Charles Fox

Charles John MacDonald Fox (5 December 1858 – 1 April 1901) was an English cricketer. He played 80 first-class matches, mainly for Kent County Cricket Club, in a career that lasted from 1876 until 1893. A heavy scorer in club cricket, Fox played as an all-rounder in county cricket.

Early life Fox was born in British India in 1858, the son of William and Rebecca Fox (née Richmond). His father was a school teacher at Murshidabad, and Fox was educated at Doveton College in Calcutta and, between 1870 and 1876, at Westminster School in London. He played cricket for Westminster between 1874 and 1876, scoring 87 runs against Charterhouse School in his first season and taking five-wicket hauls against the same opposition in 1875 and 1876. before going on to score 93 not out on a difficult batting wicket against Yorkshire―an innings described as "altogether an excellent display of cricket".

He went on to play regularly for Kent until 1893, making 74 first-class appearances before playing his final county matches in 1893. As an amateur who did not need to work, he was able to play regularly throughout the season and was a valuable all-rounder. As well as his matches for Kent, he appeared in first-class matches for the Gentlemen of England in 1888, for the South against the North in 1889 and 1891, and for CI Thornton's XI in 1890. In the same year he captained Hurst Park Club in a victory against the touring Australians, Fox top scoring in the first innings with 31 runs.

Fox scored a total of 2,147 first-class runs and took 46 wickets. Despite his reputation in club cricket, he failed to score 500 runs in any of his first-class seasons. He scored a further six half-centuries, all for Kent, and took five wickets in an innings three times, twice in 1889―including his best bowling analysis of five wickets for 21 runs taken against Surrey at Blackheath―and once in 1890. In 1891 he was one of Kent's not out batsmen in a match again Sussex at Hove at lunch but did not complete his inning, returning late from lunch having been lunching with a widow.

Later life As well as cricket, Fox played association football, playing as a fullback. He lived at Beckenham and Gipsy Hill, later in his life describing his occupation as an "agent". Fox married Alice Robinson in 1896, but died from a heart attack in 1901 at the age of 42 at Albury in New South Wales on a visit to Australia.