On 14-15 June 1819 James Aylward Junior — son of the Hambledon professional — scored 105 for Hampshire against MCC at Lord's. It was his first major century and announced the second generation of the Hampshire batting tradition. He was twenty-three; his father, present at the match, watched from the boundary.
Hampshire's revival as a major cricket county had been underway since 1816. Aylward Junior was the leading new-generation batter.
Aylward Junior had been coached by his father from earliest childhood and had played village cricket at Petersfield through his teens. By 1819 he was the leading Hampshire batter of the new generation. The June 1819 century was his first in major cricket — 105 in three hours, scored chiefly through the off side in the Hambledon style. Hampshire still lost the match, but Aylward Junior's innings was widely reported.
1796
Aylward Junior born at Petersfield
1819
First major century at Lord's
1820s
Plays through the decade for Hampshire and MCC
The first major century of the Hampshire revival generation — a continuity of the Hambledon batting tradition into the post-war era.
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1811-07-04
The 1811 Lord's season was the leanest of the Middle Ground years. With the Napoleonic blockade at its tightest, willow scarce, professionals diverted to militia service and the betting public's purses thin, only fourteen major matches were played at Lord's all summer. The 1811 season is the clearest measure of cricket's wartime contraction.
Officers vs Civilians
1812-12-15
By the close of 1812 cricket was being played regularly in both Madras and Bombay — the earliest documented fixtures in either Presidency. Garrison officers and civilian East India Company servants ran the matches; the Madras Gazette and Bombay Courier preserved the earliest scoresheets. The Calcutta game (documented 1804) had been joined by all three Presidency capitals.
Kent vs MCC
1813-09-09
On 9-10 September 1813 Kent played the MCC at the Vine, Sevenoaks — the first post-war major match at the historic Kent ground and the start of the Vine's revival as a regular major venue. The Vine had hosted little major cricket since 1808; the September 1813 fixture marked its return to the front rank.