William King (London cricketer)
Encyclopedia
William King was an English cricket
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...

er who played in the 1750s. He was noted by a contemporary source as one of the best players in England at the time.

Career

King is mentioned in cricket sources of 1753 and 1754. On 30 August 1753, he and Tall Bennett
Tall Bennett
"Tall" Bennett was an English professional cricketer who played first-class cricket for London Cricket Club in the 1740s and 1750s. He was almost certainly the brother of the player known as Little Bennett...

 played as given men for Marylebone against London Cricket Club
London Cricket Club
The original London Cricket Club was formed by 1722 and was one of the foremost clubs in English cricket over the next four decades. It is closely associated with the Artillery Ground, where it played most of its home matches.-Early history of London cricket:...

 at the Artillery Ground
Artillery Ground
The Artillery Ground in Finsbury is one of London's most centrally located cricket grounds, situated just off the City Road immediately north of the City of London...

. On an unknown date in 1754, King took part in a five-a-side single wicket
Single Wicket
Single wicket cricket is a form of cricket played between two individuals, who take turns to bat and bowl against each other. The one bowling is assisted by a team of fielders, who remain as fielders at the change of innings. The winner is the one who scores more runs...

 match at the Artillery Ground as a member of a team that included John Mansfield, John Bell, John Bryant and Little Bennett. Their opponents were Tom Faulkner
Tom Faulkner
Tom Faulkner , known as "Long Tom", was a noted English cricketer of the mid-Georgian period.A Surrey man, he was a prominent single wicket player who frequently played in challenge matches at the Artillery Ground....

, Joe Harris
Joe Harris (cricketer)
Joseph Harris and his brother John Harris were English cricketers in the 1740s and 1750s...

, John Harris, John Frame
John Frame (cricketer)
John Frame was an English cricketer and arguably the first great fast bowler in the game's history...

 and Durling
Durling (Surrey cricketer)
The Surrey and All-England cricketer called Durling was a noted player in the mid-18th century, although nothing is known of him outside mentions in match reports....

. The original source noted the ten players as "the best of the day".

King is only recorded on those two occasions and it is not known if he played regularly in earlier and later seasons. Players were rarely mentioned by name in contemporary reports and there are no other known references to William King.

External links

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