Ronald Bird
Encyclopedia
Ronald Ernest Bird, sometimes known as Ronnie,
(4 April 1915–20 February 1985) was an English
cricketer
who played 195 first-class
matches in the years after the Second World War. 190 of these were for Worcestershire
, while the other five were for MCC
. He captained Worcestershire between 1952 and 1954, though he had acted as such on many occasions during the previous two seasons when official captain Bob Wyatt
was unavailable.
He usually batted at number four
,
while his fast-medium bowling was of the occasional variety: he never took a season's tally of wickets into double figures.
Although Bird was on the groundstaff at Warwickshire
as early as 1934,
he never played for that county, and the intervention of the Second World War meant that he was 31 before he made his first-class debut. This was for Worcestershire against the touring Indians at Worcester
in early May 1946. Bird's contribution to a narrow Worcestershire win was minimal: he scored 0 and 3, did not bowl, and held a single catch to dismiss Lala Amarnath
.
Bird quickly established himself in the first team, and was capped that year, playing 24 times in all and ending the year with 801 runs at 20.53
including three half-centuries. Although he was only available for half Worcestershire's games in 1947,
he nevertheless made his first century — 105 against Sussex
in June — and passed fifty twice more. The following month he took his first wicket, against the same opponents, when he caught and bowled John Langridge
.
He played only twice at first-class level in 1948, although he did turn out a few times for the Second XI in the Minor Counties Championship. In one of his two first-team matches, he took a career-best 3-26 against Northamptonshire
in June.
Bird returned for a full season the following summer, and passed a thousand runs for the first of three times, hitting 1,016 at 26.73 with one hundred — an innings of 116 which "had much to do" with a good win over Yorkshire
— and five fifties.
1950 was rather a lean year for Bird, as in 38 innings his highest score was 68, but things improved in 1951, when he scored 129 against Essex
and made seven further fifties. Appointed club captain for the 1952 season, he enjoyed the best summer of his career, scoring 1,591 first-class runs at exactly 37, and scoring three hundreds and eight fifties. The centuries included the highest of his career, an unbeaten
158 to help set up a two-day innings defeat of Somerset
at Taunton in June.
The 1953 season was also quite successful for Bird, as he made 1,238 first-class runs at 26.91, with one hundred and five half-centuries. In late May of that year, he made his debut for MCC
at Lord's
, captaining the side for the only time and opening the batting; he scored 68 and 40 in a losing cause against Hampshire
.
However, in 1954 he appeared only 20 times and made only 629 runs with three fifties, at an average of under 22. A defeat at Derby in mid-August, in which he scored 10 and 20 and took the wicket of John Kelly, marked the end of Bird's county cricket
career.
All of his four remaining first-class matches were for MCC: two at Lord's (against Gloucestershire
in June 1955 and against Cambridge University
a year later) and two at Dublin
in September 1956 and September 1958, both against Ireland. Bird's only significant contribution in any of these games was the 52 he hit in the first innings against Gloucestershire. He appeared a couple of times for the Second XI in 1959, then after leaving cricket represented Worcestershire at both squash
and tennis
.
(4 April 1915–20 February 1985) was an English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
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"....
who played 195 first-class
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...
matches in the years after the Second World War. 190 of these were for Worcestershire
Worcestershire County Cricket Club
Worcestershire 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 Worcestershire...
, while the other five were for MCC
Marylebone Cricket Club
Marylebone Cricket Club is a cricket club in London founded in 1787. Its influence and longevity now witness it as a private members' club dedicated to the development of cricket. It owns, and is based at, Lord's Cricket Ground in St John's Wood, London NW8. MCC was formerly the governing body of...
. He captained Worcestershire between 1952 and 1954, though he had acted as such on many occasions during the previous two seasons when official captain Bob Wyatt
Bob Wyatt
Robert "Bob" Elliott Storey Wyatt was an English cricket player. He played for Warwickshire, Worcestershire, and the English cricket team....
was unavailable.
He usually batted at number four
Batting order (cricket)
In cricket, the batting order is the sequence in which batsmen play through their team's innings, there always being two batsmen taking part at any one time...
,
while his fast-medium bowling was of the occasional variety: he never took a season's tally of wickets into double figures.
Although Bird was on the groundstaff at Warwickshire
Warwickshire County Cricket Club
Warwickshire 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 Warwickshire. Its limited overs team is called the Warwickshire Bears. Their kit colours are black and gold and the shirt sponsor...
as early as 1934,
he never played for that county, and the intervention of the Second World War meant that he was 31 before he made his first-class debut. This was for Worcestershire against the touring Indians at Worcester
New Road, Worcester
New Road, Worcester, England, has been the home cricket ground of Worcestershire County Cricket Club since 1896. Immediately to the northwest is a road called New Road, part of the A44, hence the name.- Overview :...
in early May 1946. Bird's contribution to a narrow Worcestershire win was minimal: he scored 0 and 3, did not bowl, and held a single catch to dismiss Lala Amarnath
Lala Amarnath
Nanik Amarnath Bhardwaj was an Indian Test cricketer. He was the first cricketer to score a Test century for the Indian cricket team, which he achieved on debut...
.
