ON THE CRICKET FIELD

Evening Post, Volume CIX, Issue 122, 26 May 1930, Page 7

ON THE CRICKET FIELD

ADJOURNMENTS

WHAT THEY MEAN TO PLAY

Although betting, fortunately, enters little into our national game, we do occasionally hear expressions of belief in certain results accruing before the actual event, emphasised by the phrase, "I'll bet you/ writes E. A. Noble, the ex-Australian cricket captain. For instance, a broken bat suggests the possibility of a batsman's early dismissal, not so much because of the short suspension of play to allow its replacement, but because the substitute is always more or loss of different weight and loss accommodating balance, which often leads to inaccurate timing, with fatal consequences. Knowing this, small bets are made either way by amateur punters. Luncheon and tea adjournments, however, take more toll of the luckless batsmen, who have previously succeeded in mastering the attack, b,g|» cause upon resuming they proceed at once with their stroke making, forgetting the recovered freshness of the attackers which the rest has bestoivedT There is more venom in their delftßT ies, the ball lifts quicker and hiflfl© as it comes off the pitch, prpducingliWr cortain connection and frequent (refeat, ! OYJ. Sometimes we notice the decr£a&# rate of scoring, when the total, eSJftH* individually or collectively, is inFthe forties and nineties. We , accuse the innocent batsman of playing "too Scotch," when, in reality, it is a result of the fielding team's more strenuous efforts at those periods. They ,-Mamore grimly intent upon preventh'vgXfl[ score of 50 or a century being registered against them. WHEN "THE HOPE'; PAILED'3 At the commencement of an English, season the; weather is invariably uj?* settled, and only intermittent play IS" at times possible. "Rain stopped play" messages are so frequent that Australians are puzzled how the game can be proceeded with at all. Now rain is rarely heavy enough in England .to e'ause abandonment for the day; adjournments are therefore many, and often have a deciding' influence __ upon the ultimate fate of the contest. The most momentous one within my memory was the historic stoppage of play in. the fourth Test at Manchester in. 1902, which probably accounted for our dramatic victory. England had to make 124 runs to win. With nine wickets down for 116 Tate, father of Maurice Tate, came in to help Bhodes win the game. His feelings must, have been indescribable as he left the pavilion carrying such a responsibility. His mission was to hold up his end and let Rhodes win the game. The silent excitement of' the big crowd, as they watched his progress to the wicket, only served to intensify fb« situation. When half the journey, had been completed the rain came. Tate waited alone in the middle of the field during an oppressive silence'while th« umpires consulted and suspended playit is not difficult to imagine the i&ne in the English dressing-room. during that fateful half-hour's adjournment. The crowd of sympathetic followers gathered round the hope of his side, bewildering him whom, they strove to help, with useless advice and chatter ob the coming crisis, before he walked, out again to his doom. His first ball from Saunders was snicked to fine leg. Armstrong chased it at top-speed, and, much to our re;lief, he failed at the ditch... The crowd wildly cheered. We were grimly relieved, for.Tato still had the strike. Only four runs to win. He missed the noxt two balls. Then isame a fast one, with the arm. Tate played forward, th» ball swung across from the- off, went inside the bat, the centre stump turned a beautiful somersault, and Australia won by three runs. WEARING TRAVEL. Train travelling in England is the cause of much vexation of spirit and weariness of the flesh; Much of it is avoidable by sensible arrangement of the programme before, the commencement of the tour. In some instances, however, it is impossible to eliminate ite trouble. County matches that have been played for years on certain holidays, and particular dates, must notj be interfered with, and wherever possible these time-honoured arrangements are jespeeted; therefore, it is no easy, task to complete the itinerary of the tornwithout inflicting some measure of hardship upon the tourists. ■After the Lancashire match the team.^ had to catch a late train from Liver-'' pool and go almost at once to Lord's to meet M.C.C. The grades on English railways ara easier and the tracks smoother and ■traighter than the Australian; therefore, better sleep is, possible. Of course, sleeping berths are provided, but.no cricketer, however keen, relishes the prospect of a strenuous day. im the field after a whole night's travelling, much less is he able to do himself justice with the bat, for the nerves and eyes react unfavourably to such an environment, and unduly handicap the pl»yer. TIRBT-CLASS GAMES. To avoid night travelling, arrangements are often made to cease play an 'hour earlier on the day, when a convenient train is available; or for crosscountry work a motor bus is. engaged. This method would solve the problem were it not for the extra expense. The cost of a motor journey from Liverpool to London would be prohibitive, and would only be warranted if a Test match had to be played tlie following day. ■ - Taking the programme from the Oxford match, on 30th May, to the Yorkshire game at Bradford on 4th July, there is a whole mouth of first-class fixtures' tacked on to excessive travelling over the same ground. It is no iise to say English teams suffer equally in Australia, perhaps they do. The point is, when tho imavoidable hardship has been imposed the avoidable is not taken seriously into account.