| Administrator(s) | Test and County Cricket Board |
|---|---|
| Cricket format | Limited overs cricket(40 overs per innings) |
| Tournament format(s) | League |
| Champions | Worcestershire (1st title) |
| Participants | 17 |
| Matches | 136 |
| Most runs | 650 Michael Buss (Sussex) |
| Most wickets | 33 Keith Boyce (Essex)/Lawrence Williams (Glamorgan) |
The 1971 John Player League was the third competing of what was generally known as the Sunday League. The competition was won for the first time by Worcestershire County Cricket Club.
| Team | Pld | W | T | L | N/R | A | Pts | R/R |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Worcestershire | 16 | 11 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 44 | 4.522 |
| Essex | 16 | 11 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 44 | 4.519 |
| Lancashire | 16 | 10 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 40 | 4.575 |
| Leicestershire | 16 | 10 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 40 | 4.335 |
| Somerset | 16 | 9 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 38 | 4.436 |
| Hampshire | 16 | 9 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 36 | 4.366 |
| Sussex | 16 | 8 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 32 | 4.704 |
| Kent | 16 | 8 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 32 | 4.435 |
| Surrey | 16 | 8 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 32 | 4.056 |
| Glamorgan | 16 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 30 | 4.287 |
| Derbyshire | 16 | 7 | 0 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 29 | 4.111 |
| Nottinghamshire | 16 | 6 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 1 | 25 | 4.365 |
| Middlesex | 16 | 6 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 24 | 4.721 |
| Northamptonshire | 16 | 6 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 24 | 4.137 |
| Yorkshire | 16 | 5 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 2 | 22 | 4.347 |
| Gloucestershire | 16 | 5 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 2 | 22 | 4.052 |
| Warwickshire | 16 | 5 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 20 | 4.695 |
| Team marked (C) finished as champions. Source: CricketArchive[1] | ||||||||
| Player | County | Matches | Innings | Runs | Average | Highest Score | 100s | 50s |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gordon Barker | Essex | 12 | 11 | 449 | 56.12 | 87* | 0 | 4 |
| Ron Headley | Worcestershire | 16 | 16 | 554 | 55.40 | 73* | 0 | 5 |
| Garry Sobers | Nottinghamshire | 14 | 14 | 587 | 53.36 | 116* | 1 | 4 |
| Geoffrey Boycott | Yorkshire | 9 | 9 | 443 | 49.22 | 93 | 0 | 5 |
| Brian Close | Somerset | 15 | 14 | 461 | 46.10 | 89* | 0 | 3 |
| Michael Buss | Sussex | 16 | 16 | 650 | 40.62 | 121 | 1 | 3 |
| Ian Buxton | Derbyshire | 16 | 16 | 400 | 36.36 | 71* | 0 | 2 |
| John Shepherd | Kent | 16 | 15 | 415 | 34.58 | 65 | 0 | 3 |
| Qualification: 400 runs. Source: CricketArchive[2] | ||||||||
| Player | County | Balls | Wickets | Average | Economy | BBI | 4wi | 5wi |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Derek Underwood | Kent | 529 | 24 | 12.00 | 3.26 | 4/25 | 3 | 0 |
| Vanburn Holder | Worcestershire | 697 | 32 | 12.18 | 3.35 | 4/17 | 2 | 0 |
| Lawrence Williams | Glamorgan | 561 | 33 | 12.39 | 4.37 | 5/31 | 2 | 1 |
| Keith Boyce | Essex | 730 | 33 | 12.69 | 3.44 | 8/26 | 2 | 1 |
| Peter Sainsbury | Hampshire | 618 | 24 | 15.16 | 3.53 | 4/34 | 1 | 0 |
| David Hughes | Lancashire | 636 | 24 | 15.58 | 3.52 | 4/29 | 1 | 0 |
| John Shepherd | Kent | 723 | 26 | 17.07 | 3.68 | 4/20 | 2 | 0 |
| Stuart Turner | Essex | 627 | 24 | 17.58 | 4.03 | 4/29 | 2 | 0 |
| Tony Greig | Sussex | 680 | 28 | 17.71 | 4.37 | 6/28 | 0 | 1 |
| Terry Spencer | Leicestershire | 678 | 24 | 19.50 | 4.14 | 4/21 | 2 | 0 |
| Qualification: 24 wickets. Source: CricketArchive[3] | ||||||||