Bird quickly established himself in the first team, and was capped that year, playing 24 times in all and ending the year with 801 runs at 20.53
Batting average
Batting average is a statistic in both cricket and baseball that measures the performance of cricket batsmen and baseball hitters. The two statistics are related in that baseball averages are directly descended from the concept of cricket averages.- Cricket :...
including three half-centuries. Although he was only available for half Worcestershire's games in 1947,
he nevertheless made his first century — 105 against Sussex
Sussex County Cricket Club
Sussex County Cricket Club is the oldest of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Sussex. The club was founded as a successor to Brighton Cricket Club which was a representative of the county of Sussex as a...
in June — and passed fifty twice more. The following month he took his first wicket, against the same opponents, when he caught and bowled John Langridge
John Langridge
John George Langridge was a cricketer who played for Sussex. His obituary in Wisden called him "one of the best English cricketers of the 20th century never to play a Test match"....
.
He played only twice at first-class level in 1948, although he did turn out a few times for the Second XI in the Minor Counties Championship. In one of his two first-team matches, he took a career-best 3-26 against Northamptonshire
Northamptonshire County Cricket Club
Northamptonshire 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 Northamptonshire. Its limited overs team is called the Northants Steelbacks. The traditional club colour is Maroon. During the...
in June.
Bird returned for a full season the following summer, and passed a thousand runs for the first of three times, hitting 1,016 at 26.73 with one hundred — an innings of 116 which "had much to do" with a good win over Yorkshire
Yorkshire County Cricket Club
Yorkshire County Cricket Club represents the historic county of Yorkshire as one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure....
— and five fifties.
1950 was rather a lean year for Bird, as in 38 innings his highest score was 68, but things improved in 1951, when he scored 129 against Essex
Essex County Cricket Club
Essex 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 Essex. Its limited overs team is called the Essex Eagles, their team colours this season are blue.The club plays most of its home games...
and made seven further fifties. Appointed club captain for the 1952 season, he enjoyed the best summer of his career, scoring 1,591 first-class runs at exactly 37, and scoring three hundreds and eight fifties. The centuries included the highest of his career, an unbeaten
Not out
In cricket, a batsman will be not out if he comes out to bat in an innings and has not been dismissed by the end of the innings. One may similarly describe a batsman as not out while the innings is still in progress...
158 to help set up a two-day innings defeat of 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...
at Taunton in June.
The 1953 season was also quite successful for Bird, as he made 1,238 first-class runs at 26.91, with one hundred and five half-centuries. In late May of that year, he made his debut for MCC
Marylebone Cricket Club
Marylebone Cricket Club is a cricket club in London founded in 1787. Its influence and longevity now witness it as a private members' club dedicated to the development of cricket. It owns, and is based at, Lord's Cricket Ground in St John's Wood, London NW8. MCC was formerly the governing body of...
at Lord's
Lord's Cricket Ground
Lord's Cricket Ground is a cricket venue in St John's Wood, London. Named after its founder, Thomas Lord, it is owned by Marylebone Cricket Club and is the home of Middlesex County Cricket Club, the England and Wales Cricket Board , the European Cricket Council and, until August 2005, the...
, captaining the side for the only time and opening the batting; he scored 68 and 40 in a losing cause against Hampshire
Hampshire County Cricket Club
Hampshire County Cricket Club represents the historic county of Hampshire in cricket's County Championship. The club was founded in 1863 as a successor to the Hampshire county cricket teams and has played at the Antelope Ground from then until 1885, before moving to the County Ground where it...
.
However, in 1954 he appeared only 20 times and made only 629 runs with three fifties, at an average of under 22. A defeat at Derby in mid-August, in which he scored 10 and 20 and took the wicket of John Kelly, marked the end of Bird's county cricket
County cricket
County cricket is the highest level of domestic cricket in England and Wales. For the 2010 season, see 2010 English cricket season.-First-class counties:...
career.
All of his four remaining first-class matches were for MCC: two at Lord's (against Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire County Cricket Club
Gloucestershire 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 Gloucestershire. Its limited overs team is called the Gloucestershire Gladiators....
in June 1955 and against Cambridge University
Cambridge University Cricket Club
Cambridge University Cricket Club is a first-class cricket team. It now plays all but one of its first-class cricket matches as part of the Cambridge University Centre of Cricketing Excellence , which includes Anglia Ruskin University...
a year later) and two at Dublin
College Park, Dublin
College Park is a cricket ground in the grounds of Trinity College, Dublin in the Republic of Ireland and is the home ground of Dublin University Cricket Club. A cricket match at Trinity College was mentioned in a poem 1820s between a team from Ballinasloe playing "the Collegians", although...
in September 1956 and September 1958, both against Ireland. Bird's only significant contribution in any of these games was the 52 he hit in the first innings against Gloucestershire. He appeared a couple of times for the Second XI in 1959, then after leaving cricket represented Worcestershire at both squash
Squash (sport)
Squash is a high-speed racquet sport played by two players in a four-walled court with a small, hollow rubber ball...
and tennis
Tennis
Tennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...
.
External links
- Statistical summary from CricketArchiveCricketArchiveCricketArchive is a website that aims to provide a comprehensive archive of records relating to the sport of cricket. It claims to be the most comprehensive cricket database on the internet, including scorecards for all matches of first-class cricket , List A cricket , Women's Test cricket and...
- Lists of matches and detailed statistics for Ronald Bird from CricketArchiveCricketArchiveCricketArchive is a website that aims to provide a comprehensive archive of records relating to the sport of cricket. It claims to be the most comprehensive cricket database on the internet, including scorecards for all matches of first-class cricket , List A cricket , Women's Test cricket and...