Cricket in the Great War

Cricket in World War I was severely curtailed in all nations where first-class cricket was then played except India. In England, South Africa and the West Indies, first-class cricket was entirely abandoned for the whole of the war, whilst in Australia and New Zealand regular competitions were played for the 1914–15 season but first-class matches were afterwards abandoned. In South Africa, first-class cricket did not recommence until a series of matches against the Australian Imperial Forces cricket team in late 1919, and provincial cricket was not played until a one-off match between Transvaal and Natal in April 1920.

At least 210 first-class cricketers are known to have joined the armed forces, of whom 34 were killed. The obituary sections of Wisden between 1915 and 1919 contained the names of hundreds of players and officials of all standards who died in the service of their country.

With war looming in August, cricketers with military commitments, such as Sir Archibald White, the Yorkshire skipper, left their teams to do their duty, and Pelham Warner and Arthur Carr, who captained Middlesex and Nottinghamshire respectively, followed when war was declared. The County Championship was not immediately abandoned, the MCC issuing a statement that "no good purpose can be saved at the moment by cancelling matches" on 6 August, but attendances plummeted.Jack Hobbs, who had scored a career best 226 in front of over 14,000 spectators on 3 August, had to rearrange his benefit match from the Oval, after it was requisitioned by the Army, to Lord's and on 13 August the MCC announced that all matches arranged at Lord's up to September would be postponed.

...
Wikipedia