Francis Booker

Francis Booker (8 October 1746 – 13 November 1806) was an English first-class cricketer who played at the end of the 18th century.

Francis Booker

Personal information
Born	(1746-10-08)8 October 1746 Eynsford, Kent
Died	13 November 1806(1806-11-13) (aged 60) Eynsford, Kent
Batting	Left-handed
Domestic team information
Years	Team
1773–1788	Kent
FC debut	21 June 1773 Kent v Surrey
Last FC	7 September 1790 West Kent v East Kent
Source: CricInfo, 27 June 2022

Booker was born at Eynsford near Sevenoaks in Kent in 1746.^[1] He lived his whole life in the village and kept the Soho Inn.^{[citation needed]} A left-handed batsman, Booker played in a total of 45 first-class matches between 1773 and 1790. He played 23 of these for Kent sides as well as two for West Kent and two for sides organised by Kent patron the Duke of Dorset. Another 12 were played for England sides.^[a][3]

He was briefly mentioned in John Nyren's book, The Cricketers of My Time, described as one of three players Nyren considered to be "excellent and steady batters, strong hitters, and sure fields".^[4] He was noted as a fine hitter of the ball and as a very good outfielder. He was rated a good single wicket player.^[5] He scored 835 first-class runs and took at least seven wickets.^[b][1]

Booker died in 1806 at Eynsford. He was 60 years of age.^[1]

Notes

1. During the time Booker played, England sides were not representative of the country. Instead, they were sides composed of players from a range of locations brought together to play against another side.^[2]
2. In the period in which Booker played, wickets taken by bowlers were normally only recorded if they were bowled. Other means of dismissal were not credited to any bowler.^[6] As a result the number of wickets he took is uncertain, with the total of seven being a minimum. This also makes the calculation of an accurate bowling average impossible.