J. T. Hearne facts for kids
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| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Full name |
John Thomas Hearne
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| Born | 3 May 1867 Chalfont St Giles, Buckinghamshire |
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| Died | 17 April 1944 (aged 76) Chalfont St Giles, Buckinghamshire |
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| Nickname | Old Jack | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Batting | Right-handed | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bowling | Right arm medium | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Relations | Herbert Hearne (brother) Walter Hearne (brother) Other family |
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| National side | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Test debut (cap 78) | 19 March 1892 v South Africa | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Last Test | 19 July 1899 v Australia | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Domestic team information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1888–1923 | Middlesex | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Career statistics | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Source: CricInfo, 10 July 2013
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John Thomas Hearne (born 3 May 1867 – died 17 April 1944) was a famous English cricketer known as Jack Hearne or J. T. Hearne. He was a right-arm medium-pace bowler for Middlesex and the England national team.
J. T. Hearne was one of the best bowlers of his time. He took a total of 3,061 wickets in first-class matches. This is the most wickets ever taken by a medium-pace bowler. In 1896, he took 257 wickets, which is one of the highest totals on record. He was also known for his excellent fielding and could sometimes hit useful runs with the bat.
Contents
Early Life and Cricket Start
Jack Hearne was born in Chalfont St Giles, a village in Buckinghamshire, England. He first played for Middlesex in 1888 against a team from Australia. However, he wasn't officially qualified to play for the county until 1890.
First County Match
When he played his first County Championship match, Hearne didn't even know he was going to play until the very last moment! Despite this, he performed very well, taking six wickets for only 62 runs. In 1891, Hearne became even better. He took 118 wickets in county cricket, giving away only 10.33 runs for each wicket.
Amazing Bowling Feats
During 1891, he had two incredible bowling performances. He took 9 wickets for 32 runs against Nottinghamshire. He also took 8 wickets for just 22 runs against Lancashire. Because of his amazing skills, he was named a Cricketer of the Year in 1892. He then went on a tour to South Africa, where he played his first Test match.
Hearne's Cricket Career Highlights
From 1892 onwards, Hearne became a key bowler for Middlesex and the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC). The MCC played matches against counties that Middlesex didn't face in the County Championship.
Success in Dry Summers
In 1893, Hearne took over 200 wickets during a dry summer. His skill on hard pitches was truly impressive. Even in 1894, a very wet summer, he nearly reached 200 wickets again. It's a bit of a mystery why he wasn't chosen for the England tour to Australia in 1894-1895. Many thought his bowling style would have been perfect for the hard pitches there.
A Record-Breaking Year
The year 1896 was Hearne's most successful. He took an amazing 257 wickets. This included 56 wickets against the Australian team, giving away just over 13 runs per wicket. This was an incredible achievement! He also took all nine wickets that fell for MCC against the Australians in one match. Later that year, he took 10 wickets for 60 runs on a difficult pitch at The Oval, helping England win the Ashes.
Touring Australia
In 1897, Hearne was chosen to tour Australia for the only time in his career. Even though the pitches were very hard, he did not disappoint. He took 20 wickets, including 6 wickets for 98 runs at the MCG. In 1898, he continued his excellent form, taking 222 wickets. His strong bowling helped Middlesex finish second in the County Championship that year.
Later Career and Retirement
After 1898, Hearne's bowling started to show signs of slowing down. In 1899, his number of wickets dropped, and his average runs per wicket increased.
A Hat-trick Moment
Despite this, he still managed to take a hat-trick in the first-ever Test match at Headingley. A hat-trick is when a bowler takes three wickets with three consecutive balls. This showed he still had moments of brilliance.
Return to Form
In 1903 and 1904, Hearne seemed to get his skill back. He helped Middlesex win their first official County Championship in 1903. In 1910, at the age of 43, he had a remarkable return to form. He bowled very well on wet pitches, showing his experience. He continued to play until 1914, taking his 3,000th wicket that year.
Final Matches
When first-class cricket started again after World War I in 1919, Hearne was 52 years old. He was too old to play a full season. He played two more first-class matches in 1921 and 1923 before finally retiring from playing.
Life After Cricket
In 1920, Jack Hearne made history by becoming the first professional cricketer to be elected to the Middlesex committee. He stayed on the committee for about ten years.
Coaching and Tours
During this time, he also went on several cricket tours to India. He coached cricket at Oxford University until the mid-1930s. After that, he fully retired. Jack Hearne passed away in his hometown of Chalfont St Giles on 17 April 1944.
