is very effective. He is a fair bat, but has not come up to his early promise; however, he hits very hard, and makes good scores occasionally: his fielding is excellent. His best years with the ball so far have been:
| Overs. | Maidens. | Runs. | Wickets. | Average. | |
| 1884 | 1150 | 659 | 1217 | 101 | 12.5 |
| 1885 | 1301 | 767 | 1218 | 87 | 14 |
| 1886 | 1295 | 736 | 1272 | 97 | 13.11 |
| 1887 | 1330 | 810 | 1238 | 89 | 13.81 |
| 1888 | 1393 | 848 | 1235 | 91 | 13.52 |
| 1889 | 1314 | 354 | 1555 | 140 | 11.15 |
| 1890 | 1581 | 820 | 1874 | 151 | 12.62 |
His proportion of maiden overs is larger than that of any bowler since Alfred Shaw.
Mr. Alexander Charles Bannerman was born at Sydney, New South Wales, on the 21st March, 1859. He was a member of the first Australian team in 1878, and has been here on four occasions since. Very few have shown better all-round cricket; for he was a good batsman, a brilliant field at mid-off and cover-point, and a fair change, medium-pace, round-arm bowler. His strong defence and great patience were his best points; but it must not be thought that he was lacking in hitting. Against loose bowling he was fairly effective, and he rarely allowed a ball to pass that was off the wicket. I believe that he possessed the best defence of all the Australian batsmen, and many a match he saved by it. His pick-up and smart return in the field were really brilliant, as many an English batsman found to his cost. Batting performances in England, in eleven-a-side matches:
| Completed Innings. | Runs. | Most in an Innings. | Average. | |
| 1878 | 23 | 260 | 71* | 11.7 |
| 1880 | 12 | 196 | 38 | 16.4 |
| 1882 | 54 | 1196 | 120* | 22.8 |
| 1884 | 50 | 961 | 94 | 19.11 |
| 1883 | 56 | 943 | 93* | 16.47 |
