dropped. However, Hobbs and Sutcliffe survived to add 105 for the first wicket. Observers praised their technique against the turning ball; they exclusively batted using back-foot shots and only tried to score through the pull shot as other strokes presented too much risk. Even so, the Australian bowlers were criticised for their tactics.[283][284] Hobbs was out for 49, an innings which Sutcliffe rated better than many centuries,[285] and which Mason described as "altogether disproportionate in importance to its unambitious dimensions".[286] At Hobbs' suggestion, Douglas Jardine came in to bat next, and England reached the end of the day having lost just one wicket for a score of 199. Next day, the team won the game to ensure they retained the Ashes, having a 3–0 lead in the series with two to play.[287] Around this time, Hobbs began to openly talk about his retirement from Test matches,[288] but after a century in a tour match, he scored 74 and shared a partnership of 143 with Sutcliffe as England won the fourth Test by 12 runs.[289] In the final game, Hobbs, opening with Jardine as Sutcliffe was injured, scored 142 on the first day, his 12th and final Test century against Australia. Australia won the game, but lost the series 4–1. Hobbs and the press expected this to be his final Test match.[290] In first-class games on the tour, he scored 962 runs at 56.58.[48] and 451 runs at 50.11 in the Tests.[85]
Hobbs suffered a succession of injuries and illnesses in 1929; over the previous few seasons, he missed more than a third of Surrey's matches.[291] When he did play, he scored heavily and in total scored 2,263 runs at an average of 66.55 to lead the first-class averages.[48][292] He was unfit for the first two Tests against South Africa then chose to miss the next two, leading to speculation he had retired from Test cricket. However, he felt fit enough to play in the fifth and final Test, scoring 10 and 52.[293] Critics observed a general slowing in Hobbs' scoring throughout the season, and he scored more often in singles than in his earlier years, when he tried to hit the ball further.[294]
Prior to the 1930 season, Hobbs made himself available for the forthcoming Ashes series.[295] He began in good form, scoring centuries in each innings of his first game, and maintained his run-scoring in the weeks leading up to the first Test.[295] Before the series began, Hobbs and Rhodes were added to the selection panel again.[notes 8] In the first Test, Hobbs scored 78 in the first innings, one of the few English successes. After England established a lead on first innings, he scored a rapid 74; he top-scored in both innings and was praised by the press for his continued success.[297] England won the match and Hobbs seemed to have established his ascendancy over the Australian bowling attack,[298] which critics regarded as weak.[299] He failed in the next Test and suggested to the selectors that he should be omitted from the team. But he played in the third Test and was controversially dismissed for 29; his sportsmanship was called into question when he refused to accept the word of the fielder who held the catch. He lingered on the pitch and only left once the umpire ruled him out; he made his displeasure clear and the crowd became unsettled.[300] When England followed on, in reply to an Australian total of 566, Hobbs appealed against the light and was jeered by the crowd. He was later run out for 13.[39][301] Feeling tired, possibly feeling under pressure by his role as a selector and concerned by his form, he once more offered to stand down but the other selectors retained him in the team. When he batted in the fourth Test, he scored slowly, determined not to be dismissed, and shared an opening partnership of 108 with Sutcliffe, their 11th century stand against Australia. After two hours batting, he was out for 31.[302] With the series level at 1–1, the final match was to be played until there was a result, but before it began, Hobbs announced that it would be his last Test match. Shortly after making the decision, he returned to form, scoring a century and passing, in his next game, W. G. Grace's record aggregate of runs in a first-class career.[303]
Before the deciding game, the selectors sacked Percy Chapman as captain. There was some press speculation that Hobbs would replace him, but Bob Wyatt was chosen. Hobbs supported the removal of Chapman, and there is a possibility that he was offered the captaincy at the meeting of selectors, but turned it down.[notes 9] In the match, Hobbs scored 47 in the first innings. When he came out to bat in the second, in the face of a large Australian first-innings lead, Hobbs was given an ovation by the crowd and the Australian fielders gave him three cheers. Hobbs was moved by his reception but scored only nine runs before he was dismissed.[305] In 61 Tests, he scored 5,410 runs at an average of 56.94.[306] He retired as the leading run-scorer in Test matches, a record he held until passed by Wally Hammond in 1937.[234] In his final series, he scored 301 runs at 33.44.[85] Hobbs maintained his form in other cricket until the end of the season, when he had scored 2,103 runs at 51.29,[48] and Wisden noted that it was an achievement to score so well given his age. In September, he took a team of famous cricketers to Cambridge to play a charity match which included the official opening on Parker's Piece of the Jack Hobbs pavilion.[307] However, an attempt by the Daily Herald to open a testimonial fund to mark his international retirement met with very little public interest, and the end of his Test career passed with little press comment.[308]
