Len Braund

Leonard Charles Braund, born October 18, 1875, at Clewer, Berkshire, and died December 23, 1955, Putney Common, London, was a cricketer who played for Surrey, Somerset and England.

Len Braund was an all-rounder, a versatile batsman who could defend or attack according to the needs of the game and a leg break bowler who used variation more than accuracy to take wickets. He was also regarded by contemporaries as the best slip fielder of his time.

Braund played 21 times from 1896 for Surrey before joining Somerset, where he had to qualify for County Championship games by residence. On his Somerset debut, he hit 82 against the 1899 Australians. The following year, he made his Championship debut for Somerset against Middlesex at Lord's, in Andrew Stoddart's last match; but this was also Braund's last match of the season for Somerset, as MCC ruled that he was not properly qualified. To fill in the waiting, he played for W. G. Grace's London County side.

Braund's proper career starts from 1901, and in his first full season he scored more than 1,000 runs and took over 100 wickets. He scored 107 in a remarkable match at Headingley when Somerset, 238 behind Yorkshire on the first innings, put up 630 in the second innings and won the match by 279 runs, Braund taking four wickets as the home team collapsed to 113 all out in the second innings. It was Yorkshire's only defeat of the season, and Somerset repeated that feat in 1902, a closer match won by just 34 runs in which Braund took 15...
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