The University Match in a

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 st ...

ing context is generally understood to refer to the annual fixture between

Oxford University Cricket Club Oxford University Cricket Club (OUCC), which represents the University of Oxford, has always held first-class status since 1827 when it made its debut in the inaugural University Match between OUCC and Cambridge University Cricket Club (CUCC). ...

and

Cambridge University Cricket Club Cambridge University Cricket Club, first recorded in 1817, is the representative cricket club for students of the University of Cambridge. Depending on the circumstances of each individual match, the club has always been recognised as holding ...

. From 2001, as part of the reorganisation of first-class cricket, the University Match was changed from a three-day first-class fixture, played at

Lord's Lord's Cricket Ground, commonly known as Lord's, is a cricket venue in St John's Wood, London. Named after its founder, Thomas Lord, it is owned by Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) and is the home of Middlesex County Cricket Club, the England ...

, to a one-day University Match at Lord's and a four-day first-class fixture played alternately at

Fenner's Fenner's is Cambridge University Cricket Club's ground. History Cambridge University Cricket Club had previously played at two grounds in Cambridge, the University Ground and Parker's Piece. In 1846, Francis Fenner leased a former cherry orchard ...

and

The Parks The Oxford University Parks, commonly referred to locally as the University Parks, or just The Parks, is a large parkland area slightly northeast of the city centre in Oxford, England. The park is bounded to the east by the River Cherwell, thoug ...

. In February, 2022 the MCC announced that from 2023 onwards the one-day fixture would no longer be held Lord's. However in September, 2022, following opposition from a section of its membership, the club decided that the match would be held at Lord's in 2023 to allow time for further consultation. Cambridge award a

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for either game, though Oxford award a

for the four-day game only. At the same time, Oxford players have also played in the Oxford University Centre of Cricketing Excellence (Oxford UCCE, also including

Oxford Brookes University Oxford Brookes University (formerly known as Oxford Polytechnic) is a public university in Oxford, England. It is a new university, having received university status through the Further and Higher Education Act 1992. The university was named ...

, now superseded by the Oxford MCCU), and Cambridge players in the Cambridge University Centre of Cricketing Excellence (Cambridge UCCE, including

Anglia Ruskin University Anglia Ruskin University (ARU) is a public university in East Anglia, United Kingdom. Its origins are in the Cambridge School of Art, founded by William John Beamont in 1858. It became a university in 1992, and was renamed after John Ruskin in ...

and now the Cambridge MCCU). However, only those at Oxford and Cambridge Universities are eligible to play in the University Match(es). The four-day match lost its first-class status after the 2020 fixture.

History

The match was first played in 1827, at

, at the instigation of

Charles Wordsworth Charles Wordsworth (22 August 1806 – 5 December 1892) was Bishop of St Andrews, Dunkeld and Dunblane in Scotland. He was a classical scholar, and taught at public schools in England and Scotland. He was a rower, cricketer and athlete and he ...

who was also responsible for founding the

Boat Race Boat racing is a sport in which boats, or other types of watercraft, race on water. Boat racing powered by oars is recorded as having occurred in ancient Egypt, and it is likely that people have engaged in races involving boats and other w ...

in 1829. The next two University matches were in 1829 and 1836. From 1838 it has been played annually, except for the war years of 1915–1918 and 1940–45. (From 1941 to 1945, a one-day fixture was played at Lord's, but these matches are not counted in the official records.) Lord's was to become its permanent venue from 1851 to 2000, but five of the early matches were played in the vicinity of Oxford. It was traditionally an annual three-day first-class fixture. From the 1830s until 1939, it was among the most important fixtures of the season, attracting large crowds and widespread press coverage. It was still a major social, as well as sporting, event as recently as just after

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. According to ''

The Cricketer ''The Cricketer'' is a monthly English cricket magazine providing writing and photography from international, county and club cricket. The magazine was founded in 1921 by Sir Pelham Warner, an ex-England captain turned cricket writer. Warner ...

'' (1954), the 1954 match attracted over 13,000 paying spectators as well as MCC members. In terms of the clubs concerned, the University Match was the oldest first-class fixture still being played in 2020, its final year with first-class status. Matches between county teams prior to formation of the current county clubs have a longer history, with the oldest known county fixture between

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

and

Surrey Surrey () is a ceremonial county, ceremonial and non-metropolitan county, non-metropolitan counties of England, county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant ur ...

