Herbert Sutcliffe 50,000th First-Class run bat, inscribed to the back, right, in ink USED IN SCORING 50,000th RUN V SUSSEX AT SCARBOROUGH ON SUNDAY JU

Herbert Sutcliffe 50,000th First-Class run bat, inscribed to the back, right, in ink USED IN SCORING 50,000th RUN V SUSSEX AT SCARBOROUGH ON SUNDAY JULY 19TH 1939, HERBERT SUTCLIFFE, and to back, left, THIS BAT WAS BORROWED FROM HUGH BARTLETT OF THE SUSSEX XI ON ACCOUNT OF MY TWO BATS HAVING BEEN LEFT BEHIND AT CHESTERFIELD THE PREVIOUS MATCH, H.SUTCLUFFE, in used condition with contemporary tape repairs Sutcliffe's final First-Class figures (1919-1945) were 50,138 runs scored at an average of 51.95. Only J.B. Hobbs, F.E. Woolley, E.H. Hendren, C.P. Mead, W.G. Grace, and W.R. Hammond have ever scored more runs in First-Class cricket. Provenance: The Herbert Sutcliffe Collection, Sotheby's, 9th July 1999, lot 38. appendix Herbert Sutcliffe (lots 780 to 783) Herbert William Sutcliffe is one of the immortal names of Yorkshire and England cricket. Herbert Sutcliffe was born at Summerbridge, near Harrogate, on the 24th November 1894. He made his debut for Yorkshire C.C.C. against Gloucestershire at Gloucester on the 26th May 1919, and posted early notice of his immense talent by scoring 1839 runs in the summer - a record aggregate for a debut season. The opening batsman was to register 1000 runs in all 21 English seasons until his retirement in 1939 (though he made a brief appearance in 1945). Sutcliffe went on to reach 2000 runs in fifteen seasons (including 14 consecutive occasions) and 3000 runs on three occasions, the first player ever to do so. His best year was 1932 when he scored 3336 runs (av. 74.13) to become the leading English player for the second successive year. In 1932 he also recorded his highest innings of 313 for Yorkshire v. Essex at Leyton, in the course of which he shared a record-breaking 555 first wicket stand with Percy Holmes, one of 74 occasions that the Yorkshire opening partnership amassed century stands. In 602 first-class matches for Yorkshire, Sutcliffe scored a total of 38558 runs (av. 50.20) and 112 centuries, including 15 double centuries and a triple century. His run-scoring record has never been surpassed by a Yorkshire batsman. Sutcliffe made his Test Match debut against South Africa at Birmingham on the 14th June 1924 where he first forged the legendary association with his England opening partner Jack Hobbs of Surrey. It nearly began with disaster after Hobbs' injudicious call left Sutcliffe stranded half-way down the wicket when he had scored just two runs, but the Yorkshireman survived a run out after a poor throw from mid-on. The pair went on to record a century opening stand with Sutcliffe scoring 64. In the following Test at Lords they put on 268, which remains the highest opening partnership for England at Lords, with the Yorkshireman scoring the first of his eventual 16 Test Match centuries. Perhaps the most famous of the Sutcliffe-Hobbs opening partnerships came in the fifth Test at the Oval in 1926, which realised 172 runs and virtually won the Ashes for England. Sutcliffe had a superb record against the Australians and never failed to achieve a batting average of less than 50 in the six Ashes series he contested between 1924 and 1934. The tour of Australia in 1924-25 was particularly impressive when he scored 734 runs (av. 81.55) and four centuries in the Test series, the first time any player had achieved this feat in one Test series. His highest Test score of 194 also came against the Australians in the first Test of the 'Bodyline' series at Sydney in 1932-33. His 54th and final match for England was at Lords against the South Africans in 1935, where he completed the last of his 4555 Test runs scored at an average of 60.73. Renowned for his debonair, well-groomed appearance, and unflustered courage and determination, Herbert Sutcliffe invariably proved at his best on the big occasion or at times of extreme pressure. He had an insatiable appetite for scoring runs and possessed superb judgment of length, pace and direction. He favoured hitting the ball hard off the front foot, as opposed to classical stroke play, and could accumulate runs with great speed and efficiency. His final first-class career record stands at 50138 runs (av. 51.95) including 149 centuries. He later became a successful businessman and an honorary member of the MCC. In 1959 he was also appointed as a Test selector. Yorkshire C.C.C. acknowledged Sutcliffe's long and distinguished service when appointing him a life member in 1963. Two years later a more permanent tribute came in the form of the Sutcliffe Gates, opened by the Yorkshire president Sir William Worsley at the St. Michael's Lane approach to the Headingley ground. His son William Herbert Hobbs Sutcliffe, played for, and captained, Yorkshire C.C.C. Herbert Sutcliffe died at Cross Hills, near Keighley, on the 22nd January 1978, aged 83.