| Personal information | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | George Frederick Grace | |||
| Born | 13 December 1850 Downend, South Gloucestershire, England |
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| Died | 22 September 1880 (aged 29) Basingstoke, Hampshire, England |
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| Batting style | Right-handed | |||
| Bowling style | Right arm fast (roundarm) | |||
| Role | Occasional wicket-keeper | |||
| Relations | E. M. Grace, W. G. Grace (brothers), Walter Gilbert (cousin) | |||
| International information | ||||
| National side | England | |||
| Only Test (cap 23) | 6 September 1880 v Australia | |||
| Domestic team information | ||||
| Years | Team | |||
| 1870–1880 | Gloucestershire | |||
| Career statistics | ||||
| Competition | Test | First-class | ||
| Matches | 1 | 195 | ||
| Runs scored | 0 | 6,906 | ||
| Batting average | 0.00 | 25.02 | ||
| 100s/50s | 0/0 | 8/32 | ||
| Top score | 0 | 189 not out | ||
| Balls bowled | 0 | 17,661 | ||
| Wickets | – | 329 | ||
| Bowling average | – | 20.06 | ||
| 5 wickets in innings | – | 17 | ||
| 10 wickets in match | – | 5 | ||
| Best bowling | – | 8/43 | ||
| Catches/stumpings | 2/– | 171/3 | ||
| Source: CricketArchive, 1 October 2009 | ||||
George Frederick ("Fred") Grace (13 December 1850 in Bristol – 22 September 1880 in Basingstoke, Hampshire) was the youngest of the three Grace brothers to play Test cricket for England.
Although his elder brothers E. M. and W. G. were always "known by (their) initials", the younger Grace was known as Fred, although his initials were used in scorecards like those of all other English cricketers.[1][2][3]
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Grace was "an attractive batsman", but one who "lacked the concentration and resolve to build a long innings". Like his two famous brothers he made a duck on his first-class debut. Grace was selected along with his two brothers to play in the inaugural Test in England, which took place at The Oval in 1880 against Australia. He was out for nought in both innings but held a "skyscraping catch" at the Vauxhall End off the giant Australian batsman George Bonnor.
Two weeks after his Test appearance, Fred Grace died of pneumonia, caught, it was said, as the result of sleeping in a damp bed.[2] W. R. Gilbert, a cousin of the Graces, wrote to The Daily Telegraph "It having come to my knowledge there is a rumour abroad that Mr. G. F. Grace's fatal illness was caused by sleeping in a damp bed at the Red Lion Hotel, Basingstoke, I beg to contradict it. He had a bad cold before he left home, and on my arrival at Basingstoke he told me that he had received another chill whilst waiting at Reading Station. By inserting this you will greatly oblige me, and also do justice to the members of a family whose attention and kindness to my cousin all through his illness could not have been surpassed had he been at home." The Times wrote, "His manly and straightforward conduct and genial manners won him not only popularity, but the esteem of hosts and friends". 3,000 people followed his coffin and the touring Australians wore black armbands during their last match.