, which dates back to 1709 at least. Despite never matriculating,

Tom Wills Thomas Wentworth Wills (19 August 1835 – 2 May 1880) was an Australian sportsman who is credited with being Australia's first cricketer of significance and a founder of Australian rules football. Born in the British penal colony of New ...

was allowed to play for Cambridge in the 1856 match. He went on to found

Australian rules football Australian football, also called Australian rules football or Aussie rules, or more simply football or footy, is a contact sport played between two teams of 18 players on an oval field, often a modified cricket ground. Points are scored by k ...

and coach the first Australian cricket team to tour England. Some of the most dramatic matches in the long history of the fixture occurred in the 1870s. The first of these was 'Cobden's Match' in 1870. F. C. Cobden took the last three Oxford wickets in consecutive balls to give Cambridge victory by 2 runs. The following year S. E. Butler took 10–38 in the Cambridge first innings (the only instance of a bowler taking all ten), followed by five more wickets in the second innings. In 1873 Oxford won by only three wickets. The 1875 match was almost as close an affair as that in 1870. Needing 175 to win, Cambridge were 161–7 at one point, but were all out for 168 to lose by six runs. Another notable match was in 1923, which became known as the "Thunderstorm match". Oxford had run up a good score, and a torrential storm for much of the night rendered the pitch almost unplayable, so that Cambridge were quickly dismissed in two innings.

William Yardley William Yardley (1632 – 6 May 1693) was an early settler of Bucks County, Pennsylvania, and is the namesake of the borough of Yardley, Pennsylvania. As a persecuted Quaker minister, Yardley and his wife, Jane ( nee Heath) moved from Ranscloug ...

of Cambridge has the distinction of scoring the first two hundreds made in the series: 100 in 1870 in Cobden's Match and 130 in 1872.

Robin Marlar Robin Geoffrey Marlar (2 January 1931 – 30 September 2022) was an English cricketer and cricket journalist. He played for Cambridge University before playing for Sussex County Cricket Club from 1951 to 1968. He captained both teams. Early li ...

's bowling figures for Cambridge are worth noting: * 1951: 5–41 and 1–64 * 1952: 7–104 and 2–25 * 1953: 5–94 and 7–49 Players who became (or in a few instances were already) famous to have appeared in the match include:

Alfred Lyttelton Alfred Lyttelton KC (7 February 1857 – 5 July 1913) was a British politician and sportsman from the Lyttelton family who excelled at both football and cricket. During his time at university he participated in Varsity Matches in five sports ...

(Cantab. 1876–9),

Allan Steel Allan Gibson Steel (24 September 1858 – 15 June 1914) was an English amateur cricketer who played for Lancashire County Cricket Club from 1877 to 1893, and in Test cricket for England from 1880 to 1888. He was born in West Derby, Liverpool, ...

(Cantab. 1878–81), Stanley Jackson (Cantab. 1890–3),

C. B. Fry Charles Burgess Fry (25 April 1872 – 7 September 1956) was an English sportsman, teacher, writer, editor and publisher, who is best remembered for his career as a cricketer. John Arlott described him with the words: "Charles Fry could b ...

(Ox. 1892–5),

K. S. Ranjitsinhji Colonel H. H. Shri Sir Ranjitsinhji Vibhaji II, Jam Saheb of Nawanagar, (10 September 1872 – 2 April 1933), often known as Ranji or K. S. Ranjitsinhji, was the ruler of the Indian princely state of Nawanagar from 1907 to 1933, as M ...

(Cantab. 1893),

Pelham Warner Sir Pelham Francis Warner, (2 October 1873 – 30 January 1963), affectionately and better known as Plum Warner or "the Grand Old Man" of English cricket, was a Test cricketer and cricket administrator. He was knighted for services to sport in ...

(Ox. 1895–6), Gilbert Jessop (Cantab. 1896–9),

R. E. Foster Reginald Erskine Foster (16 April 1878 – 13 May 1914), nicknamed Tip Foster, commonly designated R. E. Foster in sporting literature, was an English first-class cricketer and footballer. He is the only man to have captained England at both ...

(Ox. 1897–1900), Bernard Bosanquet (Ox. 1898–1900),

Percy Chapman Arthur Percy Frank Chapman (3 September 1900 – 16 September 1961) was an English cricketer who captained the England cricket team between 1926 and 1931. A left-handed batsman, he played 26 Test matches for England, captaining the side in 17 ...

(Cantab. 1920–2),

Douglas Jardine Douglas Robert Jardine ( 1900 – 1958) was an English cricketer who played 22 Test matches for England, captaining the side in 15 of those matches between 1931 and 1934. A right-handed batsman, he is best known for captaining the English ...

