Published: Sep 05, 2013, 10:18 AM (IST)
Edited: Sep 05, 2013, 10:18 AM (IST)
The Google doodle honouring John Wisden on September 5, 2013
Sep 5, 2013
Born on September 5, 1826, the legendary John Wisden, whose eponymous Almanack serves as a cricketing bible to millions of followers of the sport around the globe, was honoured by Google in their doodle on his 187th birth anniversary. Wisden was a cricketer because of whom the entire world can today know about the history of the game.
Standing at only five feet six inches, Wisden nevertheless became one of the best fast bowlers of his era, running in with a relaxed action followed by very accurate deliveries. He was a good batsman as well, with an extremely straight bat.
According to the leading batsman of that era, Fuller Pilch, Wisden was the finest of all-rounders. At Lord’s in 1850, playing for North versus South, he claimed all 10 wickets in the second innings, each one of them clean bowled!
In 1859, along with the six-hitting Nottinghamshire skipper George Parr, Wisden took a team of English cricketers to Canada and USA, playing in Montreal, Hoboken, Philadelphia, Hamilton and Rochester.
He gave up the game at a relatively early age of 37, mainly due to frequent attacks of rheumatism. However, his immortal feat was performed next year, in 1864, when he launched the Wisden Cricketers’ Almanack.
Wisden passed away in 1884, but the publication lives on, compiled year after year, as the veritable Bibleof cricket, the refuge of scholars and historians associated with the game.
Also read: John Wisden bowls out 10 batsmen at Lord’s
