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Obituary: Paul Bail
Somerset County Cricket Club are mourning the loss of former player Paul Bail, who passed away suddenly on February 24th, aged 58.
Paul was born in Burnham on Sea on June 23rd 1965 into a cricketing family, and between 1978 and 1984 he attended Millfield School where his many natural sporting talents were nurtured and developed.
The top order right handed batter made his debut for Somerset Second XI in 1983 and the following season he made 200 opening the innings against Lancashire at Preston.
Paul made his First XI debut for Somerset against Yorkshire at the end of May 1985, and retained his place for the following home game against Warwickshire in which Viv Richards scored 322 to set a new record for the County.
His career best for Somerset was 78 not out in the second innings against Kent at Canterbury in September 1985.
On leaving Millfield, Paul went on to Downing College, Cambridge where he studied for a degree in Economics, and represented his Varsity side at both cricket and football.
He gained blues at cricket in each of the first three years years, the high spot being 174 against Oxford University. He also won football blues in two of the years, achieving the rare double of playing at both Lord’s and Wembley Stadium.
In total, Paul played in seven First Class matches for Somerset in which he averaged 22.90. He also played in 20 First Class games for Cambridge in which he averaged 21.70.
Paul later went onto play Minor County Cricket for Wiltshire and after moving to London to pursue a career in the financial world he enjoyed a very successful career playing for Richmond CC.
Vic Marks, who captained Somerset in all of the First Class matches Paul played in said: “I remember Paul as a bright, charming young man and an elegant batter from Burnham on Sea. He was also extremely bright. Educated at Millfield, he was a Cambridge University graduate with the scope to excel beyond the game of cricket, and that is what he did, leaving the Club after a handful of games in 1985 and 1986.”
