Christopher Aworth
{{Short description|English cricketer (born 1953)}}
{{EngvarB|date=August 2014}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2014}}
{{Infobox cricketer
| name = Christopher Aworth
| country = England
| fullname = Christopher John Aworth
| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|df=yes|1953|02|19}}
| birth_place = Wimbledon, Surrey
| death_date =
| death_place =
| nickname =
| heightft =
| heightinch =
| heightcm =
| heightm =
| batting = Left-handed
| bowling = Slow left-arm orthodox
| role = Batsman
| club1 = Cambridge University
| year1 = 1972–1976
| club2 = Surrey
| year2 = 1974–1976
| type1 = FC
| debutdate1 = 21 April
| debutyear1 = 1973
| debutfor1 = Cambridge University
| debutagainst1 = Warwickshire
| lastdate1 = 10 July
| lastyear1 = 1976
| lastfor1 = Surrey
| lastagainst1 = Kent
| type2 = LA
| debutdate2 = 27 April
| debutyear2 = 1974
| debutfor2 = Cambridge University
| debutagainst2 = Kent
| lastdate2 = 18 July
| lastyear2 = 1976
| lastfor2 = Surrey
| lastagainst2 = Nottinghamshire
| columns = 2
| column1 = FC
| matches1 = 56
| runs1 = 2,552
| bat avg1 = 26.04
| 100s/50s1 = 3/15
| top score1 = 135
| deliveries1 = 834
| wickets1 = 7
| bowl avg1 = 68.00
| fivefor1 = 0
| tenfor1 = 0
| best bowling1 = 2/23
| catches/stumpings1 = 22/–
| column2 = LA
| matches2 = 25
| runs2 = 392
| bat avg2 = 15.68
| 100s/50s2 = 0/1
| top score2 = 67
| deliveries2 = –
| wickets2 = –
| bowl avg2 = –
| fivefor2 = –
| tenfor2 = –
| best bowling2 = –
| catches/stumpings2 = 2/–
| date = 16 April
| year = 2014
| source = http://www.espncricinfo.com/ci/content/player/8839.html CricInfo
}}
Christopher John Aworth (born 19 February 1953) is a retired cricketer for Surrey and Cambridge University. A left-handed batsman and occasional left-arm spin bowler born in Wimbledon,
{{cite web | url=https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Players/27/27580/27580.html | title=Player Profile: Christopher Aworth | publisher=Cricket Archive | accessdate=16 April 2014}} Aworth played for Surrey's Second XI from 1971 before appearing for Cambridge against the MCC in 1972 and making his first-class debut for them against Warwickshire in 1973.{{cite web | url=https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Players/27/27580/all_teams.html | title=Teams Christopher Aworth Played For | publisher=Cricket Archive | accessdate=16 April 2014}} In July 1974 he was selected for Surrey's First XI and debuted against Lancashire.{{cite web | url=https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Scorecards/34/34444.html | title=Lancashire v Surrey County Championship 1974 | publisher=Cricket Archive | accessdate=16 April 2014}} He would play twenty-eight County Championship matches for Surrey, as well as eighteen one day games in the John Player League and Benson and Hedges Cup. He scored 67 in the semi-final of the 1976 Benson & Hedges Cup.{{cite web | url=https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Scorecards/36/36243.html | title=Surrey v Kent Benson and Hedges Cup 1976 (Semi-final) | publisher=Cricket Archive | accessdate=16 April 2014}} For Cambridge he made thirty-one appearances in total.{{cite web | url=https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Players/27/27580/f_Batting_by_Team.html | title=Records for Each Team – FC | publisher=Cricket Archive | accessdate=16 April 2014}}{{cite web | url=https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Players/27/27580/a_Batting_by_Team.html | title=Records for Each Team – LA | publisher=Cricket Archive | accessdate=16 April 2014}} Across his first-class career, he scored 2,552 runs including three centuries.{{cite web | url=http://www.espncricinfo.com/ci/content/player/8839.html | title=Player Profile: Christopher Aworth | publisher=ESPNcricinfo | accessdate=16 April 2014}} His professional career ended in 1976 with matches against the British Army.{{cite web | url=https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Players/27/27580/Miscellaneous_Matches.html | title=Misc. Matches Played By CJ Aworth | publisher=Cricket Archive | accessdate=16 April 2014}}
Playing career
Aworth, who was born in Wimbledon, played for Wimbledon Cricket Club through the 1960s. He was a "valuable asset" at the club, as was his father who also played there.{{cite web | url=http://www.takingthefield.com/sites/default/files/wimbledon_cricket_club_-_full_club_history_0.pdf | title=Wimbledon Cricket Club – The Full Club History | publisher=Wimbledon Cricket Club | accessdate=16 April 2014}}
