Cricket analysis Richard Hadlee

Press, 3 December 1982, Page 3 (Supplement)

Cricket analysis Richard Hadlee

Greg Chappell may be too seasoned a campaigner to get tangled up in his pads when he hears it, but for the New Zealand cricket crowds there is one noise that symbolises this country’s considerable strengths in the game. That noise is our most famous chant. It has two syllables, it is usually accompanied by a clatter and out on the field it follows the determined run of one man — Richard Hadlee. “Had-lee, Had-lee,” roar the crowds, and if this particular bowler can maintain the form he showed in the English season this year, when he topped the County averages, the chances are that hard on the heels of that roar yet another wicket will fall. In a country that sometimes seems studded with sports stars, Richard Hadlee stands with those few other players of any code who have remained at the very peak of their own ability and their sport for a number of years. And he, like those few others, has been able to stay at the top only through hard work, good training, skill and, perhaps most of all, a complete understanding of his own sport. Richard Hadlee, our greatest all-rounder, one

of our all-time bowling greats, knows his cricket. In December he is putting that knowledge to the test. Not against Greg Chappell or lan Botham, although those tests are to follow. But against a potentially much more difficult taskmaster — the collective skills and aspirations of New Zealand cricketers, young and not so young, right throughout the country. "Hadlee on Cricket,” by Richard Hadlee, is the inside story on how to play cricket. How to bat and bowl, how to field and keep wicket, how to keep fit and how to keep the right attitude. It is carefully designed to appeal to and be of use to players of different talents and experience. For the beginner, there is a step-by-step introduc-

tion to all the cricketing skills. For every player — and for the armchair expert who likes to savour cricket as it should be — there are more than 200 photographs. Some come from the magic of test cricket and feature many of the world’s top players in action. Some were taken specially for the book and show well-known players like Geoff Howarth, Hadlee and Derek Randall of England. Of particular value to aspiring cricketers will be the series of line drawings on such techniques as the right way to hold the ball and field placings. Cricket captains will find their own needs especially served. Published by Reeds, “Hadlee on Cricket,” costs $14.95.