Macartney

Press, Volume XCVII, Issue 28690, 13 September 1958, Page 5

Macartney

If it were possible to conduct an international poll to determine the greatest batsmen since cricket began—and if due allowance could be made for the unhappy fact that many of the greatest lived more than a lifetime ago—Charles Macartney’s name would appear high in the list. Macartney, who died in Australia this week, was of a cricketing species now almost extinct; he had all the strokes, and he insisted on using them, for it was not in him to yield the initiative to any bowler. Macartney came into test cricket as an all-rounder, and a somewhat undistingushed one, some years before the First World War. But by 1912 his reputation as a fearless, unorthodox batsman and a clever leftarm leg spin bowler was made. He did no more later than embellish it.

Nick-named the “GovernorGeneral” because of his autocratic batting ways, he was ranked by the experts of his time as among the hardest of batsmen to bowl to, for he would try anything, and nearly always bring it off. Aggression In recent times, probably only Compton and Weekes at their best would compare with Macartney’s inventive genius. Small but powerful, and nearly always pictured with jaw jutting beneath his big Australian cap, Macartney was all / aggression, with speed of foot and eye his main armament.

Macartney made more than 14,000 runs in first-class cricket, twice totalled more than 2000 on an English tour, averaged 42 in his 35 test appearances, and scored seven test centuries. Perhaps his greatest triumph was at Leeds in 1926, when Australia was sent in to bat on a wet wicket. Maurice Tate opened the bowling, and Warren Bardsley was caught by Sutcliffe first ball. Two balls later Macartney was dropped by A. W. Carr, the English captain. Quite undisturbed, he set about the bowling, and with a profusion of powerful, daring strokes, had a century before lunch. Only Trumper before him, and Bradman after, achieved that feat, a triumvirate indeed. Macartney was one of those whose cricket could never be measured mathematically. Would that there were more of his kind today.