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Rupert George Hickmott (19 March 1894 – 16 September 1916) was a cricketer who played for Canterbury and New Zealand. He died in World War I.[1]

Rupert Hickmott

Personal information
Full name	Rupert George Hickmott
Born	(1894-03-19)19 March 1894 Christchurch, New Zealand
Died	16 September 1916(1916-09-16) (aged 22) Somme, France
Batting	Right-handed
Bowling	Right-arm leg-spin
Domestic team information
Years	Team
1911-12 to 1914-15	Canterbury
Career statistics
Competition First-class Matches 17 Runs scored 778 Batting average 25.09 100s/50s 1/4 Top score 109 Balls bowled 427 Wickets 11 Bowling average 27.27 5 wickets in innings 0 10 wickets in match 0 Best bowling 4/5 Catches/stumpings 7/0
Source: Cricket Archive, 21 October 2014

Life and career

Rupert Hickmott was born in Christchurch and educated at Christchurch Boys' High School, where he excelled at cricket, scoring a century in the Heathcote Williams Challenge Shield against Auckland Grammar School, and captaining the First XI for three years. He also captained the rugby XV.[2]

At the start of the senior club season in Christchurch in 1911–12, in his first three innings he scored 112, 96 and 213 not out.[3] He made his first-class debut for Canterbury in December 1911 at the age of 17, scoring 30 and 39 in a low-scoring match to help Canterbury to victory over Wellington.[4] He made 52 and 33 in another victory over Wellington in his next match, which was his first in the Plunket Shield.[5] In 1912-13 he made 77, the top score of the match, when Canterbury beat Otago by an innings to win the Plunket Shield.[6]

He toured Australia with the New Zealand team in 1913-14, where he succeeded in some of the minor matches, but against the state teams he made only 94 runs at an average of 11.75.[7] He was the outstanding batsman in the 1914-15 Plunket Shield, with 307 runs at 51.16,[8] helping Canterbury to victories in all four matches. He top-scored in each innings against Auckland with 56 and 63; made his only century, 109, the top score of the match, against Hawke's Bay; and wound up both Otago innings with 2 for 7 and 4 for 5.[9]

Hickmott enlisted in the New Zealand Expeditionary Force and served as a second lieutenant. He embarked from Wellington in March 1916 on the troopship Willochra. He was killed in action on the Somme in September 1916.[10]

Hickmott's obituary in Wisden said he "was probably the most promising young cricketer in the Dominion, and his early death will be felt severely when the game is resumed".[11] Dan Reese, his captain with both Canterbury and New Zealand, later wrote:

Hickmott ... was a fine all-rounder and to my mind would have become a Warwick Armstrong in New Zealand cricket, for he was a beautiful batsman and bowled "straight" leg-breaks like the great Victorian. His glorious outfielding against Harry Trott's team was a feature of the Canterbury match. His character and temperament made it certain that he would one day have been New Zealand's captain.[12]

References

External links

• Rupert Hickmott at Cricket Archive
• NZ Cricket Museum: Second Lieutenant Hickmott of Christchurch
• Rupert George Hickmott record at Online Cenotaph
• Obituaries 1916, Wisden 1917

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