Who is known as the father of modern cricket?

Who is known as the father of modern cricket?

Dr. William Gilbert Grace, better known as W.G. Grace is considered to be the father of modern cricket. He has presented several unforgettable moments to the world of cricket. Born in Bristol, England on July 18, 1848, Grace played a very important role in popularizing the game of cricket. Starting his cricketing career at the age of 17, he officially retired at 60. That is to say, he played for 43 long years!


Grace scored 54, 818 runs and 2876 wickets from 872 games of first class cricket. His highest score was 344 runs. He has to his credit 3 triple centuries and 13 double centuries and stood not out 105 times. He has also earned 126 first class centuries and 9 wickets. Grace excelled as a Captain leading England in 13 Tests, with 8 wins and 2 draws. Many firsts in cricket are associated with his name. The first century in Test cricket and 1000 runs in a single season are records created by him.


At the time of playing his last test for England, Grace was 51 years old! E.M Grace his brother was a cricketer as well. W.G Grace was also well known as a doctor. He died in Nottingham on December 23, 1915. To mark W.G. Grace’s birth anniversary, M.C.C Eleven and the ‘Rest of the World’ led by Sachin Tendulkar played for the Grace Trophy