Bill Proud

Who was Bill Proud?

Roland Barton 'Bill' Proud was an English cricketer. Proud was a right-handed batsman who bowled right-arm medium pace.

Proud was educated at Winchester College, where he represented the college cricket team. Later, Proud was educated at Oxford University.

Proud made his first-class debut for Hampshire against Derbyshire in the 1938 County Championship, playing three first-class matches for the county during the season.

In 1939 Proud made his debut for Oxford University against Yorkshire. Proud represented the University in ten first-class matches in 1939, with his final first-class match for the University coming against Cambridge University. In his ten first-class matches for the University, Proud scored 488 runs at a batting average of 25.68, with four half centuries and a high score of 87. During his freshman year, Proud was awarded his Oxford Blue.

Proud continued to represent Hampshire during the 1939 County Championship, playing his final match for the county against Nottinghamshire. In Proud's seven first-class matches for Hampshire, he scored 183 runs at a batting average of 16.63 and a high score of 38*. With the start of the Second World War, County Cricket was suspended until the 1946 season.