Great Cricket Matches 1772-1800

Another innovation in the laws of 1774 is the provision for a batsman to be out leg-before-wicket, but it remained a very rare form of dismissal for many years. It is possible that early instances were recorded simply as bowled. In 1772 there were still only two stumps with a single bail, and it was possible for the ball to pass cleanly through the gap (which was not out). It is uncertain exactly when the third stump was added: Haygarth gives the date as 1775 based on an account by John Nyren. There are references to three stumps at the end of the 1776 season, while the announcement of a match in 1777 states that three stumps will be used ‘to shorten the game’. In the same year the diarist and cricket enthusiast John Baker reports as a ‘new thing’ three stumps in a single wicket game. The change may have come in gradually, players using whichever style of stumps and bails was available, over a few years between about 1775 and 1780 (maybe later in lesser matches). It may be of interest to compare a few of the principal ‘weights and measures’ in the laws of 1774 with the code of 2000, which prevails today. Laws of 1774 Laws of 2000 Weight of ball 5½ to 5¾ ounces 5½ to 5¾ ounces Maximun width of bat 4¼ inches 4¼ inches Height of stumps 22 inches 28 inches Width of wicket* 6 inches 9 inches Distance between bowling and popping creases 46 inches 48 inches Distance between wickets 22 yards 22 yards * These measures are not strictly comparable. The 2000 code defines the overall width of the wicket directly; the code of 1774 did it indirectly, by defining the length of the single bail. 30 The title page for the 1774 code of laws, together with an ‘emblematical representation’ of the game. David Frith Collection.