During the winter of 1930–31, Hobbs was invited to join a private team run by the Maharajkumar of Vizianagram which toured India and Ceylon. Sutcliffe joined him, and he was accompanied by his wife. Both Hobbs and Sutcliffe were extremely popular.[309] In games which were not particularly competitive, he scored 593 runs,[48] but these runs, and in particular the two centuries he scored were later to prove controversial. Hobbs never believed that the matches were, or should have been, first-class but statisticians later decided to recognise them as first-class.[310] Wisden never recognised the centuries and so record his total of centuries as 197.[310][311] Other authorities give 199 centuries.[312]
Hobbs scored heavily in the 1931 season, although his batting technique had become more limited in scope and variety. He played several representative matches and took part in the 150th century opening partnership of his carer. He was the first batsman in the season to reach 1,000 runs and such was his success that the press speculated he would return to the Test team. In festival matches at the end of the season, Hobbs and Sutcliffe shared two double-century opening partnerships.[313] In total, Hobbs scored 2,418 first-class runs at 56.23.[48]
Hobbs scored his 16th hundred for the Players against the Gentlemen in 1932.
Against Essex at The Oval, he scored a hundred in each innings, for the sixth time in his career. In the second innings he and Bob Gregory had an unbroken partnership of 232 in 150 minutes to win the game by 9 wickets. This caused his captain, Douglas Jardine, to dub him "The Master". The nickname became permanently attached to him.[314]
Hobbs' 1932 season aggregate was 1,764 at 56.90 with a highest score of 161 not out for the Players against the Gentlemen at Lord's.[315] He scored 5 centuries and 9 half-centuries and held 7 catches.[48]
Hobbs' 1933 season aggregate was 1,105 at 61.38 with a highest score of 221 for Surrey against the touring West Indians at The Oval.[316] He scored 6 centuries and 3 half-centuries and held 5 catches.[48]
Hobbs retired after the 1934 season.
Hobbs' 1934 season aggregate was 624 at 36.70 with a highest score of 116 (his final first-class century) against Lancashire at Old Trafford.[317] He scored 1 century and 4 half-centuries and held 2 catches.[48]
After retirement as a player, Hobbs continued to run his sports goods shop and also worked as a cricket journalist.
In 1953, Hobbs became the second professional cricketer, after Don Bradman, to receive a knighthood for his services to the sport as a player (two cricket administrators had also previously been knighted).
Hobbs published four books during or just after his career, between 1912 and 1935.[318] See list in "Additional reading" below.
Hobbs married Ada Ellen Gates, a Cambridge cobbler's daughter, on 26 September 1906. The pair first met in 1900 at an evening church service held in St Matthew's, Cambridge. The relationship was slowed by Hobbs' shyness and devotion to cricket, but the pair eventually wed at the church in which they met. Although they planned to keep the event quiet, it was reported in the press and the couple received gifts and messages from Hobbs' Surrey team-mates. The pair remained very close for the rest of their lives.[319] Hobbs so disliked being separated from his wife during cricket tours up until 1914 that in later years she often accompanied the team overseas.[2] They had four children: Jack, born in 1907, Leonard in 1909, Vera in 1913 and Ivor in 1914.[320]
Hobbs and his wife lived in rented property for the first years of their marriage. His earnings placed them roughly in the bracket of lower middle class according to McKinstry: although not as poor as he had been during his childhood, the family were not initially financially comfortable.[321] Hobbs wages increased with his reputation so that by 1913, he was earning £375 each year, placing his family within the bracket of the London middle class. After several years of moving from one property to another, Hobbs was able to buy his own house in 1913, in a prosperous area of London.[322] At the height of his fame in the mid-1920s, Hobbs earnings from cricket and other sources probably reached £1,500 a year. Consequently, in 1928 the family moved to a large house in private grounds and Hobbs was able to send his children to private school.[323]
Sir Jack Hobbs died at Hove in 1963. He is buried at Hove Cemetery.[324]
- ^ Some sources credit Hobbs with 61,237 runs and 197 centuries.
