Australian Cricket Team in England in 1884

Australian Cricket Team In England In 1884

The Australia national cricket team toured England in 1884. The team is officially termed the Fourth Australians, following three previous tours in the 1878, 1880 and 1882 seasons. The 1884 tour was a private venture by the thirteen players who each invested an agreed sum to provide funding, none of Australia's colonial cricket associations being involved. Billy Murdoch captained the team and George Alexander acted as player-manager. The Australians played a total of 32 matches in England, 31 of which are recognised by CricketArchive as first-class.

1884 was the first English season to feature more than a single Test match. A three-match series was scheduled which included the inaugural Tests at both Old Trafford and Lord's. The third Test was played at the Oval which had staged the Tests in 1880 and 1882. England won the Test series 1–0 with an innings victory in the second Test at Lord's, while the first and third Tests were drawn. The 1884 series was the first Ashes series in England, following publication of the mock "ashes" obituary after the 1882 Test.

The tour was dogged by financial controversy with the Australians accused by the British press of being interested only in money. The allegations were refuted by the Australian press but it later became clear, when an England team arrived in Australia the following winter, that there had been a financial dispute between Alexander and the English team manager James Lillywhite, resulting in the two teams at first boycotting each other. The dispute was never evident while Murdoch's team was in England as they completed all their scheduled fixtures, winning eighteen matches and losing seven with seven drawn.