Percy Chapman

Arthur Percy Frank Chapman was an English cricketer. A left-handed batsman, he played 26 Test matches for England. He captained the side in 17 of those games. Chapman played first-class cricket for Cambridge University and Kent. He was named one of Wisden’s schoolboy Cricketers of the Year in 1919.

About Percy Chapman in brief

Arthur Percy Frank Chapman was an English cricketer. A left-handed batsman, he played 26 Test matches for England. He captained the side in 17 of those games. Chapman played first-class cricket for Cambridge University and Kent. He was named one of Wisden’s schoolboy Cricketers of the Year in 1919. Chapman’s career and physique declined after he assumed the Kent captaincy in 1936. He retired from cricket in 1939, by which time he was drinking heavily. Chapman died in 1961, aged 61, after a fall at his home and a subsequent operation. He and his wife divorced in 1942; he spent his final years, mainly alone, suffering from depression, arthritis and a continued dependence on alcohol. He died in Reading, Berkshire, on 3 September 1961, at the age of 61. His funeral was held at St Paul’s Church, Reading, where he was buried with his wife, Bertha Finch, his mother, and his father, Frank Chapman, a schoolteacher. The couple had a son, Peter Chapman, who was born in 1913. Chapman was a keen golfer and won the World Cup in 1924. He also played Minor Counties cricket for Berkshire and for Oxford University. In 1919, he was selected for Pembroke College, Cambridge. He made his Test debut in 1924, although he had yet to play County Cricket. Chapman captained England on one final tour in 1930–31, after which he never played another Test. In 1926, Chapman was the surprise choice to take over from Arthur Carr as England captain. He achieved victory in his first nine matches in charge, but lost two and drew six of his remaining games.

Perceived tactical deficiencies and possibly growing concerns over his heavy drinking meant that Chapman was dropped from the team for the fifth Test against Australia in 1930. In 1931, he captained Kent for the first time, taking 40 wickets in the process. In 1936, he resigned the position in 1936; he retired altogether in 1939. He later worked for a brewery and was a well-known figure in fashionable society. In his later years, Chapman increasingly suffered from the effects of alcoholism and was often seen drunk in public. His wife, whom he married in 1925, was well known figures in fashionable Society and their appearances were followed closely in the press. In 1918, Chapman scored 637 runs at an average of 70. 44 and took 15 wickets at Lord’s Cricket Ground when he entered his generation of young cricketers. In 1920, he scored 118 in the final match of the University Match against Oxford University and kept his place for the remainder of the season. In the same season he was omitted from the Cambridge University’s first class team, despite his reputation, despite being selected for the final selection of the team. In 1921, he made his first class debut on 15 May, against Essex. In 1924, he achieved second place in the Uppingham first team’s batting averages, bringing him to the attention of the wider public.

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