=Surrey Second XI=
Aworth began his professional playing career with Surrey's Second XI on 4 August 1971 with his debut game against Sussex's own Second XI. Played at a cricket ground in Horsham, the match saw Sussex declare at 205/2, and though Surrey made 160 and 138, none of the batsmen's scores are recorded.{{cite web | url=https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Scorecards/31/31910.html | title=Sussex Second XI v Surrey Second XI Second Eleven Championship 1971 | publisher=Cricket Archive | accessdate=16 April 2014}} He then played several matches for Surrey's U-25 team, beginning with a game against the Sussex U-25 team on 4 May 1972.{{cite web | url=https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Scorecards/32/32294.html | title=Surrey Under-25s v Sussex Under-25s Under-25 County Cricket Competition 1972 (Southern Zone) | publisher=Cricket Archive | accessdate=16 April 2014}} Several of these games, against Essex, Middlesex and Middlesex took place in May and June that year.{{cite web | url=https://cricketarchive.com/Players/27/27580/Warwick_Pool_Under_25_Matches.html | title=2nd XI Championship Matches Played By CJ Aworth | publisher=Cricket Archive | accessdate=16 April 2014}} He also made 25 and 17 against the Kent Second XI in July,{{cite web | url=https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Scorecards/32/32695.html | title=Surrey Second XI v Kent Second XI Second Eleven Championship 1972 | publisher=Cricket Archive | accessdate=16 April 2014}} and he captained the Surrey Colts against the Scottish Cricket Union Colts in August.{{cite web | url=https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Scorecards/299/299704.html | title=Scottish Cricket Union Colts v Surrey Colts Surrey Colts in Scotland 1972 | publisher=Cricket Archive | accessdate=16 April 2014}} Several Second XI games followed against Middlesex, Hampshire and Glamorgan.
=Cambridge=
In 1973 Aworth's father John died. At the start of the 1973 cricket season when he had gone up to St Catharine's College, Cambridge from Tiffin School, and he was selected for the First XI cricket team to play in the University matches, beginning with Warwickshire on 21 April. Batting at three, he scored 25 and 10.{{cite web | url=https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Scorecards/33/33152.html | title=Cambridge University v Warwickshire University Match 1973 | publisher=Cricket Archive | accessdate=16 April 2014}} He would play eleven University matches that season, scoring 379 runs at 18.95 with a best of 45.{{cite web | url=https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Players/27/27580/f_Batting_by_Season.html | title=Season By Season FC Batting | publisher=Cricket Archive | accessdate=16 April 2014}} In April 1974 the season started with University matches against Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire as well as three Benson and Hedges games. The last of these was against Surrey, with Aworth scoring three.{{cite web | url=https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Scorecards/34/34174.html | title=Surrey v Cambridge University Benson and Hedges Cup 1974 (South Group) | publisher=Cricket Archive | accessdate=16 April 2014}} He made 97 against Warwickshire on 4 May,{{cite web | url=https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Scorecards/34/34095.html | title=Cambridge University v Warwickshire University Match 1974 | publisher=Cricket Archive | accessdate=16 April 2014}} and 56 against both Gloucestershire on 8 May and Kent on 5 June.{{cite web | url=https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Scorecards/34/34118.html | title=Cambridge University v Gloucestershire University Match 1974 | publisher=Cricket Archive | accessdate=16 April 2014}}{{cite web | url=https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Scorecards/34/34255.html | title=Cambridge University v Kent University Match 1974 | publisher=Cricket Archive | accessdate=16 April 2014}} He also scored 77 against the touring Indian cricket team.{{cite web | url=https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Scorecards/34/34287.html | title=Oxford and Cambridge Universities v Indians | publisher=Cricket Archive | accessdate=16 April 2014}} These scores led to a call up to the First XI for Surrey in mid-July.
