Thomas Routledge

Thomas William Routledge - A fine attacking batsman and occasional, but useful change-bowler, Thomas Routledge was born in Liverpool, Lancashire, England on 18 April 1867 and died in Billingham, County Durham, England on 9 May 1927, aged 60. He played for Transvaal during the last decade of the 19th Century and appeared in four Test matches for South Africa against England, all of them on home soil. He was aggressive at the crease but so often failed to convert a good start into a significant one, only twice surpassing 50 or more runs in an innings. His first Test match was the sole representative affair of England’s visit in 1891-92, played at Cape Town. He also played in the three-match series of 1895-96 but in all four Tests he could only manage a top score of 24 (overall average 9.00) as England showed their dominance, winning each match convincingly. Routledge’s highest first-class score was 77, scored in the 1893-94 Currie Cup match against Eastern Province at Cape Town. However, on the day the meeting was held to select South Africa’s inaugural side to tour England in 1894, he made a century in a non-first-class match and secured his place as a result of it. None of the 24 matches on the tour have yet been given first-class status even though many of them were against first-class county clubs. No obituary appeared within the Wisden Cricketers' Almanack for Routledge after his death in 1927.

References

1. World Cricketers - A Biographical Dictionary by Christopher Martin-Jenkins, published by Oxford University Press (1996).
2. The Wisden Book of Test Cricket, Volume 1 (1877-1977) compiled and edited by Bill Frindall, published by Headline Book Publishing (1995).
3. www.cricketarchive.com/Archive/Players.