1963 English cricket season

1963 English cricket season

Cricket formats	first-class, List A
Tourist(s)	West Indies
County champions	Yorkshire
Knockout cup winners	Sussex
Most runs	Brian Bolus (2,190)
Most wickets	Derek Shackleton (146)
Most victims	David Evans (89)
Most catches	Alan Oakman (47)

The 1963 English cricket season marked the beginning of limited overs cricket at List A level with the inauguration of the knockout competition that was originally called the Gillette Cup. It also included a memorable Test series against West Indies. Off the field, the year saw the publication of the hundredth edition of Wisden Cricketers' Almanack, as well as the deaths of two cricketing knights, Sir Jack Hobbs and Sir Pelham Warner.

Honours

• County Championship - Yorkshire
• Gillette Cup - Sussex
• Minor Counties Championship - Cambridgeshire
• Second XI Championship - Worcestershire II
• Wisden - Brian Close, Charlie Griffith, Conrad Hunte, Rohan Kanhai, Gary Sobers

County Championship Table

Position	Team	Played	Won	Lost	Drawn	No Dec	1st inn lead match L	1st inn lead match D	Points
Pts	–	–	10	–	–	–	2	2	–
1	Yorkshire	28	13	3	11	1	1	6	144
2	Glamorgan	28	11	8	8	1	1	6	124
3	Somerset	28	10	6	11	1	2	7	118
=4	Sussex	28	10	6	12	0	1	7	116
=4	Warwickshire	28	10	3	14	1	1	7	116
6	Middlesex	28	9	5	11	3	1	7	106
7	Northamptonshire	28	9	8	11	0	1	5	105
8	Gloucestershire	28	9	7	11	1	2	3	100
9	Nottinghamshire	28	6	8	13	1	4	7	82
10	Hampshire	28	7	8	10	3	1	4	80
11	Surrey	28	5	6	17	0	1	11	74
12	Essex	28	6	4	17	1	0	5	70
13	Kent	28	5	6	17	0	1	8	68
14	Worcestershire	28	4	8	13	3	2	8	60
15	Lancashire	28	4	10	13	1	2	7	58
16	Leicestershire	28	3	13	10	2	2	3	40
17	Derbyshire	28	2	14	9	3	1	3	28

Note: Northamptonshire gained five points instead of two in drawn match when scores finished level and they were batting.

Test series

Main article: West Indian cricket team in England in 1963

There was a memorable series between England and West Indies. The tourists won 3-1 with one match drawn. The Lord's Test had one of the most exciting finishes ever and all four results were possible with two balls to be bowled: it ended as a draw with England's last pair five runs behind. Colin Cowdrey had had to come out at number 11 with a broken arm, but did not have to face a ball.

As a result of the great success of this series, England's future home Test programme was revised so that West Indies could return in 1966, much earlier than originally planned. This was done by introducing "twin tours", in which two countries would each play three Tests against England in the course of a season.

Leading batsmen

1963 English cricket season – leading batsmen by average
Name	Innings	Runs	Highest	Average	100s
Gary Sobers	34	1333	112	47.60	4
Mike Smith	39	1566	144*	47.45	3
Geoff Boycott	43	1628	165*	45.22	3
Basil Butcher	34	1294	133	44.62	2
Conrad Hunte	37	1367	182	44.09	3
Clive Inman	51	1708	120*	42.70	1
Brian Bolus	57	2190	202*	41.32	5
Ken Barrington	45	1568	110*	41.26	2

1963 English cricket season – leading batsmen by aggregate
Name	Innings	Runs	Highest	Average	100s
Brian Bolus	57	2190	202*	41.32	5
Peter Richardson	56	2110	172	39.07	5
John Edrich	55	1921	125	40.02	2
Alan Jones	58	1857	187*	34.38	3
Ken Suttle	57	1854	141	34.98	3

Leading bowlers

1963 English cricket season – leading bowlers by average
Name	Balls	Maidens	Runs	Wickets	Average
Charlie Griffith	4208	192	1527	119	12.83
Fred Trueman	5067	206	1955	129	15.15
Ken Palmer	6113	289	2234	139	16.07
Alan Moss	3857	249	1355	84	16.13
David Sydenham	4915	239	1753	108	16.23
Brian Statham	4746	168	1874	113	16.58

1963 English cricket season – leading bowlers by aggregate
Name	Balls	Maidens	Runs	Wickets	Average
Derek Shackleton	8325	583	2446	146	16.75
Barry Knight	6743	207	3042	140	21.72
Ken Palmer	6113	289	2234	139	16.07
Fred Trueman	5067	206	1955	129	15.15
Don Shepherd	7713	540	2373	126	18.83

Annual reviews

• Playfair Cricket Annual 1964
• Wisden Cricketers' Almanack 1964

External links

• CricketArchive – season summary