=Surrey=
Aworth's debut for Surrey on 13 July against Lancashire saw him out for 25 in his only innings as the match ended as a rain-affected draw. He made 19 and 17 in his next game against Gloucestershire,{{cite web | url=https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Scorecards/34/34497.html | title=Surrey v Gloucestershire County Championship 1974 | publisher=Cricket Archive | accessdate=16 April 2014}} and opened the batting in a one-day game against Lancashire, scoring 27.{{cite web | url=https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Scorecards/35/35397.html | title=Surrey v Lancashire John Player League 1975 | publisher=Cricket Archive | accessdate=16 April 2014}} In all first-class cricket that year, he played seventeen games, scoring 767 runs at 28.40, and he fared poorly in one day cricket with only 59 runs from six games.{{cite web | url=https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Players/27/27580/a_Batting_by_Season.html | title=Season By Season Batting – LA | publisher=Cricket Archive | accessdate=16 April 2014}}
The following season Aworth returned to Cambridge to play University Matches through April and May. He scored 51 against Northamptonshire on 30 April,{{cite web | url=https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Scorecards/34/34996.html | title=Cambridge University v Northamptonshire University Match 1975 | publisher=Cricket Archive | accessdate=16 April 2014}} and 56 against Nottinghamshire on 14 May.{{cite web | url=https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Scorecards/35/35061.html | title=Cambridge University v Nottinghamshire University Match 1975 | publisher=Cricket Archive | accessdate=16 April 2014}} He returned to Surrey for the summer, and scored 115 opening the batting against Middlesex, his maiden County Championship century.{{cite web | url=https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Scorecards/35/35360.html | title=Surrey v Middlesex County Championship 1975 | publisher=Cricket Archive | accessdate=16 April 2014}} This was followed by knocks of 43 against Essex,{{cite web | url=https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Scorecards/35/35409.html | title=Surrey v Essex County Championship 1975 | publisher=Cricket Archive | accessdate=16 April 2014}} 55 against Worcestershire,{{cite web | url=https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Scorecards/35/35485.html | title=Worcestershire v Surrey County Championship 1975 | publisher=Cricket Archive | accessdate=16 April 2014}} and 63 against Sussex.{{cite web | url=https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Scorecards/35/35513.html | title=Surrey v Sussex County Championship 1975 | publisher=Cricket Archive | accessdate=16 April 2014}} He was still moving around the batting order for Surrey in one day matches, sometimes opening the batting and then batting at number three or four in later games. He continued to struggle in the shorter format, playing 12 games but scoring only 172 runs at an average of 14.33. He nevertheless continued to enjoy a richer return in first-class cricket, adding two further centuries for Cambridge to his season tally. He scored over 1,000 first-class runs for the season, ending it with 1,057 runs at an average of 31.08, with seven half-centuries as well as his hundreds.
He continued to find the one day game challenging in 1976, however. He would only managed 161 runs across seven matches, and he did not feature in Surrey's campaign to win the Benson and Hedges Cup until the semi-final stage. Nevertheless, he registered his career-best one day score, 67, against Kent in that semi-final. Kent were victorious, however, thanks to a century by Mike Denness. In the four-day game, he scored a half-century against a touring West Indies cricket team later that month.{{cite web | url=https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Scorecards/36/36052.html | title=Surrey v West Indians West Indies in British Isles 1976 | publisher=Cricket Archive | accessdate=16 April 2014}} He passed 2,500 first-class runs against Essex on 3 July,{{cite web | url=https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Scorecards/36/36292.html | title=Surrey v Essex County Championship 1976 | publisher=Cricket Archive | accessdate=16 April 2014}} but overall he could not recapture his form of the previous season, scoring only 349 from ten matches at 20.52. He played his final first-class game of the season on 10 July against Kent.{{cite web | url=https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Scorecards/36/36326.html | title=Surrey v Kent County Championship 1976 | publisher=Cricket Archive | accessdate=16 April 2014}} He returned to the Second XI to face the Army in August, scoring 52.{{cite web | url=https://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Scorecards/554/554819.html | title=Army v Surrey Second XI Other matches in England 1976 | publisher=Cricket Archive | accessdate=16 April 2014}}
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- {{cricinfo|id=8839}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Aworth, Christopher}}
Category:People from Wimbledon, London
Category:Cricketers from the London Borough of Merton
Category:People educated at Tiffin School
Category:Alumni of St Catharine's College, Cambridge
Category:Cambridge University cricketers
Category:British Universities cricketers