Ewart Astill
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 England (Eng) |
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| Batting style | Right-handed batsman (RHB) | |
| Bowling type | Right arm medium (RM) | |
| Tests | First-class | |
| Matches | 9 | 733 |
| Runs scored | 190 | 22,735 |
| Batting average | 12.66 | 22.55 |
| 100s/50s | 0/0 | 15/107 |
| Top score | 40 | 164 not out |
| Balls bowled | 2,182 | 138,532 |
| Wickets | 25 | 2,432 |
| Bowling average | 34.66 | 23.76 |
| 5 wickets in innings | 0 | 140 |
| 10 wickets in match | 0 | 22 |
| Best bowling | 4/58 | 9/41 |
| Catches/stumpings | 7/0 | 466/0 |
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Test debut: December 24, 1927 |
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(William) Ewart Astill (born March 1, 1888, Ratby, Leicestershire, England; died February 10, 1948, Stoneygate, Leicester, England) was, along with George Geary, the mainstay of the Leicestershire teacm from 1922 to about 1935. He was never a bowler of Geary's class - thus was never picked for a home Test or Ashes tour - but for the best part of three decades he was a vital member of a generally struggling Leicestershire team. With no amateur able to play at all frequently for the county, Astill became the first officially appointed professional captain of any county for over fifty years in 1935. He led Leicestershire remarkably well, but his appointment was always on temporary until an amateur of reasonably regular availability existed.
Astill, a nephew of classy fast bowler Thomas Jayes, whose early illness and death proved a grievous blow to Leicestershire cricket just before the war, began his career at the age of eighteen in 1906. He played only one match that season, but his medium paced right hand bowling on the treacherous pitches of the following season was so difficult that he jumped to the front at nineteen, taking in county cricket 74 wickets for 16.58. The following year, Astill at twenty was Leicestershire's chief bowler with 84 wickets. Thirteen for 61 against Derbyshire on a treacherous pitch was an analysis Astill was never to better for a single match in twenty-five years after that. He again did well in 1909, but 1910, when with John King's bowling unavailable for almost the whole season Astill was the only slow wicket bowler available in a wet summer, was very disappointing and the following year Astill was actually dropped as he was quite harmless on the rock-hard wickets of a very dry summer.
In the remarkably wet summer of 1912, Astill regained his place but was very expensive considering the many sticky wickets available to bowl on, and on the firmer wickets of 1913 he could not retain his place: his slight build seemed exhausted. This was confirmed in 1914 when he took only three wickets in county crickets, and owing to duties in the Army he hardly played in 1919.
However, in 1920, Astill not only bettered any previous season's bowling for Leicestershire, but also showed development as a batsman that proved so rapid he was moved from number eleven up to four or five by 1921. He did not score a first-class fifty until 1913 against Lancashire or a maiden century until 1921 against newly promoted Glamorgan at Swansea, but from then until 1925 he was, with the seemingly ageless King running out of legs, Leicestershire's leading batsman when the skilful Aubrey Sharp could not spare time to play. He took over 150 wickets in 1921 and 144 in 1922, and his bowling, even if his action was not as high as in the 1900s, was always steady and occasionally deadly. Though his bowling never was quite as good as those two seasons, Astill continued to be George Geary's main source of support almost every season up to 1930. Only in 1927 did he fail to taken 100 wickets, but that season Astill made his highest first-class score of 164 against Glamorgan and scored a thousand runs every year up to 1931.
Astill, though never in the running for a tour to Australia, toured the West Indies with private parties during the middle 1920s and played in five Tests on matting in South Africa in 1927/1928. Though he never met with any great success, it was thought he did not bowl badly. Astill also played in four Representative Matches against the West Indies in 1929/1930 but was not effective. From 1933, he declined a good deal, but still did some useful work for a county that was at all formidable only when Geary and pace bowler Smith were deadly during parts of 1935.
Though Astill retired at the end of 1937, Leicestershire were so short of class players that he was forced to come out of retirement twice in 1938 and 1939. During World War II Astill joined the Army again, but his fragile build had by the end of the war broken down badly. Though he coached for a few years at Tonbridge School, Astill's health was so bad that he died in Leicester Hospital just three weeks before his sixtieth birthday.
Ewart Astill was also a champion billiards player and a hugely accomplished singer.
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| Persondata | |
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| NAME | Astill, Ewart |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | |
| SHORT DESCRIPTION | Cricketer |
| DATE OF BIRTH | 1 March 1888 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Ratby, England |
| DATE OF DEATH | 10 February 1948 |
| PLACE OF DEATH | Stoneygate, England |
