The Young Wisden Cricketer of the Year is a cricketer

Cricketer

A cricketer is a person who plays the sport of cricket. Official and long-established cricket publications prefer the traditional word "cricketer" over the rarely used term "cricket player"....

 selected for the honour by the annual publication Wisden Cricketers' Almanack

Wisden Cricketers' Almanack

Wisden Cricketers' Almanack is a cricket reference book published annually in the United Kingdom...

. The decision is based upon "his or her performances in school's cricket, as reported in Wisden". Wisden has included details of schools cricket as far back as its second edition in 1865, when it carried an account of the match between Eton College

Eton College

Eton College, often referred to simply as Eton, is a British independent school for boys aged 13 to 18. It was founded in 1440 by King Henry VI as "The King's College of Our Lady of Eton besides Wyndsor"....

 and Harrow School

Harrow School

Harrow School, commonly known simply as "Harrow", is an English independent school for boys situated in the town of Harrow, in north-west London.. The school is of worldwide renown. There is some evidence that there has been a school on the site since 1243 but the Harrow School we know today was...

. In 1918 and 1919, as no first-class cricket

First-class cricket

First-class cricket is a class of cricket that consists of matches of three or more days' scheduled duration, that are between two sides of eleven players and are officially adjudged first-class by virtue of the standard of the competing teams...

 was being played due to the First World War, the five Wisden Cricketers of the Year

Wisden Cricketers of the Year

The Wisden Cricketers of the Year are cricketers selected for the honour by the annual publication Wisden Cricketers' Almanack, based primarily on their "influence on the previous English season"...

 were chosen from public schools

Independent school (UK)

An independent school is a school that is not financed through the taxation system by local or national government and is instead funded by private sources, predominantly in the form of tuition charges, gifts and long-term charitable endowments, and so is not subject to the conditions imposed by...

. The first Young Wisden Cricketer of the Year was named in 2008, in the 144th edition of Wisden Cricketers' Almanack, in an effort to "help raise the profile of schools cricket, especially at state schools." The first winner was Jonathan Bairstow

Jonathan Bairstow

Jonathan 'Jonny' Marc Bairstow is an English cricketer, who plays first-class cricket for Yorkshire. A right-hand batsman and wicket-keeper he is the son of former Yorkshire and England keeper David Bairstow....

 of St Peter's School, York

St Peter's School, York

St Peter's School is a co-educational independent boarding and day school located in the English City of York, with extensive grounds on the banks of the River Ouse...

.

Winners

Year	Recipient	School	Reason(s)
2008		St Peter's School, York St Peter's School, York St Peter's School is a co-educational independent boarding and day school located in the English City of York, with extensive grounds on the banks of the River Ouse...	In eight innings for St Peter's School, York in 2007, he scored three centuries Century (cricket) In the sport of cricket, a batsman reaches his century when he scores 100 or more runs in a single innings. The term is also included in "century partnership" which occurs when two batsmen add 100 runs to the team total when they are batting together. A century is regarded as a landmark score for... , 654 runs with an average of 218.00.
2009		Shrewsbury School Shrewsbury School Shrewsbury School is a co-educational independent school for pupils aged 13 to 18, founded by Royal Charter in 1552. The present campus to which the school moved in 1882 is located on the banks of the River Severn in Shrewsbury, Shropshire, England...	Scored 898 runs for Shrewsbury School in 2008 at an average of 179.60. He also played for England English U-19 cricket team The English Under-19 cricket team have been playing official Under-19 test matches since 1974. Prior to 1991/92 they were known as England Young Cricketers....  at the Under-19 World Cup 2008 U/19 Cricket World Cup The 2008 ICC Under-19 Cricket World Cup was held in Malaysia from February 17, 2008 to March 2, 2008. The opening ceremony took place on February 15, 2008. The final was played between India and South Africa, which India won by 12 runs by D/L Method.... , and made his debut for Leicestershire Leicestershire County Cricket Club Leicestershire County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh national cricket structure, representing the historic county of Leicestershire. It has also been representative of the county of Rutland.... , scoring 51 against Bangladesh A Bangladesh A cricket team The Bangladesh A cricket team is a cricket team representing Bangladesh, and is the "second tier" of international Bangladeshi cricket below the full Bangladeshi cricket team. The team played its first game, against the full Pakistan side, in 2001/02...  in his second match.
2010		King's College, Taunton	Scored 554 runs for King's College, Taunton in 2009, and also played for Somerset Somerset County Cricket Club Somerset County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Somerset... , who showed their high regard for him by including him in their squad for the inaugural Champions League Twenty20 2009 Champions League Twenty20 The 2009 Champions League Twenty20 was the first edition of the Champions League Twenty20, an international club cricket tournament. It was held in India between 8 October and 23 October 2009 and featured 12 domestic teams from Australia, England, India, New Zealand, South Africa, Sri Lanka and...  competition in India India India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world... , where he played against the eventual winners New South Wales Blues New South Wales Blues The New South Wales cricket team are an Australian first class cricket team based in Sydney, New South Wales... .
2011		Eton College Eton College Eton College, often referred to simply as Eton, is a British independent school for boys aged 13 to 18. It was founded in 1440 by King Henry VI as "The King's College of Our Lady of Eton besides Wyndsor"....	Scored 1,286 runs for Eton College in 2010, and the leading run scorer on the school's circuit.