1901 was the twelfth season of County Championship cricket in England. Yorkshire defended their title but, unlike the previous year when they were unbeaten, they lost one game during the season to 12th-placed Somerset. Middlesex finished second, winning six of their eight finished games, but had the highest percentage of draws of anyone save Essex. Once again, Ranjitsinhji scored more than 2,000 runs for Sussex and, with 2,000 runs from C. B. Fry as well, the team finished fourth in the table behind third-placed Lancashire, whose England Test batsman Johnny Tyldesley scored 2,605 runs.