Cricket has a long and established history at Bedford School with records dating back to 1866, and it continues to be one of the school’s four major sports. Bedford School currently runs four teams at U14, four teams at U15, three at U16 and five senior teams.
The 2018 season was a season to remember due to cup runs in various competitions –
- 1st XI reached the National Finals of the T20 Competition
- U17’s reached the final of the National U17 Competition
- U15’s reached the final of the National ECB Cup
- U14’s were county champions
The fixture card remains strong with fixtures against schools such as Eton, Harrow, Stowe, Oundle, Haileybury and Stamford, whilst traditional two-day games against Tonbridge and the Old Bedfordians (along with the MCC fixture) are arguably the highlights of the season. In the last 40 years, Bedford School has produced a host of first-class and international players, with our highest-profile cricketing old boy being former England opening batsman, Sir Alastair Cook. Alastair was England Captain for five successful years, including two Ashes victories, and is the highest run-scorer in Test matches for England. Other old boys include:
Ian Peck
Cambridge University (Captain), Combined Universities, Northamptonshire
Marc Snell
England U15 Captain
Toby Bailey
Northamptonshire
Adrian Shankar
Cambridge University (Captain), Lancashire
Will Smith
British Universities, Nottinghamshire, Durham, Hampshire
Alex Wakely
England U19 (Captain), Northamptonshire (current Captain)
James Kettleborough
England U18, Northamptonshire, Glamorgan, Derbyshire
Christian Davis
England U19, Northamptonshire
Vicram Sohal
ECB Elite Development Squad
Charlie Thurston
Northamptonshire
Rahul Sheemar
England U16
Emilio Gay
Northamptonshire
Harry Gouldstone
Northamptonshire
Gus Miller
Northamptonshire
The school has boys in Emerging Player Programmes and county age group squads with Cricket East, Northamptonshire, Buckinghamshire, Cambridgeshire and Hertfordshire.
During the build-up to the summer term, the boys prepare for the season by attending a winter programme that includes –
- Masterclass sessions delivered by former professional cricketers such as Bob Taylor (England & Derbyshire – wicket keeping), Adam Rossington (Essex & London Spirit – Wicket Keeping), Lloyd Tennant (Leicestershire/Essex – Pace Bowling), David Sales (Northamptonshire – Batting) and James Kettleborough (Northants/Glamorgan – Batting), Peter Willey (England and Northamptonshire – Spin Bowling) and Graeme White (Northamptonshire – Spin bowling)
- Wicket Keeping sessions delivered by David Ripley (Northamptonshire CCC).
- Age Group Sessions (summer and winter)
The cricket facilities at Bedford School include six new indoor cricket nets, 18 outdoor cricket nets (11 of which are new artificial nets), nine cricket squares and a wonderful pavilion next to the 1st XI pitch. It also has access to four bowling machines, including a new Merlyn ‘spin machine’. The 1st XI ground is also used by Northamptonshire for 2nd XI games/age group training camps and also Bedfordshire for Minor County matches/age group fixtures.
Over the recent years, the school has toured Barbados, St Lucia, Antigua, South Africa, Australia, UAE and Spain. The school embarks on a major tour every three years, with the next tour in October 2023 in Barbados.