Augustus Alexander Patrick Atkinson (born 19 January 1998) is an English professional cricketer who plays for Surrey and England.[2] He is a right-arm fast bowler and batsman.
Early life and education
Atkinson was educated at Northcote Lodge, a preparatory school in Wandsworth, London, and Bradfield College, an independent school in Berkshire, England.[3][4] He has an older sister and younger brother.[1] His mother, Caroline, died at the age of 55 in December 2020 as a result of injuries sustained in a car accident, for which the driver of the other vehicle involved was found responsible and given a prison sentence in 2024.[5]
On 18 September 2023, Atkinson signed a new multi-year contract extension at Surrey.[10] In February 2024, it was announced that he had withdrawn from his £95,000 IPL contract with Kolkata Knight Riders after discussion with the England and Wales Cricket Board, who were keen to manage his workload.[11]
International career
Atkinson got his first senior England call-up on 16 August 2023 for the ODI and T20I series against New Zealand.[12] He made his T20I debut on 1 September 2023 against New Zealand in the second T20I of the four match series. During that match he took figures of 4/20 which were the best by an England men's bowler on T20I debut.[13]
In December 2023, Atkinson received his first call-up to the England Test squad for their tour of India.[15] On 30 June 2024, Atkinson was named in the Test squad for the West Indies tour.[16][17] He made his debut in the first Test at Lord's on 10 July 2024, taking seven wickets in the first innings[18][19][20] and five in the second. His match figures of 12/106 were the best by an England debutant in 134 years as he made it onto the Lord's honours boards.[21][22][23]
He scored his maiden first-class century in the first innings of the second Test against Sri Lanka at Lord's on 30 August 2024, reaching his hundred off 103 balls.[24] In doing so, he became only the sixth player to have taken five wickets in an innings, ten wickets in a match, and scored a century at the ground.[25][26] In terms of deliveries faced, the latter was also the sixth fastest there in Test history.[27] He went on to take five wickets in Sri Lanka's second innings, becoming only the third England player (the first since Ian Botham in 1984) to achieve this and score a hundred in the same Test match.[28]
Atkinson was named England player of the year at the 2024 Cricket Writers' Club Awards.[29][30] In December 2024, Atkinson bowled a hat-trick in a Test against New Zealand, becoming the first Englishman in all Tests since 2017 to do so.[31]
^Hoult, Nick (4 September 2024). "The fight for justice". Sport. The Daily Telegraph. No. 52663. London. pp. 1–3. Retrieved 4 September 2024. (Online article, published a day earlier, has a different title).
^Hoult, Nick (2 September 2024). "Atkinson sets up England for summer clean sweep". Sport. The Daily Telegraph. No. 52661. pp. 10–11. Retrieved 2 September 2024. (Online article, published a day earlier, has a different title).
