Canterbury Batting In Fits And Starts

Press, Volume CV, Issue 30982, 11 February 1966, Page 3

Canterbury Batting In Fits And Starts

(By R. T. BRITTENDENJ There was a refined cruelty about Canterbury’s batting at Lancaster Park yesterday, when the team made 291 against Otago in the final Plunket Shield match of the series. Canterbury’s supporters, hungry for some batting of real quality, were presented with dish after dish which promised much, but each was whipped away before it could be enjoyed. It was not until G. A. Bartlett came into bat, among the savouries, as it were, that there was anything very sustaining. Although six of the batsmen passed 20, he was the only one to reach 50.

It was a rather dreary day’s cricket, partly because Otago bowled with the sort of economy commonly associated with the haggis and the bagpipe. And partly because the pitch, soft and rather slow, did not provide a satisfactory springboard for stroke-making virtuosity. But the Canterbury batsmen contributed to their own slow progress. Not nearly often enough were the quick singles taken, although B. F. Hastings and K. Thomson cet a notable example in swift running and cool judgment. ; And in its closing stages I the game war simply allowed ito drift along. Wrong Course ' Half-an-hour from time i Canterbury’s last man, G. W. Henry, joined Bartlett. It seemed the time for a declaration, for the score was 1267, and Canterbury would have had 20 minutes at Otago. Alternatively, a policy of all-out attack, regardless of cost, would have been reasonable. But Bartlett and Henry went quietly along, scoring I nine in 22 minutes, and only ■ when Otago was safe from having to start its innings, iand J. C. Alabaster came on to bowl again, ./as Bartlett persuaded to attack. He hit 14 off four balls with glorious shots. i Yet Bartlett’s was the most authoritative and attractive

innings of the day. He is a fine driver, he is usually prepared to lift the ball, and he hit a six off the left-handed J. F. Flaherty in the uncommon direction of mid-off. And the first of his final fours off J. C. Alabaster was a truly magnificent stroke—a fiercelyhit cover drive off the back foot. It was much too grim a struggle, in rather difficult circumstances, to hold the attention of the spectators, whose small numbers can be measured by the gate of only £7B. Defensive Field The swing bowlers seldom sought to attack. When the second new ball was taken. Cameron and Flaherty each had a single slip, fieldsman back, and in front of the wicket a defensive circle. K. Ibadulla was all industry and parsimony, pegging the batsmen down to a run and a half an over by keeping the ball a shade short. Inevitably, he took wickets. Cameron finished with fine figures, but he was not really the dominant figure he has been so often. He bowled like a cartoon mother-in-law. nagging away and winning all the arguments by perseverance. Flaherty was not impressive on an unsympathetic pitch, although he bowled a beauty to dismiss J. W. Burtt G. D. Alabaster’s flat flight and almost medium

pace produced little more than reasonable economy, but J. C. Alabaster’s bowling gave particular pleasure. He started with an over which, with inadvertent snicks and over-throws, cost 7. Straight after lunch he bowled a good over which somehow yielded 9, a bad one w’hich cost 8; and there was Bartlett’s massacre in another loose over, and that cost 14. The Top-Spinner For the rest of the time, Alabaster bowled extremely well. It was good to see the rhythm of his bowling, the little walk back, the wheel, the shuffle, the swing of the arm, the tantalising length, the turn from leg, the topspinner. He beat all of the top batsment at least two or three times, yet it was not until the stroke of six, and the last man, that he claimed a wicket. It was a bad miscarriage of justice. Nearly all the Canterbury batsmen stayed long enough to become established, and they all produced good-look-ing strokes in large or smaller quantity. But they were pinned down to defence by the pitch and the persistence of the Otago bowlers, and they succumbed, in succession, with their tasks halfdone. M. L. Ryan made another useful score, after he and Flaherty had survived a catch he drove straight to the fieldsman’s stomach as he stood oerilously close at silly midon. Later in the day R. G Jefferson, in a similar position, stopped a hard hit by Hastings with his throat. But Jefferson, too. carried on, and gave a fine example of animosity in the field. Wasted Innings C. L. Bull, in his first shield game, also made a good impression. Cool and correct, he looked very much a representative cricketer, and if it took him 68 minutes to make his 15, it was a pity to see him wasted, with a run out. Thomson and Hastings, scoring 84 for the third wicket in 114 minutes, gave the innings most of its substance Roth of them were tried and found wanting by J. C. Alabaster, against whom they struggled desperately, and they must have been very relieved when Alabaster came off, rather surprisingly, after only 11 overs—a mere warmup for one of his mechanical efficiency. Once off Alabaster’s hook they looked much more comfortable, although they were confined to a modest rate of scoring. Thev ran well, particularly after lunch, and they made some firm, sound strokes. Thomson batted two hours for his 44. Hastings seven minutes longer for 46. Thomson was caught at the wicket: Hastings swung Ibadulla with the tide, but straight to Flaherty backward of square leg. Studious Stand Burtt made 35 and he also batted two hours. But when R. M. Gearry went. Canterbury had declined from 139 for two to 169 for five. Burtt and B. R. Taylor added 45 studious runs. They could have made more, with really good running, but Taylor is not the quickest batsman off the mark. It seemed rather like a thirsty man refusing a drink because it is not champagne. Burtt, in stance and in technique, was polished and proficient. He should make many runs for Canterbury He could not always pick J. C. Alabaster, but his batting was sufficiently well organised to make these minor defeats seem irrelevant. His composure and correct stroke-making, bat and pad together, were not merely the insignia of batting pedantry He made his strokes freely and firmly. The only time he left a gap, Flaherty found it with a fine ball which came back at the batsman. Taylor hit only one boundary in 75 minutes, and that;

was quite out of character. His batting usually is a joyous blend of elegant strokes and violent swishes, with a dash of comedy thrown in. In his role of classics scholar, he gave quite a convincing performance. although J. C. Alabaster, attacking the left-han-der’s off stump in a beautifully disciplined fashion, had Taylor’s brow furrowed. Violent Finish Bartlett too, was very quiet until late in the day. Then his six off Flaherty and his battering of Alabaster provided violent percussion after too much of muted strings. J. M. Mclntyre helped Bartlett add 40 in 52 minutes. The only faster period was straight after lunch, when the score rose at one a minute for 40 minutes. Otago’s fielding was eager and usually good, although three very sharp chances went down. Jefferson was full of business, G. M. Turner and R. D. Stewart were often prominent. So, too, was S. N. McGregor, who, in his sixty-sixth Plunket Shield appearance, might have expected the care and attention usually given the old and the frail. Instead he was required, in the considerable heat of the day, to traverse the length of Lancaster Park between overs—and the Otago spinners got through their overs at uncommon speed. Umpires: Messrs L. C. Johnston and F. Goodall.