On This Day: History’s First Double Century Hit By Arthur Fagg

History’s First Double Century: In his career, Arthur Fagg amassed 27, 291 runs with 58 test hundreds while playing from 1932 to 1957. The Kent batsman competed in five Tests for England, but had very little success, making just 150 runs from eight innings with a top of 39. Arthur Fagg, a 23-year-old from Kent, became the first person to ever score two double centuries in a first-class game.

But Arthur Fagg has established himself in cricket history. He was the first batter in First-Class history to hit double hundreds in each of the four innings of a game when he was age 23. During a 1938 match between Kent and Essex at Colchester, Fagg made 244 runs for Kent, including 100 before lunch and 202 more runs not out—the second double hundred came after just 170 minutes of play.

He had completed a five-hour 244 on the first day, which included a century before lunch. With rheumatic sickness, Fagg had to leave the Australian tour early and lost the entire summer of 1937.

This occurred less than 18 months earlier. Fagg is still the only player to accomplish this exceptional accomplishment; in February 2019, Sri Lanka’s Nondescripts Cricket Club skipper Angelo Perera joined Fagg as the second, scoring 201 and 231 runs in the same match against the Sinhalese Sports Club.

In the years following, from 1967 through 1976, he established himself as one of the most reputable umpires in the sport. Prior to retiring for health reasons, he presided over 18 Tests and seven One-Day Internationals. He passed away at 62 two years later at Tunbridge Wells, the location of Kapil Dev’s legendary 174-run World Cup run.