#batting technique

William Fennex Pioneers Running In to Fast Bowling — Middlesex v Surrey, 1803

In a Middlesex v Surrey match at Lord's in June 1803, the Buckinghamshire professional William Fennex did something contemporaries called 'astonishing': he advanced down the pitch to drive the ball before it pitched. Until that moment batters had played strictly from the crease, blocking length balls and waiting for the loose ball to cut. Fennex's running attack is the first recorded use of the technique that became the foundation of modern off-side play.