STAGE SET FOR FINE TEST SERIES IN ENGLAND

Press, Volume C, Issue 29503, 3 May 1961, Page 13

STAGE SET FOR FINE TEST SERIES IN ENGLAND

fTht* article U the #nt of a tertas bp NOHMAX YARDLXY, the former gngUsh tMt cricket captain I

AUSTRALIA'S captain, x Richie Benaud. is a shrewd man as well as a bold and brilliant cricketer. The policy statement he made on landing in England —promising that hte side will play attractive cricket no matter what methods are used by the opposition—was a masterpiece It was exactly what every cricket-lover hoped to hear at the start of this crucial season for the game. The stock of Benaud and his men is already sky high throughout England. I know’ that many captains have given us the old line that “we will play attractive cricket." But I can’t remember one throwing down the gauntlet so daringly before and adding “regardless of the tactics of the opposition.” That must have gone through the hide of every English county captain like the jab of a hypodermic needle. And especially because Benaud has just emerged from one of the greatest test series of all time, and they know he means to put into practice every word of his challenge. But I don’t think w»e should become too starryeyed or get the wrong impression. I have known Richie Benaud tor a long time and I admire his dedication to this great game of ours. He is a serious young man and you can throwstraight ovt of the. window any idea that he plans to play what we in Yorkshire

eall “wind and water” cricket. Benaud is not planning to stage a slogging match. Australia v. England tests have never degenerated to that level and I hope they never will. Throughout the long history of cricket, these series have been recognised as the ultimate in test match standards. I am certain that Benaud and his lively-looking side will not allow those standards to be lowered. What the Australian captain is determined to do is to cut out the dawdling of recent big cricket. He will insist that his men plav . their strokes, and he will be prepared to risk defeat in a flatout effort to achieve as many wins as possible. But I am perfectly certain that if the circumstances of any test demand a repeat of that famous backs-to-the-wall, match-saving stand of Willie Watson and Trevor Bailey at Lords in 1953. either side will try to find the men for the job. Compton stayed for an hour-and-a-half on that dramatic last day. Watson stretched his over-all defiance to 51 hours. Bailey held on through mounting tension for over four hours, and England eventually saved the match with three wickets to spare. Nobody could say it was “bright” or "attractive” cricket in the accepted sense. It was the other side of the cricket coin—dramatic, tense, full of rich, vibrant character. The one disappointing

feature of this first week of the new English season has been the absence of an England captain's voice giving a bold, straightforward acceptance of Benaud’s challenge. I am certain it will come eventually, but I feel that somebody—the president of M.C.C. or maybe the chairman of the selectors—should have publicly welcomed and accepted the Benaud challenge. Many of you might be thinking that Peter May or Colin Cowdrey should have been the men to do it. The difficulty there is that neither has yet been appointed as captain of England for this series. They have no authority to speak up. Peter May. after more than a year out of the game through illness, has to play himself back into the side before he can be assured of his job back. And Colin, who has always insisted that he has been merely the caretaker captain in May’s absence, has to wait to see how Peter makes out. I am perfectly certain in my own mind that May will be back, strong and fit and refreshed and probably as good as ever. Hi? team-col-leagues, in fact, tell me he looks even better and hits the ball harder than before he was ill. The strength of Benaud’s side, in my view, depends almost entirely on how effectively his new bunch of seam bowlers adapt themselves to English conditions. Another factor will be how effectively Benaud’s spin will be on

England’s slower wickets. Until the pattern of these things emerges, I think we should leave the issue an even bet —as it looks on paper. But always remember that Australia has not sent a bad team to England yet. And that at least one, maybe two, of their relatively untried youngsters will almost certainly rise to the occasion. To me this has the feeling of a great season. Throughout the game there is a genuine feeling that players have got to get out there and entertain the crowds with attacking cricket. It was proved last winter in Australia that it could be done at the highest level. But I give due warning—Benaud and his men are not here just to save England’s cricket. They are here to win test matches.

England has to save her own cricket. The new approach, the new spirit of cricketing adventure, has to fire every county side as well as England. It must not be left to the Australians alone.