THE CHINA MAIL, MARCH 29, 1939
Durban Oricket Reflections
I
ATTEMPT TO DRAW CROWDS BY
"LEGISLATION"
AMAZING RAINFALL: ALMOST TO GROUNDSMEN'S ORDERS!
(By E. H. D. SEWELL)
(By AIR MAIL)
This affair at Durban, this Test-to-a-finish that was not finished, this long-drawn-out boredom presents for me an entirely new problem, a form of exercise I have never studied and have no desire ever to hear of or to read about again.
HAVE been accustomed for very many years to write about and to play cricket,
This Durban weariness was neither the game for which recognised rules existed in the year 1700 and for which the first code was written in 1744, nor the grand, artistic game that was handed on to us by Grace, "Ranji”, and Trumper, my three Immortals. If it had been, then in- deed must the inhabitants of Natal be fashioned of some unknown clay.
It is a fact that with the South Africans holding a firm grip of the reins, retention of which meant keeping the An- glo-South African Ashes, if any, in South Africa, the au- thorities had to reduce the entrance fee in order to get these bored locals to "come again." Imagine, if you can, England on top at Lord's in a Test match and the Board of Control hurriedly knocking a shilling or so off the admis- sion in order to induce the public to come in, and you get a mental picture of the state to which the game of cricket was brought at Durban by this yielding to an insensate mo- dern craze.
March 11--No play.
*March 13-E. batting, 243 runs
for 2 wickets.
That solitary incident, of cric- két officialdom touting for pat- trons at a Test match, is surely the final straw so far as these gloomy to-a-finish affairs are con- cerned. It will one day be real- ised that you cannot get what you want-in cricket, apparent- ly, the sole want seems to be a finish, as though a drawn match is a national disgrace-by `legis- lation. The only way is through
* Bad light stopped play. † Rain stopped play. sheer hard work, sheer ability,
The affair, as will be seen, did not provide an encouraging advertisement and sheer will to win on the field. for Durban's climate and atmosphere! Unfortunately, these three vir-Stumps were drawn owing to bad light| tues are 'somewhat lacking to-on seven of the nine days play, rain day.
curtailing play on one of the remaining days.
TIMELY FALLS OF RAIN
The uninitiated will all too readily
†March 14--E. batting, 158
for 2 wickets.
NOT SO GREAT
runs
RANGERS WIN SCOTTISH LEAGUE FOR 24TH `TIME
- London, To-day————As a result of sharing two goals with Clyde în an away fixture yesterday; Rangers have won the Scottish League for the 24th time since the inception of the series in '1891.
In another Scottish League match, Partick were too good for Hibernians, winning by four clear goals in a home fixture--Reuter.
CRICKET.
Revised League Programme
Revised Cricket League fir- [tures made necessary by the wet week-end have been announ- ced by the League Secretary, Mr. overs or so, gave him only one over in
|A. H. Madar, who asks that Club the match. But he was able to let Secretaries communicate with Verity bowl 95.6 overs, 23 maidens, 184 him c/o Arculli Bros., Holland runs, 4 wickets; and two of those four House, as soon as possible if any were numbers 9 and 10 in South Afri of the appended fixtures are not ca's first innings. One wicket every
24 eight-ball overs does not seem to be uitable to them.
the way out" when plotting to win this Marathon type of game."
SOME STATISTICS
I hope the sponsors of the eight-ball over with which our cricket is to be saddled this and next season, have fully noted that in this affair 5447 balls were bowled, or 680 overs. This, at all events, is not a record as regards overs, because when Australia won by five wickets at Melbourne in March 1929, 706 six-ball overs were delivered. That game lasted into the eighth day. But when Australia won by 81 runs at Mel- bourne in January 1925, only 470 eight- ball overs-were bowled in a seven days Test.
Of the 680 overs at Durban, the South African "galley slaves" delivered
SATURDAY First Division
H. K. C. C. V Recreio
C. C. C.
I. R. C.
C., C. C. v Navy
Second Division
C. S. C. C. University
C. S. C. C.
P. R. C. I. R. C.
Navy
H. K. C. C.
v K. C. C.
V
Recreio
v Army APRIL 8
First Division
* Army
Second Division
▼` K. C. C. V Recreio APRIL 15 Second Division
V University
ONE DAY “TEST”
335, ten fewer for 15 wickets than the MATCH AT
It is unsound to debate on the weak-WELLINGTON
Englishmen bowled in getting 20.
ness of only one example, but the Thousand Runs" Unfinished Test-to-a-
EDRICH'S RECOVERY
Concerning individual
over
Widset-Keeping
The achievement of 654 runs for five blame the preparation of the Durban wickets in the fourth innings was not Finish is not a very convincing proof Maxwell's Magnificent wicket for this glut of 1981 runs for therefore so great a cricket feat of the tenet that the eight-ball
ផទ 35 wickets. It was not the preparation have been lesser totals in fourth inn-really saves time, and, because of that, of this particular pitch, but the quite ings made elsewhere, for more than makes the game livelier, and gives the unprecedented timely falls of rain, one very good reason.
