1947 County Championship
| Cricket format | First-class cricket |
|---|---|
| Tournament format(s) | League system |
| Champions | Middlesex (4th title) |
The 1947 County Championship was the 48th officially organised running of the County Championship.
Middlesex County Cricket Club won their fourth Championship title under the captaincy of Walter Robins, who stood down at the end of the season. He was well supported by slow left-arm spinner Jack Young, who took 159 wickets in all matches; off break bowler Jim Sims; pace bowler Laurie Gray; wicketkeeper Leslie Compton; and their quartet of high-scoring batsmen Denis Compton, Bill Edrich, Syd Brown and Jack Robertson. The Wisden editorial drew attention to an additional feat by Middlesex in defeating The Rest by nine wickets in the last match of the season at The Oval. Previously, only Yorkshire (1905 and 1935) had beaten The Rest, the fixture having lapsed from 1936 to 1946. Yorkshire had won the County Championship in 1946 but slipped to seventh place in 1947 and Wisden remarked on the retirement of "several veterans" after the 1946 season, although the highest innings score of the 1947 season, 270 not out, was achieved by Yorkshire's Len Hutton.
Playfair described the championship as "a great tussle" between Middlesex and Gloucestershire that was not settled until 28 August when Middlesex won their penultimate match, defeating bottom team Northamptonshire at Lord's by 355 runs. The key match, however, took place earlier in the month when Middlesex defeated Gloucestershire at Cheltenham by 68 runs. Middlesex had finished runners-up five times in succession: 1936 to 1939 and again in 1946. Since Middlesex's previous title in 1921, no southern team had won the championship and so their 1947 triumph ended 25 seasons of northern domination.
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