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 old. In this summer he reached his thousand runs as early as 30 May. Much public enthusiasm was shown. The Prince of Wales wrote to compliment him, and a shilling subscription fund, opened by the Daily Telegraph, resulted in the presentation to him of more than £5,000. Other testimonials were raised, banquets were given to him, and a suggestion was made in the press that his name should appear in the honours list.

Grace had another good season in 1896 when he played an innings of over 300, and one of over 200, for his county. In 1898 the Gentlemen v. Players match was fixed for 18 July in honour of his birthday. Though lame and injured he made 43 and 31, and the appearance of the ‘Old Man’, as cricketers now termed him, was the signal for even a louder tumult of cheers than usual. In 1899 he played for England for the last time, and made his last appearance for the Gentlemen at Lord’s, though he afterwards played for them at the Oval. Though scoring less freely, and moving much less quickly between the wickets, he was still good enough for most elevens, and there was some regret that at this time he should have severed his long connexion with Gloucestershire, in order to take up the position of manager of cricket at the Crystal Palace. He played there for some years more, as well as in other matches. In 1908 a single appearance at the Oval brought his first-class cricket to a close. During his career of forty-three years he had made 126 centuries, had scored 54,896 runs, and had taken 2,876 wickets.

Grace’s style of batting was solid and efficient. The bat looked curiously light in his hands, an impression created probably by the ease with which he wielded it. His defence was always first-rate: he watched the ball closely, and though at his best he was more comfortable with fast than with slow bowling, he was quick on his feet for so heavy a man. Like other famous executants he was more occupied with practice than theory, and, according to a contemporary anecdote, his contribution to a technical discussion on forward and back play was confined to an explanation that his own plan was to put the bat against the ball. While he was master of all the usual scoring strokes, his placing on the leg side was specially noted for its accuracy and power. He made runs more quickly on some days than others, and seldom sacrificed his wicket by recklessness. Above all, his energy and enthusiasm were surprising; indeed, in the days before boundaries, when all hits were run out, his huge scores were only possible to a combination of zeal and fitness, which enabled him to bat for hours without any feeling of weariness, physical or mental.

Grace, who kept up his medical practice in Bristol for twenty years (1879–1899), was much liked and esteemed. His personal ascendancy as a player, and the sternness with which he upheld the rigour of the game, made him at times a little assertive on the field. But no amount of fame or adulation was able to spoil him; and, long without a rival in his own sphere, he was quite without jealousy. A man of simple character, he was bluff and downright in manner, but his genuine kindness of heart won for him countless friends. He held a unique place in the national life. He was known to the public as ‘W.G.’ and was described as the ‘Champion’, a title which, while it had no official meaning, nobody disputed or wished to dispute. Prominent in an age when the cult of outdoor games was growing rapidly, contemporary opinion would have singled him out without hesitation as one of the best-known men in England. His burly figure and thick black beard were familiar far beyond the cricket field; his fame was celebrated constantly in prose and verse; he was the hero of anecdote and legend. It is true that when he died he was only a name to many, but a name that stood for all that was best and healthiest in open-air amusements, and his death, which took place at Eltham 23 October 1915, revived memories in strange contrast to the tragedy of the time.

Grace married in 1873 Agnes Nicholls Day, by whom he had three sons and one daughter. One of his sons, W. G. Grace, junior, who died as a young man, was in the Cambridge eleven in 1895 and 1896.

A portrait of Grace at the wicket was painted by Stuart Wortley for the Marylebone Cricket Club in 1890, and the club erected an entrance gateway in his memory in 1923. Another portrait was presented by the club to the National Portrait Gallery in 1926.

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