1893 was the fourth season of County Championship cricket in England. For the first time, the official championship was won by a team other than Surrey, who finished fifth. Yorkshire, captained by Lord Hawke won twelve matches to take the title. It was the first of a record eight championships (1893, 1896, 1898, 1900–1902, 1905 and 1908) for Hawke as a county captain. [note 1]
An Australian team toured the British Isles for the first time in three years, but lost the three-match Ashes Test series to England. It was the 15th Test series between the two teams and England won 1–0. [5]
| Team | P | W | L | D | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Yorkshire | 16 | 12 | 3 | 1 | 9 |
| 2 | Lancashire | 16 | 9 | 5 | 2 | 4 |
| 3 | Middlesex | 16 | 9 | 6 | 1 | 3 |
| 4 | Kent | 16 | 6 | 4 | 6 | 2 |
| 5 | Surrey | 16 | 7 | 8 | 1 | −1 |
| 6 | Nottinghamshire | 16 | 5 | 7 | 4 | −2 |
| 7 | Sussex | 16 | 4 | 7 | 5 | −3 |
| 8 | Somerset | 16 | 4 | 8 | 4 | −4 |
| 9 | Gloucestershire | 16 | 3 | 11 | 2 | −8 |
Points system:
| 1893 County Championship – leading batsmen | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Team | Matches | Runs | Average | 100s | 50s |
| Billy Gunn | Nottinghamshire | 16 | 1223 | 47.03 | 5 | 3 |
| Andrew Stoddart | Middlesex | 14 | 1178 | 47.12 | 3 | 6 |
| Arthur Shrewsbury | Nottinghamshire | 16 | 920 | 41.84 | 4 | 0 |
| Albert Ward | Lancashire | 16 | 1035 | 38.33 | 2 | 5 |
| Billy Murdoch | Sussex | 16 | 965 | 35.74 | 0 | 9 |
| 1893 County Championship – leading bowlers | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Team | Matches | Balls bowled | Wickets taken | Average |
| John Hearne | Middlesex | 16 | 5798 | 137 | 16.04 |
| Walter Humphreys senior | Sussex | 16 | 3219 | 122 | 16.43 |
| Arthur Mold | Lancashire | 15 | 4104 | 117 | 14.99 |
| Johnny Briggs | Lancashire | 16 | 4212 | 108 | 13.75 |
| Tom Richardson | Surrey | 13 | 2686 | 99 | 14.34 |
England won a fifth successive home series against Australia to recover The Ashes after losing them in the 1891–92 series in Australia. W. G. Grace was injured for one of the Tests, but captained England in the other two. The first Test ended in a draw, but England took advantage of a 392-run lead on first innings to beat the visitors by an innings and 43 runs in the second Test, while the third and final Test was another draw.
| Cumulative record - Test wins | 1876-1893 |
|---|---|
| England | 20 |
| Australia | 12 |
| Drawn | 6 |
| 1893 English cricket season – leading batsmen | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Team(s) | Matches | Runs | Average | 100s | 50s |
| Andrew Stoddart | England, Gentlemen, Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC), Middlesex, South of England | 28 | 2072 | 42.28 | 4 | 13 |
| Billy Gunn | England, Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC), Nottinghamshire, Players | 30 | 2057 | 42.85 | 7 | 8 |
| W. G. Grace | England, Gentlemen, Gloucestershire, Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC), South of England | 28 | 1609 | 35.75 | 1 | 11 |
| Arthur Shrewsbury | England, Nottinghamshire, Players | 25 | 1586 | 40.66 | 5 | 7 |
| Albert Ward | England, Lancashire, North of England | 24 | 1435 | 35.87 | 2 | 8 |
| 1893 English cricket season – leading bowlers | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Team(s) | Matches | Balls bowled | Wickets taken | Average |
| John Hearne | Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC), Middlesex, Players, South of England | 29 | 8709 | 212 | 16.47 |
| Tom Richardson | England, Players, South of England, Surrey | 23 | 4969 | 174 | 15.40 |
| Johnny Briggs | England, Lancashire, North of England, Players | 28 | 6820 | 166 | 15.89 |
| Arthur Mold | England, Lancashire, North of England, Players | 28 | 6409 | 166 | 16.96 |
| Bill Lockwood | England, Players, South of England, Surrey | 27 | 4652 | 150 | 16.78 |
| Walter Humphreys senior | South of England, Sussex | 21 | 4044 | 150 | 17.32 |