W.G. Grace's 1873 Double — First 1,000 Runs and 100 Wickets in a Season

Grace had emerged as a great batsman in 1869-71. His bowling — initially a useful occasional change — developed into a regular weapon in 1872. By 1873 he was Gloucestershire's leading bowler.

The 1873 season opened with Grace already on form. He passed 1,000 runs by mid-July and 100 wickets in early September.

Grace was 25 and at his peak as an all-round cricketer in 1873. The previous year he had passed 1,000 runs but stopped short of 100 wickets; in 1873 he passed both, finishing the season with 2,139 runs at 71.30 and 106 wickets at around 12 apiece in first-class matches. He bowled medium-paced round-arm — straight, full, with cleverly mixed pace — and was capable of long unchanged spells in an era when batting friendly tracks were rare. The 'double' became the gold standard for all-rounders for the next century. Grace himself achieved it eight times between 1873 and 1886 — a record that has never been approached. Wilfred Rhodes managed it 16 times in a longer career, but no other cricketer has matched the eight Grace doubles within fourteen seasons.

“He bowled all day, batted all day, and never tired.”

Grace did the double again in 1874, 1875, 1876, 1877, 1878, 1885 and 1886 — eight seasons in fourteen. He also captained Gloucestershire to three unofficial county championships in the same period.