In the early 20th century, Sir Jack Hobbs was the best batsman in the world, and was widely acknowledged as the greatest cricketer since WG Grace.

THE MASTER

John Berry Hobbs was born in Cambridge and started playing for his home county in 1904. He went on to play for Surrey from 1905 to 1934 and for England from 1908 to 1930. Hobbs, his wife Ada and their children lived at 17 Englewood Road between 1912 and 1927 – the years of Hobbs’s greatest achievement and fame. The house is located at the southern corner of Clapham Common, from where it was a short journey up Clapham Road to Surrey’s home ground at the Oval. In 1925 Hobbs scored 16 centuries – a record only beaten in 1947 – and in 1926 he made 12 centuries, captained England against Australia and scored 316 at Lord’s, then an all-time record.

Hobbs’s accomplished and seemingly effortless batting earned him the soubriquet ‘The Master’. He perfected every orthodox stroke and played many of his own. He taught all his partners the art of running between wickets, and as a fielder was the best cover-point of his era. By the time of his retirement in 1934, Hobbs had scored more first-class runs (61,237) and more first-class centuries (197) than any other cricketer, and in 1953 became the first cricketer to be knighted.

JACK HOBBS LTD

It was while living at Englewood Road that Hobbs established his sporting goods business, Jack Hobbs Ltd, using the proceeds of his benefit season of 1919. In fact, his small shop in Fleet Street provided a much better income than his famous exploits on the cricket pitch, and enabled him to move in 1927 to Woodthorpe, Atkins Road, Clapham Park (now demolished) and then to 23 Dunstall Road, Wimbledon. He spent his final years in Hove, on the Sussex coast, where he died at the age of 81.