John George Langridge MBE (10 February 1910 – 27 June 1999) was a cricketer who played for Sussex and later became a first-class umpire. His obituary in Wisden called him "one of the best English cricketers of the 20th century never to play a Test match".[1]

John Langridge
Personal information
Full name
John George Langridge
Born(1910-02-10)10 February 1910
Chailey, Sussex, England
Died27 June 1999(1999-06-27) (aged 89)
Eastbourne, Sussex, England
BattingRight-handed
BowlingRight-arm medium pace
RoleBatter, umpire
RelationsBrother, James; nephew, Richard
Domestic team information
YearsTeam
1928–1955Sussex
Umpiring information
Tests umpired7 (1960–1963)
ODIs umpired8 (1975–1979)
FC umpired557 (1956–1983)
LA umpired219 (1963–1983)
Career statistics
Competition First-class
Matches 574
Runs scored 34,378
Batting average 37.44
100s/50s 76/152
Top score 250*
Balls bowled 3,390
Wickets 44
Bowling average 42.00
5 wickets in innings
10 wickets in match
Best bowling 3/15
Catches/stumpings 788/–
Source: CricketArchive, 19 November 2024

Born into a cricketing family at Newick, north of Lewes, John Langridge followed his elder brother James into the Sussex side in 1928 and stayed there until he retired in 1955. In between, he scored more than 34,000 runs as an opening batsman and made 76 centuries, and was a Wisden Cricketer of the Year in 1950. Considered unlucky not to have earned a place in the national team,[1][2] only Alan Jones of Glamorgan has scored more runs but not played for his country, and no one who scored as many centuries as Langridge failed to win international recognition. In addition, Langridge took 788 catches, mostly at slip, including 69 in his last season at the age of 45; only five players have taken more catches in a career or in a season.[1]

Langridge became a first-class umpire on retirement and stood in seven Test matches and eight One Day Internationals. He was appointed an MBE for services to cricket.[2]

See also

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References

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  • S Canynge Caple (compiler). "Langridge, (John)". The Cricketers' Who's Who. Lincoln Williams (Publishers) Ltd. Adam Street, Adelphi, London. 1934. Page 94.
  1. ^ a b c Player Profile from CricInfo
  2. ^ a b "John Langridge - Sussex batting legend dies (30 June 1999)". CricInfo. ESPN. 30 June 1999. Retrieved 10 May 2013.
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