(Ox. 1920–1, 1923),

Gubby Allen Sir George Oswald Browning "Gubby" Allen CBE (31 July 190229 November 1989) was a cricketer who captained England in eleven Test matches. In first-class matches, he played for Middlesex and Cambridge University. A fast bowler and hard-hitti ...

(Cantab. 1922–3), K. S. Duleepsinhji (Cantab. 1925–8), Nawab of Pataudi snr (Ox. 1929–31), Ken Farnes (Cantab. 1931–3), Martin Donnelly (Ox. 1946–7),

Abdul Kardar Abdul Hafeez Kardar PP, HI ( ur, ) (17 January 1925 – 21 April 1996) was a Pakistani cricketer, politician and diplomat. He was the first captain of the Pakistan cricket team. He is one of the only three players to have played Test crick ...

(Ox. 1947–9),

Peter May Peter May may refer to: * Peter W. May, American businessman * Peter May (cricketer) (1929–1994), English Test cricketer *Peter May (writer) Peter May (born 20 December 1951) is a Scottish television screenwriter, novelist, and crime writer ...

(Cantab. 1950–2),

David Sheppard David Stuart Sheppard, Baron Sheppard of Liverpool (6 March 1929 – 5 March 2005) was a Church of England Bishop of Liverpool who played cricket for Sussex and England in his youth. Sheppard remains the only ordained minister to have played T ...

(Cantab. 1950–2),

Colin Cowdrey Michael Colin Cowdrey, Baron Cowdrey of Tonbridge, (24 December 19324 December 2000) was an English first-class cricketer who played for Oxford University (1952–1954), Kent County Cricket Club (1950–1976) and England (1954–1975). Univers ...

(Ox. 1952–4),

M. J. K. Smith Michael John Knight Smith , better known as M. J. K. Smith or Mike Smith, (born 30 June 1933) is an English former cricketer who was captain of Oxford University Cricket Club (1956), Warwickshire County Cricket Club (1957–1967) and ...

(Ox. 1954–6), Ted Dexter (Cantab. 1956–8), Nawab of Pataudi jnr (Ox. 1960–1, 1963),

Tony Lewis Anthony Robert Lewis CBE (born 6 July 1938) is a Welsh former cricketer, who captained England, became a journalist, went on to become the face of BBC Television cricket coverage between 1986 and 1998, and became president of the Marylebone C ...

Cantab 1960–62),

Mike Brearley John Michael Brearley (born 28 April 1942) is a retired English first-class cricketer who captained Cambridge University, Middlesex, and England. He captained the international side in 31 of his 39 Test matches, winning 18 and losing only 4 ...

(Cantab. 1961–4), Majid Khan (Cantab. 1971–3),

Imran Khan Imran Ahmed Khan Niazi ( ur}; born 5 October 1952) is a Pakistani politician and former Cricket captain who served as the 22nd Prime Minister of Pakistan from August 2018 to until April 2022, when he was ousted through a no-confiden ...

(Ox. 1973–5) and

Mike Atherton Michael Andrew Atherton (born 23 March 1968) is a broadcaster, journalist and a former England international first-class cricketer. A right-handed opening batsman for Lancashire and England, and occasional leg-break bowler, he achieved the ca ...

(Cantab. 1987, 1989). It can be seen that the majority were batsmen rather than bowlers and that the 1890s and 1950s to early 1960s were particularly fertile periods. At the time of writing, the most recent Oxbridge international cricketers are Ed Smith (Cantab. 1996–7) in Tests, and James Dalrymple (Ox. 2001–3) in limited-overs internationals. From 2001 the match has been replaced by two fixtures each year: a one-day match played at Lord's and a four-day fixture (first-class up to and including 2020) played in alternate years at

in Cambridge and

in Oxford.

Blues Blues is a music genre and musical form which originated in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues incorporated spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts, chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads from the ...

are awarded to those appearing in either match for Cambridge players but only to Oxford players who appear in the four-day game. Unless otherwise stated, statistics quoted in this article are for the first-class fixtures only. In 2008, for the first time a

Twenty20 Twenty20 (T20) is a shortened game format of cricket. At the professional level, it was introduced by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) in 2003 for the inter-county competition. In a Twenty20 game, the two teams have a single inn ...

fixture was also played. The 2020 four-day match was delayed until September because of the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...

