John Ardaseer made a sole appearance for Glamorgan’s 1st XI, and played in the trial match against a Colts XVIII during 1906. An electrical engineer by profession, he worked initially in Lancashire before moving to South Wales with his wife Norah (whom he had married in July 1904). John played the bulk of his club cricket for Swansea and enjoyed a good record as a top-order batsman.

He had also opened the batting for the Gentlemen of Glamorgan against the Gentlemen of Essex at Neath in 1905 before playing against the Colts XVIII at the Arms Park. He never played again for the county as midway through the 1907 season he received a lucrative business offer to work in India, and left South Wales.

John’s grandfather was Ardaseer Cursetjee Wada, a Parsi. who was a noted shipbuilder and civil engineer who had been brought up and educated in the service of the East India Company, before moving during the 1860s to live in the UK and settling in the Home Counties. He was also the first Indian to be elected as a fellow of The Royal Society having introduced gas lighting to Bombay (now Mumbai). His second son, and John’s father, was Gustasp Ardaseer, who worked as a private tutor in Richmond-upon-Thames and was a leading member of the Parsi community in the London area. John was the eldest of five children born to Gustasp and his wife Florence.

ARDASEER, John Grenville

Born – Richmond, Surrey, 26 September 1881.

Batting and Fielding Record for Glamorgan

	M	I	NO	RUNS	AV	100	50	CT	ST
Friendly	1	1	0	12	12.00	–	–	–	–

Career-best performance for Glamorgan 

Friendly – 12 v Colts XVIII at Cardiff Arms Park, 1906.