Billy Beldham

Billy Beldham
Beldham (c.1860) in old age
Personal information
Full name
William Beldham
Born(1766-02-05)5 February 1766
Wrecclesham, Surrey, England
Died26 February 1862(1862-02-26) (aged 96)
Tilford, Surrey, England
NicknameSilver Billy
BattingRight-handed
BowlingRight arm fast medium (underarm)
RoleBatting all-rounder
Domestic team information
YearsTeam
1782–1786Farnham
1785–1807Hambledon/Hampshire[note 1]
1788–1817Surrey
1790–1818MCC
1787–1820England

William "Silver Billy" Beldham (5 February 1766 – 26 February 1862)[2] was an English professional cricketer who played for numerous teams between 1782 and 1821. He was born at Wrecclesham, near Farnham in Surrey, and died at Tilford, Surrey. In some sources, his name has been given as "Beldam" or "Beldum". A right-handed batting all-rounder, he is widely recognised as one of the greatest batsmen of cricket's underarm era. Using an underarm action, he bowled pitched deliveries at a fast medium pace. He generally fielded in close catching positions, mostly at slip and sometimes played as wicket-keeper.

Beldham began his career locally with Farnham Cricket Club. He was soon invited to join the Hambledon Club and became mainly associated with the county teams of Hampshire and Surrey. He regularly played for England teams from 1787 until 1820 and also in many matches for Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC).

  1. ^ Buckley 1937, p. 7.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference CA10651 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).


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