Matches (18)
SA20 (1)
Tri-Nation (1)
Sri Lanka vs Australia (1)
Zimbabwe vs Ireland (1)
WCL 2 (1)
Sheffield Shield (3)
Ranji Trophy (4)
WI 4-Day (4)
IND vs ENG (1)
ILT20 (1)

Full Name

Cyril Marcel Christiani

Born

October 28, 1913, Georgetown, Demerara, British Guiana

Died

April 04, 1938, Georgetown, Demerara, British Guiana, (aged 24y 158d)

Batting Style

Right hand Bat

Fielding Position

Wicketkeeper

RELATIONS

(brother),

(brother),

(brother)

Cyril was one of four Christiani brothers who played first-class cricket for Guyana (then British Guiana) and one of two - Robert, junior to Cyril by seven years, was the other - to play Test cricket. Cyril played four Test matches, all in one series against England in early 1935, before his life was tragically cut short at just 24, of malaria.

A wicketkeeper and top-order batter, Cyril made his first-class debut for British Guiana in the final of the Inter-Colonial Tournament in January 1932 when 18. A lot of first-class cricket followed, especially against touring teams from England, like the Oxford and Cambridge university teams and the major and minor counties, till, when 21, he was in the Test squad to face England at home, in early 1935. He had had a feel of international cricket already, when he toured England in 1933, when 19, as a wicketkeeping understudy to Ivan Barrow. He didn't play any of the Tests, though. But he played all four Tests in the 1935 series, which West Indies won 2-1. He averaged 19.60, opening the batting in five of West Indies' innings in the series, and had seven dismissals behind the stumps.

He "was a fearless wicketkeeper who combined his fleet-footedness and lightning reflexes to regularly stand up to the stumps against the faster bowlers. In doing so he would hardly concede a bye or drop a catch and would often effect swift stumpings," the Guyana Chronicle noted in a 2010 profile of Cyril Christiani. "He was an extraordinary stumper especially down the leg-side and possessed a remarkably high percentage of stumpings over his overall dismissals in first-class cricket. In his first-class career of 28 matches (1932-1938), he effected 64 dismissals, 20 of them or a huge 31 percent stumpings."

The last major match before his untimely death in April 1938 was the final of the 1937-38 Inter-Colonial Tournament in Georgetown, which British Guiana won by two wickets.

Cyril Christiani Career Stats

Batting & Fielding

FormatMatInnsNORunsHSAve100s50s6sCtSt
Tests4729832*19.6000061
FC284446587916.4501-4420

Bowling

FormatMatInnsBallsRunsWktsBBIBBMAveEconSR4w5w10w
Tests4------------
FC28-660---6.00-000
Cyril Marcel Christiani

Explore Statsguru Analysis

Test

Recent Matches of Cyril Christiani

MatchBatWktDateGroundFormat
West Indies vs England271c/0s & 1c/0s14-Mar-1935KingstonTest # 241
West Indies vs England0 & 32*2c/1s & 0c/0s14-Feb-1935GeorgetownTest # 240
West Indies vs England11 & 80c/0s & 1c/0s24-Jan-1935Port of SpainTest # 239
West Indies vs England9* & 110c/0s & 1c/0s08-Jan-1935BridgetownTest # 238

Debut/Last Matches of Cyril Christiani