Frederick Ridgway (10 August 1923 – 26 September 2015) was an English professional

cricket Cricket is a Bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball game played between two Sports team, teams of eleven players on a cricket field, field, at the centre of which is a cricket pitch, pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two Bail (cr ...

er who played in five

Test matches Test match in some sports refers to a sporting contest between national representative teams and may refer to: * Test cricket * Indoor cricket, Test match (indoor cricket) * Test match (rugby union) * Test match (rugby league) * Test match (associa ...

for the

England cricket team The England men's cricket team represents cricket in England, England and cricket in Wales, Wales in international cricket. Since 1997, it has been governed by the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), having been previously governed by Maryleb ...

on the 1951–52 tour of India. Ridgway played county cricket as a fast bowler for

Kent County Cricket Club Kent County Cricket Club is one of the eighteen first-class county clubs within the domestic cricket structure of England and Wales. It represents the historic county of Kent. A club representing the county was first founded in 1842 but Ken ...

between 1946 and 1961.

Life and career

Ridgway was born at

Stockport Stockport is a town in Greater Manchester, England, south-east of Manchester, south-west of Ashton-under-Lyne and north of Macclesfield. The River Goyt, Rivers Goyt and River Tame, Greater Manchester, Tame merge to create the River Mersey he ...

Cheshire Cheshire ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in North West England. It is bordered by Merseyside to the north-west, Greater Manchester to the north-east, Derbyshire to the east, Staffordshire to the south-east, and Shrop ...

on 10 August 1923. As a

county cricket Inter-county cricket matches have been played since the early 18th century, involving teams that are representative of the historic counties of England and Wales. Two county championship competitions have existed since the late 19th century at ...

er, Ridgway, although not appearing a likely successful pace bowler because of his slight build, was the mainstay of

's opening attack for a decade after

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, except on the rare occasions that Jack Martin could get away from business. Ridgway did not play regularly in 1946, but the following year he jumped into prominence with 12 for 86 on a rain-affected pitch against

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ) is an area of Northern England which was History of Yorkshire, historically a county. Despite no longer being used for administration, Yorkshire retains a strong regional identity. The county was named after its county town, the ...

. Though in 1948 he was badly affected by injury, 1949 proved to be Ridgway's best year, for he took 105 wickets for 22.88 runs each, which ranked him as the fourth-best pace bowler in the country after Bedser, Gladwin and Les Jackson. Ridgway's most notable performance was on the featherbed

Trent Bridge Trent Bridge Cricket Ground is a cricket ground mostly used for Test cricket, Test, One-day cricket, One-Day International and county cricket located in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, England, just across the River Trent from the city of Nott ...

wicket, where he took six for 79 in the first innings, and paved the way for an easy Kent victory. Apart from teammate

Doug Wright Douglas Wright (born December 20, 1962) is an American playwright, librettist, and screenwriter. Known for his extensive work in the American theatre in both plays and musicals, he has received numerous accolades including the Pulitzer Prize an ...

in the second innings, no visiting bowler at Trent Bridge bettered those figures all year, but Ridgway's most notable feat that year was his striking consistency: with only one haul of eight or more in a match he still took 90 wickets in 20 county games. Moreover, playing against

Sussex Sussex (Help:IPA/English, /ˈsʌsɪks/; from the Old English ''Sūþseaxe''; lit. 'South Saxons'; 'Sussex') is an area within South East England that was historically a kingdom of Sussex, kingdom and, later, a Historic counties of England, ...

, Ridgway "shared in a record partnership of 161 for the ninth wicket" with

Brian Edrich Brian Robert Edrich (18 August 1922 – 31 May 2009) was an English cricketer who played first-class cricket for Kent and Glamorgan between 1947 and 1956. He was a member of the Edrich cricketing family from Norfolk. His three brothers, Eric, ...

. This partnership, just under half the total of 379, was made in a losing cause. Although Ridgway did not play in any of the Tests that year, he was regarded as a contender for honours but, in 1950, injury again took its toll. Career-best figures of eight for 39, however, against

Nottinghamshire Nottinghamshire (; abbreviated ''Notts.'') is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. The county is bordered by South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west. Th ...

at the tail end of the season, were followed by an impressive 1951, where he took over 90 wickets. With

Alec Bedser Sir Alec Victor Bedser (4 July 1918 – 4 April 2010) was an English professional cricketer, primarily a medium-fast bowler. He is widely regarded as one of the best English cricketers of the 20th century. Bedser played first-class cricket fo ...

amongst others declining to tour India, Ridgway was a natural choice. He was one of seven players who made their Test debut on that trip where he opened the bowling with

Brian Statham John Brian Statham, (17 June 1930 – 10 June 2000) was an English professional cricketer from Gorton, in Manchester, who played for Lancashire County Cricket Club from 1950 to 1968 and for England from 1951 to 1965. Ridgway took 41 wickets at an average of 26.04 in 16 first-class matches on the tour, but only seven wickets at 54.14 in the five Tests. Injury again troubled him in 1952 and 1955, and he did not return to his best form until 1956, when support at last coming from David Halfyard, Ridgway took 82 wickets and, two years later, had his second-highest aggregate with 98 wickets at 14.26 runs, lifting Kent to their highest

County Championship The County Championship, currently known for sponsorship reasons as the Rothesay County Championship, is the only domestic first-class cricket competition in England and Wales. Established in 1890, it is organised by the England and Wales Cri ...

position since 1947. Injuries again restricted him severely in 1959 and 1960, after which he retired from first-class cricket.

Football

Ridgway was also a footballer, playing as a semi-professional in the post war period for Ramsgate F.C. in the Kent League.

Later life

Ridgway lived in retirement in

Barming Barming is a civil parish in the Maidstone District of Kent, England. It lies to the west of Maidstone and at the 2011 census had a population of 2,690. The eastern end of the parish is part of the built-up area of Maidstone, although the remai ...

Maidstone Maidstone is the largest Town status in the United Kingdom, town in Kent, England, of which it is the county town. Maidstone is historically important and lies east-south-east of London. The River Medway runs through the centre of the town, l ...

, Kent. He died on 26 September 2015 at the age of 92.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ridgway, Fred 1923 births 2015 deaths England Test cricketers English cricketers Kent cricketers Commonwealth XI cricketers Marylebone Cricket Club cricketers North v South cricketers Cricketers from Stockport 20th-century English sportsmen