Cricketers revise thinking after test

Press, 31 July 1986, Page 44

Cricketers revise thinking after test

NZPA staff correspondent London New Zealand will adopt a different approach to its three-day matches against county sides in the wake, of the first cricket test which ended in a draw at Lord’s yesterday. The change will Involve the New Zealand batsmen building long innings so that England will not so easily escape the predicament it found itself in on the third day of the test. At that stage, New Zealand had reached 215 for two in reply to England’s first innings total of 307, and seemed about to take command.

But instead, the tourists collapsed to 342, a position from which a draw became highly probable. The New Zealand captain, Jeremy Coney, began the tour saying he wished to achieve outright results in the matches against the counties. But, too often, that has meant his batsmen have had to chase quick runs so declarations could be made. “Our aim now must be to get our batsmen through four-hour and five-hour innings to develop test match concentration,” Coney said. “We should still try to be positive but in a more soundly based way with batsmen playing strokes down the ground rather than across the line.” New Zealand also had a

slim chance of securing victory when the final day started with England 110 for three in its second innings, an over-all lead of 75 runs. But once Graham Gooch and Mike Gatting had staved off the threat posed by Richard Hadlee in the first hour, the shortcomings of the thin New Zealand attack on the easy-paced wicket became evident.

Even so, Gatting lost his wicket after 50 minutes, hitting out ill-advisedly at the spinner, Evan Gray. New Zealand might have sensed victory even more clearly had an edge from Peter Willey* when he was two, gone to rather than just past first slip. That would have opened the gate to England’s long tail.

Gooch and Willey, however, went on to share a 126-run fifth wicket partnership to guarantee England a draw which it seemed only too willing to accept.

Gooch, a commanding figure on the front foot, proceeded eventually through to 183 before holing out at long-off to the off-spin of John Bracewell.

Gooch’s’ 442-minute innings, which included 22 boundaries, earned him the man-of-the-match award and, with his dismissal, England declared at 295 for six.

New Zealand’s reply parallelled its first innings catastrophe when John Wright and Ken Rutherford both lost their wickets without scoring. This time, it was Wright, again, and Edgar who fell for nought to third slip catches off Neil Foster and Graham Dilley in the first and second overs, respectively. Thereafter, Rutherford (24 not out) and Martin Crowe (11 not out) took New Zealand through to 41 for two when stumps were drawn early. ENGLAND First innings 307 Second innings G. A. Gooch c Watson b Bracewell 183 M. D. Moxon 1 b.w. b Hadlee ; 5 C. W. J. Athey b Gray. . . 16 D. I. Gower b Gray .... 3 M. W. Gatting c M. Crowe b Gray. . 26 P. Willey b Bracewell ... 42 P. H. Edmonds not out . . 9 Extras (lb 6 wl nb4)ll Total (for 6 wkts dec.) . . 295 Fall 9, 68, 72, 136, 262, 295. Bowling: Hadlee 27, 3, 78, 1; Watson 17, 2, 50, 0; Gray 46,14, 83, 3; M. Crowe 4,0, 13, 0; Bracewell 23.4, 7, 57, 2; Rutherford 3,0, 8, 0. NEW ZEALAND First innings 342 Second innings B. A. Edgar c Gower b Foster 0 J. G. Wright c Gower b Dilley 0 K. R. Rutherford not out . 24 M. D. Crowe not out... . 11 Extras (lb 4 nb2) 6 Total (for 2 wkts) 41 Fall: 0, 8. Bowling: Foster 3,1, 13, 1; Dilley 6,3, 5,1; Edmonds 5,0, 18, 0; Gower 1,0, 1, 0. .