Ian Gibson (15 August 1936 – 3 May 1963) was an English doctor and

cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by striki ...

er who played first-class cricket for

Oxford University Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

between 1955 and 1958, for

Derbyshire Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands, England. It includes much of the Peak District National Park, the southern end of the Pennine range of hills and part of the National Forest. It borders Greater Manchester to the nor ...

between 1957 and 1961 and for

Marylebone Cricket Club Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) is a cricket club founded in 1787 and based since 1814 at Lord's Cricket Ground, which it owns, in St John's Wood, London. The club was formerly the governing body of cricket retaining considerable global influence ...

(MCC) in 1961.

Biography

Gibson was born in

Glossop Glossop is a market town in the Borough of High Peak, Derbyshire, England. It is located east of Manchester, north-west of Sheffield and north of the county town, Matlock. Glossop lies near Derbyshire's borders with Cheshire, Greater Manches ...

and was educated at

Manchester Grammar School The Manchester Grammar School (MGS) in Manchester, England, is the largest independent school (UK), independent day school for boys in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1515 as a Grammar school#free tuition, free grammar school next to Manchester C ...

, where he was in the first XI from 1951 to 1954 and was captain in the last two years.Wisden Obituaries in 1963
/ref> In 1953 he played for the Public Schools XI and at the age of 17 began playing for the Lancashire Second XI in the Minor Counties Championship. He went to

Brasenose College, Oxford Brasenose College (BNC) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. It began as Brasenose Hall in the 13th century, before being founded as a college in 1509. The library and chapel were added in the mi ...

, and in 1955 began his first-class cricketing career with Oxford University. He made his first-class debut against

Gloucestershire Gloucestershire ( abbreviated Glos) is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn and the entire Forest of Dean. The county town is the city of Gl ...

, and played fifteen first-class games for the university and followed up his series of university matches playing for Lancashire 2nd XI. Gibson played as a lower-order batsman for Oxford, and took just four wickets with the ball during his first season. He continued to play for both teams in 1956, with similar batting statistics, scoring three further first-class half-centuries. In 1957, Gibson achieved his career-best innings of 100 not out in a draw for Oxford University against

. He joined Derbyshire in the 1957 season and spent his university holidays in both the first and second teams. He made his County Championship debut for Derbyshire against

Nottinghamshire Nottinghamshire (; abbreviated Notts.) is a landlocked county in the East Midlands region of England, bordering South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west. The traditi ...

, in which he scored a half-century in his first innings. He played six further first-class matches for the Derbyshire in the latter stages of the season, when Derbyshire finished the season in fourth place in the County Championship. Gibson played for Oxford University in 1958, keeping his position in the upper order. After Oxford, he continued his medical training at

Guy's Hospital Guy's Hospital is an NHS hospital in the borough of Southwark in central London. It is part of Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust and one of the institutions that comprise the King's Health Partners, an academic health science centre. ...

, playing cricket for the hospital and also for the

Free Foresters Free Foresters Cricket Club is an English amateur cricket club, established in 1856 for players from the Midland counties of England. It is a 'wandering' (or nomadic) club, having no home ground. The Free Foresters were founded by the Rev. Willi ...

. By 1961 season, he was turning out again for the Derbyshire Second XI and played one first-class game. He also played two matches for

. Gibson was described as excellent batsman especially strong in strokes off the back foot, a fine fieldsman and a useful leg-break bowler. He was a right-handed batsman and played 92 innings in 51 first-class matches with an average of 19.96 and a top score of 100 not out. He was a leg-break and googly bowler and took 51 first-class wickets with an average of 38.41 and a best performance of 5 for 29.Ian Gibson at Cricket Archive
/ref> His mental health deteriorated at the start of the 1960s, with Gibson suffering a nervous breakdown just before Christmas in 1962. Weighed down by high parental expectations and his workload as a doctor, Gibson committed suicide by gassing himself in Bowdon at the age of 26.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gibson, Ian 1936 births 1963 suicides 1963 deaths People from Glossop Cricketers from Derbyshire English cricketers Derbyshire cricketers Oxford University cricketers Marylebone Cricket Club cricketers Free Foresters cricketers People educated at Manchester Grammar School Alumni of Brasenose College, Oxford Suicides in England 20th-century English medical doctors Suicides by gas