Percy Fender

Percy Fender

Percy George Herbert Fender was an English cricketer. He played 13 Tests and was captain of Surrey between 1921 and 1931. He was a middle-order batsman who bowled mainly leg spin. In 1920 he hit the fastest recorded first-class century, reaching three figures in 35 minutes.

About Percy Fender in brief

Summary Percy FenderPercy George Herbert Fender was an English cricketer who played 13 Tests and was captain of Surrey between 1921 and 1931. An all-rounder, he was a middle-order batsman who bowled mainly leg spin. Noted as a belligerent batsman, in 1920 he hit the fastest recorded first-class century, reaching three figures in 35 minutes which remains a record in 2016. In addition to his cricket career, Fender worked in the wine trade, had a successful career in journalism, and wrote several well-received books on cricket tours. He died in 1985 and was survived by his wife, two children and two grandchildren. He was the elder son of Percy Robert Fender, the director of a firm of stationers, and Lily, née Herbert. Fender played cricket for Sussex from the age of eight until he left school in 1910. He made his debut on 21 July 1910 in an amateur match against Nottinghamshire in Sussex’s County Championship. In the two games, he scored 19 runs and took one wicket. After the 1910 season, he worked in a paper mill in Horwich, Lancashire, to help his father’s line of business—his father’s paper manufacturing company—at first hand. He remained in the paper business for the rest of his life, until he went blind in the 1970s, even after going blind. He is buried at St Paul’s Cemetery, London, with his wife and two children. He also had a son, Peter, who died in a car accident in the early 1990s. He had a daughter, Sarah, who was born in the late 1950s and died in the mid-1990s.

She was also a talented cricketers, but she died of a heart attack in the 1990s, at the same age as her father. She is survived by her husband, two sons, and a daughter-in-law, who is also a former cricket player. She died in 2005, aged 89, and was buried in the same cemetery as her late father, Peter Fender. She also had two children, Sarah Fender-Smith, a son and a step-daughter, who also played cricket. He has a grandson, Paul, who played for Sussex in the County Championship in the 1980s. In 2010, he won the ODI World Cup for England against the West Indies. He played for Surrey in 1921 and was named one of Wisden’s Cricketers of the Year in 1914. In 1921 he became captain of the Surrey team and inspired the team to challenge strongly for the county Championship over the course of several seasons, despite a shortage of effective bowlers. From 1921, he played occasionally in Tests for England but was never particularly successful. After a clash with the highly influential Lord Harris in 1924, his England career was effectively ended. Further disagreements between Fender and the Surrey committee over his approach and tactics led the county to replace him as captain in 1932 and to end his career in 1935. In 1909, he topped the school’s batting averages, scoring a century in one match against Bedford School.