1890 English cricket season

1890 was the 104th season of cricket in England since the foundation of Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) and the first in which the County Championship was held as an official competition, following agreement between MCC and the leading county clubs at a meeting in December 1889. Surrey became the first official county champions after winning nine out of fourteen games.

In Test cricket, England, captained by W. G. Grace, defeated Australia in a three-match series by 2–0 to win The Ashes. It was the 13th Test series between the sides. William Gunn of Nottinghamshire was the season's highest run-scorer (1,621); George Lohmann of Surrey took the most wickets (220).

Honours

 * County Championship – Surrey
 * Wisden (Five Great Wicket-Keepers) – Jack Blackham, Gregor MacGregor, Dick Pilling, Mordecai Sherwin, Henry Wood

Ashes tour
England won the three-match Test series 2–0. Only two matches were completed as one was abandoned due to persistent heavy rain:


 * 1st Test at Lord's Cricket Ground – England won by 7 wickets
 * 2nd Test at The Oval – England won by 2 wickets
 * 3rd Test at Old Trafford Cricket Ground – abandoned without a ball being bowled (rain)