William Bullen
Cricket information
BattingRight-handed
BowlingRight-arm fast
RoleAll-rounder
Domestic team information
YearsTeam
1774–1796Kent
FC debut2 July 1773 England XI v Hampshire
Last FC4 July 1797 Charles Lennox's XI v Earl of Winchilsea's XI
Career statistics
Competition First-class
Matches 113
Runs scored 1,777
Batting average 10.21
100s/50s 0/1
Top score 54
Balls bowled –[lower-alpha 1]
Wickets 181[lower-alpha 1]
Bowling average –[lower-alpha 1]
5 wickets in innings 5
10 wickets in match 0
Best bowling 6/?[lower-alpha 1]
Catches/stumpings 119/–
Source: CricInfo, 16 July 2022

William Bullen was a leading English cricketer throughout the last quarter of the 18th century, his known career spanning the years 1773 to 1800.[2] He was an all-rounder who probably batted right-handed.[lower-alpha 2] He played mainly for Kent sides[lower-alpha 3] although he also appeared for England XIs[lower-alpha 4] and a variety of other sides.[3]

Arthur Haygarth, writing in the 1860s, describes Bullen as a "close set, strong built man" and a "crack" (i.e. expert) player, who was a "renowned batsman and bowler".[5] He was a fast bowler, in the underarm style, and a hard-hitting batsman who was a "powerful" player.[5] He is reputed to have "frequently bowled the sixth part of a mile (about 300 yards), or the whole length of the Artillery Ground in London".[5][6] He was possibly a native of Deptford in Kent[5] and is known to have played for Dartford Cricket Club as well as teams organised by landowners from the western parts of the county.[3]

Bullen is known to have played in 113 matches retrospectively recognised as first-class.[3] In these matches, Bullen totalled 1,777 runs with a highest score of 54, his only half-century. He held 119 catches and is credited with 181 wickets.[lower-alpha 1] His best known performance was six wickets in an innings.[3]

Bullen played in nearly every season from 1773 to 1800. The first match he is known to have played in was for an England XI against a Hampshire side on the Artillery Ground in July 1773. He batted in both the England innings, scoring 1 in each.[7] In July 1774, playing again for England against Hampshire at Sevenoaks Vine, he took five wickets in Hampshire's first innings, the earliest recorded instance of a bowler taking five wickets in an innings.[8] He played for Kent sides from 1774, including matches against Maidstone teams in 1777,[9] and his final known matches were in four odds matches[lower-alpha 5] for Kent sides against England teams in 1800.[3]

Notes

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 In the period Bullen played, the number of balls delivered by a bowler and the runs conceded from them were generally not recorded. As a result, it is impossible to know how many balls he delivered, his best bowling figures or his bowling average. Wickets taken by bowlers were normally only recorded if they were bowled. Other means of dismissal were not credited to any bowler.[1] As a result the number of wickets he took is uncertain, with the total of 181 being a minimum.
  2. ↑ Bullen played for a right-handed XI in the 1790 Left-Handed v Right-Handed match.
  3. ↑ 45 of Bullen's 113 first-class matches were for Kent XIs. He also appeared for the Gentlemen of Kent, West Kent and other sides associated with the county, including those organised by patrons in the county.[3]
  4. ↑ Bullen played 35 times in first-class matches for England sides.[3] During the period in which he played, England sides were not representative of the country. Instead, they were sides composed of players from a range of locations brought together to play against another side.[4]
  5. ↑ An odds match is one in which one side has more players than the other, the aim being to even the chances of victory to an extent.

References

  1. ↑ Carlaw, p. 31. Retrieved 2022-04-08.
  2. ↑ William Bullen, CricInfo. Retrieved 2020-08-06.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 William Bullen, CricketArchive. Retrieved 2020-08-06. (subscription required)
  4. ↑ Birley, p. 364.
  5. 1 2 3 4 Haygarth, p. 8.
  6. ↑ Grace, WG. Cricket . p. 481 – via Wikisource.
  7. ↑ Haygarth, p. 7.
  8. ↑ Haygarth, pp. 17–18.
  9. ↑ Waghorn, p. 48.

Sources

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