George Gunn

Who was George Gunn?

George Gunn was an English cricketer who played in 15 Tests from 1907 to 1930. Along with other notable batsmen such as Jack Hobbs, Frank Woolley and Phil Mead, he was one of a group who, beginning their first-class careers in the Edwardian Era, seemed to go on for ever. In Gunn's case, it was from 1902 to 1932, in the course of which he made more runs for Nottinghamshire than anyone else, before or since: 31,592 at 35.70.Christopher Martin-Jenkins wrote of him: "A whimsical artist, George Gunn was capable of making runs against any attack, orthodox or unorthodox, as the mood took him. His record in a long career is outstanding, but all who saw him play regularly seem agreed that he should have scored even more runs than he did."

His Test career was an unusual one, all but one of his 15 Tests being outside England. He was not selected for the 1907-8 tour of Australia, but visited the country anyway, for the good of his health. It was arranged that he could be called upon by England if necessary. In the event, it was necessary, and he appeared in the first Test at Sydney. Scores of 119, in his first innings in Test cricket, and 74 ensured that he would play in all five Tests.