- ^ On top of this, Hobbs received match fees. During the winter, he received a retainer of one pound per week. At the time, the average weekly wage was 28 shillings.[28]
- ^ In the first innings at the Oval, he was dismissed by Johnny Douglas, who went on to take Hobbs' wicket more times than any other bowler in first-class cricket.[63]
- ^ Throughout Hobbs' career, the MCC organised and administered English cricket. Official English touring teams always played under the name of MCC and were only styled "England" during Test matches.[71]
- ^ The player who was left out for Hobbs' inclusion was his colleague and supporter Tom Hayward.[92]
- ^ At the beginning of the war, there was a general opinion that married men had some good reasons to stay at home, but this sympathy lessened as the war progressed.[175]
- ^ The idea was first put forward by former Australian captain Monty Noble, who was present at the match as a journalist. Other writers repeated the suggestion and it had become fairly widespread. Hobbs dismissed the theory and was irritated by it.[265]
- ^ In 1930, the Ashes Tests were scheduled for four days, the first time matches were extended to that length in England.[296]
- ^ The News Chronicle newspaper reported that Hobbs had declined the captaincy, and a story circulated among county cricketers that such an offer had been made. Sutcliffe later told a team-mate that he was "disappointed" that Hobbs turned it down. The chairman of selectors, Leveson-Gower, was a longtime supporter of Hobbs, which makes such a story plausible according to McKinstry.[304]
- ^ McKinstry, p. 21.
- ^ a b c Howat, Gerald M. D. (2004, 2011). "Hobbs, Sir John Berry [Jack (1882–1963)"] (subscription or UK public library membership required). Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Oxford University Press. http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/33900. Retrieved 11 March 2012.
- ^ McKinstry, pp. 21–24, 29.
- ^ McKinstry, p. 23.
- ^ a b Arlott, p. 18.
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- ^ McKinstry, p. 31.
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- ^ Arlott, p. 19.
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- ^ Arlott, pp. 21–22.
- ^ a b c McKinstry, p. 35.
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- ^ a b c McKinstry, pp. 38–39.
- ^ a b Arlott, p. 23.
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- ^ a b McKinstry, p. 39.
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- ^ a b McKinstry, pp. 41–42.
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- ^ a b McKinstry, p. 45.
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- ^ McKinstry, p. 46.
- ^ McKinstry, pp. 52–53.
- ^ McKinstry, p. 48.
- ^ a b McKinstry, p. 49.
- ^ McKinstry, pp. 49–50.
- ^ Quoted in McKinstry, p. 50.
- ^ a b c McKinstry, p. 54.
- ^ Mason, p. 37.
- ^ Arlott, p. 28.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p "Player Oracle JB Hobbs". CricketArchive. http://cricketarchive.com/cgi-bin/player_oracle_reveals_results2.cgi?playernumber=306&testing=0&opponentmatch=exact&playername=&resulttype=All&matchtype=All&teammatch=exact&startwicket=&homeawaytype=All&opponent=&endwicket=&wicketkeeper=&searchtype=InningsList&howout=All&endscore=&playermatch=contains&branding=cricketarchive&captain=&endseason=&startscore=&team=&startseason=. Retrieved 22 March 2012.
- ^ McKinstry, pp. 54–56.
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- ^ Arlott, p. 33.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa ab ac ad ae af "First-class Batting and Fielding in Each Season by Jack Hobbs". CricketArchive. http://www.cricketarchive.com/Archive/Players/0/306/f_Batting_by_Season.html. Retrieved 26 March 2012.
