J. LARTER POTENTIAL TEST BOWLER

Press, Volume XCIX, Issue 29378, 3 December 1960, Page 5

J. LARTER POTENTIAL TEST BOWLER

SPECTATORS at Lancaster Park in 1955 will remember the hush that spread over the ground as F. H. Tyson, the M.C.C. fast bowler, began his opening over against Canterbury. Cricket followers can expect something similar when J. D. F. Larter, the M.C.C. fast bowler, makes his appearance in New Zealand this season. Larter is regarded by English critics as the possible successor to F. S. Trueman as the spearhead of the English attack. It will be interesting to watch his progress on the tour, for he has had little experience in first class cricket. a. R. Mac Gibbon, the Canterbury fast bowler, has always been regarded as possibly the tallest fast bowler seen at Lancaster Park. Larter will ever tower over the six foot five Mac Gibbon, for he is six foot seven. * Although Larter is regarded as a • potential test bowler critics have one reservation—he plays for Northhamptonshire, and the

Northamptonshire wicket is by no means helpful to fast bowlers. Another English fast bowler, F. H. Tyson, also played for Northamptonshire and after eight seasons his record in test cricket was better than his county record, where he played half of the matches on the county wicket. In test cricket against the best batsmen of other cricketing countries Tyson averaged 19.01 runs for his 80 wickets. In county cricket from 1953 to 1960 he took 445 wickets at 20.06 each. It has been thought that the dead Northamptonshire’ wicket did much to dull the great speed that Tyson showed when he first appeared in first class cricket. The comparative -averages of test and county cricket bear that out.

Larter finished fourth in the English bowling averages this year in his first season. Next year with the benefit of the New Zealand tour it will be interesting to see if he can overcome the handicap of bowling on one cf the slowest county wickets in England.