English-Type Pitches Criticised By Reid

Press, Volume CIV, Issue 30803, 15 July 1965, Page 6

English-Type Pitches Criticised By Reid

(N.Z. Press Association—Copyright)

LONDON, July 14.

The New Zealand captain, J. R. Reid, said farewell to test cricket with a few much-needed home truths about English pitches after his team had lost the third test by an innings and 187 runs at Headingley yesterday, the “Daily Sketch” reported today.

“Overseas cricketers visiting England these days find conditions far more difficult than when I first came here 16 years ago,” he said. “Apart from Lord’s, Fenners and the Kent grounds, your pitches have deteriorated to an astonishing degree. This is a great handicap to young batsmen who have no experience of this kind of pitch,” Reid said. “Reid is absolutely right,” the “Sketch” cricket writer, Brian Scovell, comments. “The average county wicket of 1965 is a slow paceless track that helps only the dull and tedious—the safe nonscoring batsman and the

steady medium-pace bowler,” Scovell said. “I know Reid well enough to appreciate that he was not making excuses for his team’s failure. Every player in the England side agrees with him, including skipper Mike Smith,” Scovell said. Reid said he thought the tour would greatly benefit New Zealand cricket. He picked the 19-year-old V. Pollard, who started the tour as an oS-break bowler, as the best young prospect he had seen this season. Reid said he thought he had one of the best fast bowling attacks in the world but lacked accurate spinners. “We could have done with someone like Tom Burtt,” he said. Miller Praises Attack The New Zealand cricket team just winding up its English tour might have a thin batting line up, but its

medium pace attack was one of the best in test cricket to-

day, wrote Keith Miller, the former Australian all-rounder, in his column from London in the Sydney “Daily Mirror” today. Discussing the 310 not out scored by John Edrich in the just completed third test at Headingley, Miller said: "The sceptics might point out that since this hurricane four-stud-ded innings was made against the New Zealanders, it means nothing, nothing at alt “But while the New Zealanders have a thin batting line up, I would rate their three medium fast bowlers— Motz, Collinge and Taylor—the next best pace attack to the West Indies’ great Hall and Griffith in test cricket today. “England and Australia, in fact, would be proud to have this trio on their shores."

Profit Of £5OOO

(From R. T. BRITTZNDZN. N.Z.P.A. Special Correspondent.) LEEDS, July 14. The manager of the New Zealand cricket team, Mr W. A. Hadlee, said today that notwithstanding the inriement weather—there had been 13 sunny days since the tour began in April and two of them had been Sundays—the profit on the New Zeeland tour was expected to be about £5OOO. The New Zealand team for the threeday match with Scotland, starting ait Glasgow today is: T. W. Jarvis, B. E. Congdon, R. W. Morgan, J. R. Reid, B. Sutcliffe. A. E. Dick, B. W. Yuile, B. R. Taylor, R. C. Motz, G. E. Vivian. F. J. Cameron. B. W. Sinclair to twelfth man. T