bowlera more chance of ending it which, plus the usual rolling, main-
(By AIR MAIL) In the first place bowlers have an sooner. Rather to the contrary. tained the "newness' of the pitch-face age-old right to expect" a wicket
Wellington, to Cover such a long period as ten days. begin at least to whisper after, say,
Rain on the first two days reduced Scotland does not lack for gardeners four or five days usage. This amazing
the ・ “Test”” match between New and curators of greens on golf courses, stretch of turf (may none of its like Indeed, her supply of these artists is ever be shipped to this country!) was Edrich's 219, after a series of failures a one-tlay affair, and the match was prowess, Zealand and Sir Julien Cahn's XI to Bans parcil. But I doubt whether as silent as an oyster on the tenth day. quite unprecedented in Test cricket, drawn. among them all one could be found to Further and this I regard as a very must have been extremely welcome to back himself for a bawbee to prepare strong point-the set of bowlers off his many admirers, and satisfactory to a wicket anywhere, least of all for use whom this holocaust has been recorded, himself. He has still much leeway to clared after making 170 runs for during a normal week in South Africa, are, by habit, one or two day cricketers. make up, and unless he eschews that, without allowing for the use of Two of the five victims of English bats-hook until he is well set, failure will in-
the five wickets, the tourists replied a drop of water, whether rain or from manship, Newson and Gordon, are to evitably continue to
before stumps be his portion. with 163 for seven a hose, he would· guarantee not crumble or to get dusty after (shall first-class cricket.
tall intents and purposes fledglinga in P. A. Gibb I regard as having anchored were drawn.
This is Gordon's himself much more securely in the we say?) six days play. As this ex-first season, and though Newson has England eleven than Edrich has done. opening partnership of 57 in forty The excellence of New Zealand's traordinary game jogged along at its longer experience he is almost a stran- His method is extremely sound, and 1 modest daily average of a mere 198
runs, showers, or so-called heavy rain, ger even to three-day matches.
fell, almost to the groundåman's order!
It was thus as though each day's play -started on a plumb new wicket.
RECORDS
•
UNFAIR CRITICISM
New Zealand batted first, and de-
do not doubt that some day, when minutes by Ongley and Whitelaw, needed, he will make good scores at a was offset by the effectiveness of much faster rate than his latest 120 in Walsh's spinners, which sometimes four hundred and fifty minutes.
turned a foot, and also the magni- The South African captain, Melville The others have pulled their weight has been harshly criticised for mis- when allowed to, but it has been an ficent display by Maxwell behind the managing his bowlers. The bowlers unhappy tour for Yardley and Bartlett. stumps. He moved like a flash to I do not propose to enumerate the for lifelessness and for lack of thrust expectations, Farnes was
themselves have come under the lash Neither Wright: nor Wilkison fulfilled stump Menzies, and his dismissal string of "records" made in this affair, on the last three days of this exacting best form almost throughout, and, after of Donnelly was also a brilliant which I mention only to express a fer-test of stamina. At this distance all doing one good job, Perks did not bring piece of work. vent hope that none of those made will such criticism would have been too off the double. ever be broken.
below his
Dyson, who opened for the tour- harsh had it been applied to the failure. This series of Tests was not a re-ists with C. S. Dempster, was out in It may prove interesting, however, to get wickets of a set of hardened liable one for this year's against the
if I set down the daily output of runs. *March 3 S.A. batting, 229 runs
for 2 wickets. March 4-8.A. batting, 194⋅ runs,
for 4 wickets.“ *March_6—S.A. and - E. ̈ batting, ́142 runs for 5 wickets. *March ́7-E. batting, 233 runs
for 6 wickata... *March —E-and- 8.A. 3 battin
241 'runs for 6 wickets. *March 1--BA. and E. (6 for 0)
ing. 288 runs for wickets.
13 wicke
English professionals, each with a much better bowling side that the West unluckly fashion, a ball from the dozen or more season's experience of Indians promise to be. But sufficient fast bowler, Cowie, striking his foot regular six days a week “in umiform," for the moment are the Ashes thereof and rebounding on to the wicket. I think the criticism was positively especially if they include those of Cowie, who took three wickets for cruel in the case of the present inex- to-a-finish fixtures. perienced South African set of bowlers.i [It was upon that inexperience – that, when England was set 696 to get to win, I published my opinion elsewhere that I did not put the making, of such a score dupyond our batsmen..
*! If Any criticism of the handling bowling in this affair, appears to me to be justifiable it would be in th
googlies in
atto
CRICKET MATCH CANCELLED
whole-day cricket match ärrang- for Sunday between Kowloon C.O.
Hong
46, did not bowl so fast as when he was in England in 1937..
He bowled well, however, and after the departure of Dempster, who made 46 against his old team, he and Ashenden had the touriste în trouble until Oldfield, of Lan- cash
Watts, of Surrey, saved siderwith a stand of 70 for the
sixth