CRICKET GOSSIP

Dominion, Volume 16, Issue 224, 9 June 1923, Page 19

CRICKET GOSSIP

(By “

Old Timer”)

WHEN ARE CRICKETERS AT THEIR BEST?

Perhaps you could persuade your cricket encyclopaedia, alias “Old Timer,” to tell u* something about the age at which a cricketer reaches Ins prime. ■ It would be extremely ' interesting to learn from him—if he has the information —the respective ages at which the world’s best players had their best season. My own opinion is that a cricketer is usually at his best between 30 and 35. —“The Lynx.”

From to-day (Saturday. Juno 9) to the second Saturday in September of this year, “Old Timer” wll be engaged on the Test careers of English- and Australian players in these historic games. For the benefit of “The Lynx” he will make a point of mentioning his subject’s age and his best season in Test cricket- With the details of the 104 Tests in front of him this will not be difficult to supply the information asked for. J. B Hobbs, when 30 years of age, scored no fewer than 662 runs in nine innings in Australia in 1911-12. Eight Summers later tho Surrey batsman compiled 505 runs in ten innings. A batsman can play firstclass cricket up to a greater ago than a bowler not so much because of the great strain upon the latter, as because the finger manipulation and “devil” needed in the bowler is more or less lacking after he passes the age of 40. The best age is, as “The Lynx” states, 30 to 35, because to be consistently successful, a batsman must have had long experience. The following story of a.batsman being past his prime will no doubt appeal to “The Lynx,” “After the ball was delivered there was a decided ‘click,’ and as the wicketkeeper took the ball a shout went up .-.‘How’s that?’ ‘Out!’ said the umpire. The batsman protested that he had not touched Tile ball, but the whole field, excepting the wicketkeeper, insisted that they heard the ‘click.’ ‘You’re all wrong,’ said the stumper ‘He . didn’t go within six inches of the ball. What, you heard was the creaking cf his joints. It happens every time he moves!’” I have selected at random a few Test players, and the following details when they entered Test cricket may be of interest to “The Lynx” and others: — ‘ ' Year Test of cricket

WHAT A GREAT WICKETKEEPER SAW

SOME OF LILLEY’S EXPERIENCES

A. A. Lilley made his. second and last visit to Australia in the 190304 summer, when P. F. Warner recovered for England “The Ashes,” lost by A. E. Stoddart, in 1897-98. This combination was the first to play in Australia as a selected M.C.C. side. During this tour the amateurs and professionals departed from precedent, and stayed at the same hotel, which left the team together and promoted a better feeling in the side. The “googly” bowler was seen in Test cricket for the first time in tests in the person of B. J. T, Bosanquet, who had earlier in the year clean bowled Victor Trumper with his-first googly delivered on the Sydney ground, when returning via Australia from the New Zealand tour. A. A. Lillev had neve! seen the Middlesex amateur in action in England, and on arrival at Adelaide went behind the net where the googly merchant was delivering the goods, to study his methods. After the opening matches prior to the first Test in. Sydney, Lilley had more confidence in taking the liowler who frequently, beat both the batsman and the wicketkeeper. a In the first test at Sydney A. A. Lilley saw two of the finest individual

innings in his test cricket career. R. E. Foster/ of Worcestershme, in. his first Test, match, passed W. L. Murdoch’s score of 211, and was eventually got out at 287, which is the highestta - ly obtained in test cricket. A 11 , 1 "® b° w ’7 ers’ in turn were continually hit to all parts of the field, aim nothing they could do affected th* rapidity which Foster scored all round the wicket. The batsman never looked like getting out, and it was only exhaustion that cost him his wicket after he had mado the record score for Tests between England and Australia—2B7. Lilley was behind the sticks when he saw. Victor Trumpcr play his masterpiece in Australia’s second innings, ■ when he scored 185 not out. From the first ball lie received till the close of the innings, Trumpcr played with perfect confidence and ease ? and never gave the remotest suggestion that he would ever get out, Lilley nad many opportunities of viewing good jerformanees, but they have all been eclipsed by this glorious innings of Victor Trumper’s. This great master did things in his own way, and no one could follow his methods. He never learnt the game, it came naturally to him; he made his strokes, in his own way and in any old time. W. Rhodes in this innings captured five wickets in 40 overs, and of Victor Trumper said ho was the only batsman ho had bowled against who had hit three successive balls alighting in almost the same spot to different parts of the. field. England won this Test by five wickets, and the next at Melbourne by 185. runs. The second game goee down into history as the match with so many dropped catches and W. Rhodes’s 15 wickets. Australia outplayed England at Adelaide, and won this test by 216 .runs. In the first innings J. J. Kelly, the Australian wicket-keeper, made one of the .finest catches any wicket-keeper could make. J. T. Tyldeslcy had played the ball on the leg-side, and by a wonderful effort Kelly sprang to it, and succeeded in holding it long enough for the batsman to be given out. At Sydney, Lilley saw Bosanquet dismiss five of his opponents for 12 runs, and at the conclusion of the match, which recovered the Ashes for England, the wicket-keeper had.the ball mounted and jmesented it to the bowler. Australia won the fifth Test at Melbourne by 218 runs. This was the last appearance of Hugh Trumble in Test cricket, and he wound up his career by taking seven wickets for .28, including the “hat trick,” his victims being Bosanquet, Warner, and Lilley. (To be continued.)

People cease to wonder at the actio* of the Australian Board of Control preventing touring players from writing to the Press when they read such comment as the following, which comes from Colonel Slater, who accompanied MacLaren’s team in their tour of New Zealand: —“Its people do not pcssess the true sporting spirit ‘i cricket. Barracking in Australia is nothing more than good-natured chaff.. In New Zealand the crowd looked on in silence when Archie Maclaren scored a double century, and then went wild with delight when one of the New Zealand team knocked a four.”

Name. W. G. Grace birth, entry. Age 1848 1880 32 S. F. Barnes 1876 1901 25 J. W. Blackham ... 1855 1877 22 A G. Steel 1858 1880 22 W. L Murdoch 1855 1877 22 G. Gifien 1859 1882 23 G. A. Lohmann... 1865 1886 21 H. Trumblo 1867 1890 23 (J. T. B. Turner ... 1862 1888 26 W. H. Lockwood ... 1868 1893 25 F. S. Jackson 1870 1893 23 J. Darling 1870 1894 24 A. C. MacLaren ... 1871 1894 23 K. S. Ranjitsinhji 1,872 1896 24 M. A. Noble 1873 1898 25 C. Hill 1877 1896 19 V. Trumper 1877 1899 22 3. B. Hobbs 1882 1908 26' C. G. Macartney 1886 1907 ' 21 F. E. Woollev 1887 1909 22 F. R. Snofforth ... 1853 1877 24 A. A. Lilley 1867 1896 29