Alfred Croom

Who was Alfred Croom?

Alfred John William Croom was an English cricketer. He was a right-hand opening batsman and right-arm off-spin bowler who played for Warwickshire.

Born in Reading, Berkshire, Croom began his cricketing career with Berkshire in 1914. Following the First World War he played three more seasons of minor counties cricket before joining Warwickshire. After single appearances in 1922 and 1923 he became a regular by the late 1920s.

Between 1922 and 1939 Croom played a total of 394 first-class matches for Warwickshire, he also represented an England XI, Sir Lindsay Parkinson's XI and appeared twice for the Players against the Gentlemen.

Croom scored a total of 17,692 first-class runs at an average of 31.42, passing 1,000 runs in a season for twelve consecutive years between 1928 and 1939. His most productive season came in 1931 when he scored 1,584 runs at 38.63, including six centuries. Described by Wisden as sound and stylish, Croom scored 24 first-class centuries, the highest of which was an innings of 211 against Worcestershire at Edgbaston in 1934, sharing in a first-wicket stand of 272 with Norman Kilner.