USE OF SMALLER BALL

Press, Volume XCI, Issue 27564, 22 January 1955, Page 8

USE OF SMALLER BALL

MEANS OF HELPING BOWLERS

COMMENTS OF M.C.C. SECRETARY

(New Zealand Press Association) TIMARU, January 21. The M.C.C. is experimenting With the smaller cricket ball as one means of helping bowlers, particularly seam and spin bowlers, who are finding it difficult to cope with class batsmen on “shirt-front” wickets, said the secretary of the M.C.C., Mr Ronald Aird, in Timaru today. The era of Sir Donald Bradman, when batsmen were definitely on top, had caused those in control of cricket to seek some way to restore the balance between batsman and bowler, said Mr Aird. The new small ball might not be necessary now as "the balance seems pretty good again,” he said.

Mr Aird described England's play in tlie first test at Brisbane as “disastrous.” The team’s fielding was suspect, a lot of catches being missed. The English side had adopted the modern technique of field-placing with several leg slips and these were the men who had made all the difference in the next two tests.

"The tide now seems against the batsman,” he said. “Strokes that should be worth four runs are being cut off and often result in the loss of a wicket.

"I have been tremendously impressed with the standard of cricket in New Zealand,” said Mr Aird. “This is particularly so when I find that so little first-class cricket is played in a season—only four first-class matches.”

Statham was likely to be the most successful bowler when the M.C.C. team came to New Zealand, he said. Statham was accurate, and moved the ball g little through the air and would do well on green top wickets. Tyson relied entirely on speed, and he considered him the fastest bowler playing cricket today. Tyson was accurate and took most of his wickets with yorkers or full tosses that caught batspien by surprise. "Tyson started the tour of -Australia as a somewhat inaccurate bowler, being young, with little experience,” said Mr. Aird “Now that his run has been curtailed, his accuracy has increased, and I thirjk he will be reaching top form by the time he comes to this country.”

INSURANCE INSTITUTE MATCH In the Insurance Institute cricket match between Christchurch and Wellington at Hagley oval on Thursday, Christchurch won by 152 ruhs on the first innings. Wellington was all out for 157 runs (McHugh 69, Jennings 32, Cameron 12; Drake three for 31, Sullivan two for 52* Victor two for 30). Christchurch made SCO (Bolton 68, Condliffe 65, Capstick 52, Turnbull 36 retired; Robson two for 75, McHugh one for 0).