Records

Results

Up to and including 2020, 176 first-class matches were scheduled. Cambridge won 61, Oxford won 58, 56 were drawn and one match (in 1988) was abandoned without a ball being bowled. The 2021 – no longer first-class – match was drawn.

Highest and lowest scores by each side

*604 Cambridge University v Oxford University, The Parks, 2002 *611-5d Oxford University v Cambridge University, The Parks, 2010 * 39 Cambridge University v Oxford University, Lord's, 1858 * 32 Oxford University v Cambridge University, Lord's, 1878

Individual triple centuries

*313*

Sam Agarwal Samridh Sunil "Sam" Agarwal (born 13 July 1990) is an Indian cricketer who played for Oxford University and the associated Oxford MCCU. Born in Agra, Uttar Pradesh, India, he was educated at the all-boys Indian boarding school The Doon School in ...

, Oxford, Fenner's, 2013 (also the highest first-class innings for Oxford University)

Individual double centuries

*247

Salil Oberoi Salil Oberoi (born 7 December 1983 in Delhi) is an Indian cricketer who played first-class cricket in England for Oxford UCCE. He also represented Delhi having coming through their youth teams. Oberoi was a Rhodes Scholar and an alumnus of ...

, Oxford, Fenner's, 2005 *238* Nawab of Pataudi senior, Oxford, Lord's, 1931 *236* Jamie Dalrymple, Oxford, Fenner's, 2003 *211 G Goonesena, Cambridge, Lord's, 1957 *202

Matthew Naylor Matthew A. Naylor (born 11 December 1996) is an English former first-class cricketer. Naylor was born at Coventry in December 1996. He was educated at Finham Park School, before going up to Merton College, Oxford. While studying at Oxford, he ...

, Oxford, The Parks, 2018 *201*

, Oxford, Lord's, 1954 *201

Alan Ratcliffe Alan Ratcliffe (31 March 1909 – 21 August 1967) was an English cricketer. Ratcliffe was a right-handed batsman. He was born in Dulwich, Surrey. His early education was undertaken at Rydal School, Ratcliffe made his first-class debut for Wal ...

, Cambridge, Lord's, 1931 *200 Majid Khan, Cambridge, Lord's, 1970

Century on first-class debut

*185* AS Sharma, Oxford, The Parks, 2010 *172 N Kruger, Oxford, The Parks, 2008 *146 GT Hargrave, Oxford, Fenner's, 2019 *125 DA Escott, Oxford, The Parks, 2016 *116 MST Hughes, Oxford, Fenner's, 2015 *112 Anand Ashok, Cambridge, Fenner's, 2009

Best innings bowling

*10–38 SE Butler, Oxford, Lord's, 1871 * 9-? GB Lee, Oxford, Lord's, 1839 * 8–44 GE Jeffery, Cambridge, Lord's, 1873 * 8–52 GJ Toogood, Oxford, Lord's, 1985 * 8–62 AG Steel, Cambridge, Lord's, 1878 * 8–66 RHB Bettington, Oxford, Lord's, 1923 * 8–68 EM Kenney, Oxford, Lord's, 1868 * 8–99 PR Le Couteur, Oxford, Lord's, 1911 * 8–161 JC Hartley, Oxford, Lord's, 1896 * 8-? GE Yonge, Oxford, Lord's, 1845

Best match bowling

* 15–95 SE Butler, Oxford, Lord's, 1871 * 14–119 EM Kenney, Oxford, Lord's, 1868 * 13–73 AG Steel, Cambridge, Lord's, 1878

Hat-tricks

* FC Cobden, Cambridge, Lord's, 1870 * AG Steel, Cambridge, Lord's, 1879 * PH Morton, Cambridge, Lord's, 1880 * JF Ireland, Cambridge, Lord's, 1911 * RGH Lowe, Cambridge, Lord's, 1926

Match double (100 runs & 10 wickets)

* PR Le Couteur, Oxford, Lord's, 1910: 160 and 11–66 * GJ Toogood, Oxford, Lord's, 1985: 149 and 10–93

Notes

References

*''Barclays World of Cricket'' (2nd edition), 1980. *''Playfair Cricket Annual, 2006''

External links

OUCCCUCC
{{DEFAULTSORT:University Match, The English domestic cricket competitions English cricket in the 19th century English cricket in the 20th century English cricket in the 21st century 1827 establishments in England First-class cricket matches Oxbridge Oxbridge sporting rivalries Student cricket in the United Kingdom Recurring sporting events established in 1827