Cricket and Disability Sport: from wheelchairs to prosthetics
Cricket and Disability Sport: from wheelchairs to prosthetics
In this post, student Jamie Rourke discusses his research on disability in sport and the ways disabilities can be better accommodated.
My name is Jamie, and I am a history student at Manchester Metropolitan University. I am also part of a group of curators collaborating with Yorkshire County Cricket Club to research disability within cricket. One of the exciting aspects of this project is the opportunity to create an exhibition which will include my own research on disability in cricket, and how the sport is approached by people with different disabilities.
The history of disability within sport is an area that hasn’t received the attention it deserves. My research examines this, and hopes to find out how individuals with disabilities navigated the social and physical challenges of playing sport with a disability. I’m also interested in understanding how disability has impacted the field of cricket, including the ways rules and regulations impact players with disabilities and how adaptations can be made to better include disabled players.
One aspect of my research that has been interesting is finding out about historic examples of disability and sport. The most common example I have found relates to sport and injured soldiers. I was pleased to discover photographs of the First World War (held with the Imperial War Museum and British Pathé) that showed injured Australian and British soldiers playing cricket and looking as if they were having a good time despite their injuries. Similarly, during the Second World War injured soldiers treated at the Robert Jones and Dame Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic Hospital were able to play cricket to help with their rehabilitation. The photograph below shows Lance Corporal E. Alton bowling a cricket ball while his left arm is in plaster after a shrapnel injury. This is interesting to me for two reasons: it shows the ways disability has historically been included in sport, and it illustrates the ways sport may be adapted for the individual’s needs, allowing for new perspectives and approaches that bring greater inclusivity for sportspeople with disabilities.
Another part of my research that I’ve enjoyed is getting to meet other creators and experts in the field. This has included interviewing Sam Goldstone-Brady, who undertook his PhD research on the history of wheelchairs in sport, and who has been involved with the National Paralympic Heritage Trust since 2019. Sam and I talked about his experience overseeing wheelchair-based cricket and his PhD on sporting wheelchairs. Moreover, we discussed how rules in other sports have been adapted to allow a fairer experience for players with disabilities. For example, in wheelchair tennis an extra bounce rule has been added, meaning the ball is allowed to bounce twice on a player's side of the court (compared to only once in able-bodied tennis) to allow more time to position oneself to hit the ball. We finished by sharing our hopes that the future brings more opportunities for people with disabilities to participate in sports, especially with the upcoming 2028 Paralympics.
Overall, I have enjoyed this research project and the findings I’ve discovered. It feels rewarding to contribute to a field that is often overlooked. I now understand some of the ways that disability and sport connect, and how disability is perceived within society. I’m pleased to contribute to a more inclusive representation of the past, and working to ensure disability sport is better represented in wider society.
Jamie Rourke is a history student at Manchester Metropolitan University, with a focus on World War 2 and Japanese history. His dissertation is looking at video games and disability representation through a historical perspective. In his spare time he plays video games, reads books and watches films of a variety of genres.
For more examples of Jamie's research, visit: https://yorkshireccc.com/news/hidden-histories-exhibition-series-meet-our-student-research-team-for-2025/
