ENGLISH CRICKET TEAM

Evening Star, Issue 20019, 9 November 1928, Page 15

ENGLISH CRICKET TEAM

SOUTH AUSTRALIAN MATCH COMMENTS OH THE PLAY Below are appended some comments on play in the English team’s second game against South Australia, the extracts being from the Melbourne ‘ Sporting Globe. (In this match England made 628 and 34- for four wickets, while South Australia made 624): — Hobbs and Sutcliffe gave the Englishmen a good start with 78 for the first wicket, but it was Sutcliffe who did most of the run-getting. Hobbs was playing confidently enough, but he was not forcing things, and took 83min to make 26. Ho was out in a remarkable way, apparently being beaten by the swing of a ball from Scott. Hobbs stepped into his wicket and tried to glance the ball, but it came round his legs and hit the wicket. It is unusual to see Hobbs misjudge a ball in this way. Sutcliffe had not shown his best form at the nets, but he was nearly at his top in this innings, and scored more freely than he has usually done in Australia. His 76 came in 144 min, and ho hit a 6 and four 4’s. The 6 was from a no-ball sent down by Williams. Australians know Sutcliffe as a most determined little batsman, and _ there is no doubt that he again is going to prove a thorn in the side of our bowlers. He batted with confidence throughout, and was hardly ever at a loss regarding what he should do with tne bowling. This innings will undoubtedly put him in good heart for the coming games. A GREAT DISPLAY. Hammond had started quietly,- but as he warmed up and got the pace of the wicket he brightened his batting, and the result was one of the finest displays ever seen on the Adelaide Oval. Without doing any sensational hitting, he scored at a good pace with shots all round the wicket, and was never in serious difficulty with the bowling. All regarding this new star in the English cricket firmament were fully realised, and it was agreed on all hands that Hammond was one cf the greatest batsmen England has sent to Australia. It was almost impossible to fault him in any respect. To start with, he has a nice, easy stance, he uses his feet well, he showed himself to be the possessor of v wonderful pair of wrists, and apparently his eyesight is very keen. He possesses every stroke in the batsman’s repertoire, from the late cut to the fine glance, but in this innings it was his straight and cover driving and the way he played the ball off his legs that stood out. His straight drives are full-blooded, and travel from the bat with tremendous power, while his cover drives show off the power of his wrists. Some of the latter strokes left the fieldsmen standing, and shot to the fence like a flash. His square cutting is almost as powerful, and sometimes he sends the ball whizzing past point . with a stroke that looks more like a drive than anything else He also makes the late cut hard and cleanly, but did not score ranch with that stroke in this innings, many of hi* best hits there being stopped by smart fielding. Every stroke was made with an case and a gracefulness that charmed the onlookers, and he was given a rousing reception when he retired at end of the day with 11G opposite to his name. So oven was his rate of scoring that his first 50 were made in COrain, and his second in 67min, or 127 min for the century. Late in the day he slackened down considerably, being tired and desiring a fresh start next morning, Oi the resumption, however, he was feeling the effects of his previous day’s effort, and a severe blow which he received from ono of Whitfield’s deliveries, and held the game up for a few minutes, probably affected him to some extent. The result was that he was a very subdued Hammond compared with Hie previous day, and he took nearly an hour and a-half to add 20 run? 'to his total. He still played attractive cricket, however, and gave no chance during his 237 minutes at the wickets, although he was bowled once i ll lashing out at a no-ball from Scott. A six and eleven fours were included in hia total.

Mead was associated with Hammond in a partnership which added _ 15-1 in 117 minutes, Mead’s share being 58. Mead has none of Hammond’s grace of style, or anything like his variety of strokes, but ho showed a desire to go for the bowling, and scored much faster than we had been led to expect. Ho was fortunate, too, in that he was badly miss n d at 26, and was uncertain in many of Ins strokes, as indicated by the fact that he frequently cocked the ball up, but it usually fell safely. Ho showed a very strong defence, and if he can only get the pace of our wickets he will almost certainly give our bowlers n lot of trouble. FIREWORKS BY CHAPMAN.

It was Chapman, however, who provided the fireworks. Going for the bowling from the jump, ho hit it all over the field. Ho reached 0 in fiftysix mmoles, and then in a terrific burst added 45 m twenty minutes, 35 coming to him from two overs At much time ho had made 95 in seventy-six minutes. On resuming no gut very little of the bowling for a time, and wont to his century with five singles. Then he got going with his hitting again, and finished up with 145 in 133 minutes, with a six and nineteen fours. Chapman took all tho risks; and hit recklessly at times, but his tactics succeeded, and tho crowd was delighted. Ho gave no actual chance, but many of his hits went into tho air, only to fall safely. GRIMMETT IN FORM.

Although the wicket was easy on Friday, the bowlers were able to get some pace out of it, and Wall and Scott (fast), Whitfield (medium), and Grimraett (slow) all bowled excellently. Scott made them bump a good deal. Wall kept such an accurate length that onlv 29 runs were scored off fourteen overs. Griramett was as puzzling as over, while Whitfield also did well. On Saturday, however, they had no chance at all, and one and all suffered severely, Gnmmett came with a tine rattle at the finish, and wound up with six wickets for 109, while Whitfield took three for 134, and Soott one for 102. The fielding for the most part was good, with Hack showing excellent form behind the wickets. RICHARDSON'S MASTERLY INNINGS.

Richardson was due for a score, and his chances of inclusion in the Australian eleven appeared to have vanished unless he did something in this game, and he rose to tho occasion giandly. It was a critical match for him, [Walking up from the Oval on

i Friday evening an Adelaide man remarked that it was time Richardson was given a spoil from the South Australian team, and younger players substituted for him. If that man was on tho Oval on Saturday and Monday ha must surely have changed his views, for Victor has never baited better ol in a more masterly style. It was not that he made the runs, but the way ho made them that impressed. It was generally agreed that he had never played a better innings than on this occasion. Never in doubt at any stage of tho innings, he treated all bowling alike, and scored from a great vaiiety of strokes. Perhaps the pull and square cut might be singled out as the two in which he excelled, while his footwork was an object lesson to younger players. On this form Richardson could not possibly be left out of the Australian team, and a maintenance of this batting should make his inclusion certain, his batting suffered nothing in comparison with anything else in the match, not even that of Hammond on Saturday. Richardson was batting 307 minutes for his 231, which included a six and twenty-seven fours—sure evidence ft the power of ids hitting.