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- ^ Quoted in McKinstry, p. 64.
- ^ McKinstry, pp. 65–66.
- ^ McKinstry, p. 67.
- ^ a b McKinstry, p. 73.
- ^ Mason, pp. 51–52.
- ^ a b McKinstry, p. 74.
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- ^ McKinstry, pp. 74–75.
- ^ Mason, p. 54.
- ^ Mason, p. 55.
- ^ a b McKinstry, p. 75.
- ^ a b Arlott, p. 42.
- ^ Quoted in McKinstry, p. 75.
- ^ "MCC History". MCC. http://www.lords.org/history/mcc-history/. Retrieved 22 February 2012.
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- ^ McKinstry, p. 80.
- ^ McKinstry, p. 81.
- ^ "England v Australia 1907–08". Wisden Cricketers' Almanack. London: John Wisden & Co. 1909. http://www.espncricinfo.com/ci/content/story/150194.html. Retrieved 28 March 2012.
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- ^ Mason, p. 62.
- ^ McKinstry, p. 83.
- ^ McKinstry, p. 84.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j "Test Batting and Fielding in Each Season by Jack Hobbs". CricketArchive. http://www.cricketarchive.com/Archive/Players/0/306/t_Batting_by_Season.html. Retrieved 28 March 2012.
- ^ McKinstry, pp. 84–85.
- ^ a b c d Mason, p. 65.
- ^ a b McKinstry, p. 87.
- ^ McKinstry, pp. 87–88.
- ^ "John Berry Hobbs (Cricketer of the Year)". Wisden Cricketers' Almanack. London: John Wisden & Co. 1909. http://www.espncricinfo.com/ci/content/story/154757.html. Retrieved 1 April 2012.
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- ^ a b Arlott, p. 51.
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- ^ McKinstry, p. 98.
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- ^ a b Mason, p. 72.
- ^ a b McKinstry, p. 102.
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- ^ a b McKinstry, p. 105.
- ^ Arlott, p. 55.
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- ^ a b McKinstry, p. 110.
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- ^ "Opening the batting and bowling in the same match". ESPNCricinfo. http://stats.espncricinfo.com/ci/content/records/282801.html. Retrieved 10 April 2012.
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- ^ McKinstry, p. 126.
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- ^ McKinstry, p. 130.
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- ^ a b McKinstry, p. 133.
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- ^ Green (ed.), p. 356.
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- ^ a b McKinstry, pp. 136–37.
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- ^ Mason, p. 99.
- ^ a b c McKinstry, p. 140.
- ^ a b Pardon, Sydney (1913). "Notes by the Editor". Wisden Cricketers' Almanack. London: John Wisden & Co. http://www.espncricinfo.com/wisdenalmanack/content/story/150208.html. Retrieved 14 April 2012.
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- ^ McKinstry, pp. 138–39.
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- ^ a b Arlott, p. 61.
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- ^ a b "The M.C.C. Team in Australia 1920–21". Wisden Cricketers' Almanack. London: John Wisden & Co. 1922. http://www.espncricinfo.com/wisdenalmanack/content/story/155201.html. Retrieved 23 April 2012.
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- ^ "Australia v England 1920–21 (Second Test)". Wisden Cricketers' Almanack. London: John Wisden & Co. 1922. http://www.espncricinfo.com/wisdenalmanack/content/story/151687.html. Retrieved 23 April 2012.
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English batsmen with a completed career Test batting average over 50
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Batsmen with a Test batting average above 50
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| Australia |
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| England |
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| India |
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| Pakistan |
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| South Africa |
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| Sri Lanka |
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| West Indies |
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| Zimbabwe |
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Minimum 20 innings. Current players are listed in italics.
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| Persondata |
| Name |
Hobbs, Jack |
| Alternative names |
|
| Short description |
Cricketer |
| Date of birth |
16 December 1882 |
| Place of birth |
Cambridge, England |
| Date of death |
21 December 1963 |
| Place of death |
Hove, East Sussex, England |
