VICTORIA v. SOUTH AUSTRALIA.

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume LIII, Issue 9480, 3 December 1907, Page 5

VICTORIA v. SOUTH AUSTRALIA.

MELBOURNE* December 2. In their first innings South Australia scored 357 The chief scores were:— Mayne 75, Claxton 65, Dollinir 62, Pellew 41, Jennings 52, L. Hill 32. Following on, they have lost one wicket for 15.

BRILLIANT BATSMEN. The cricket reporter of the Melbourne Argus, describing the Adelaide match, gives great praise to the English batting. He says: Hardstaff got two beautiful foiws in succession off Hill, one of them, a square cut past point, being the finest stroke of the match,. In Perth the batsman scored bo fast for about 10 minutes that the humorists in the crowd called hi Hotstuff

<m otstutf. ... It is a smart fieldsman, who saves the 4 when Hardstaff gets his bat fairly on the ball. Tyldesley. has never made strokes more crisp, more finished, more forcible than Hardstaff did in this innings. Every one of them brought an impulsive cheer from the onlookers. ... At 3 o'clock play was stopped by another light shower, the score then being 340* Hardstaff 77 and Bmund 52. The partnership had already put on 138 runs. On •continuing, they passed the South Australian score with oniy four wickets down, the runs being made in nearly two hours less time than it took the South Australians to get the same number. As Hardstaff approached the hundred there was no slackening. In an over from ■Wright he got three fours in succession — two of them off drives, the other his favorite cut past point. He ran out to "Wright, Sirove him to the boundary, and completed a beautifully-played. hundired, the runs being made in 4-wo hours 22 minutes, with 13 boundary hits, the second 50 taking an hour — hot stuff, indeed. At last the end came for little Hardstaff, but not itntil he had given unmistakable proof that he is already a great batsman. l cannot say too much in praise of this innings. Everyone who watched it - was -charmed with Hardstaffs batting. Many ola watchers of cricket declared that since Ranjitsinhji opened with a big score on the oval they have seen no newcomer wno played all round, the wicket like Hardstaff. But his driving and cutting were particularly fino. Early in his innings he gave a fine chance at the wicket, but no other, with the exception of the almost impossible catch to Darling at 126. lie was batting 200 "minutes, and scored IV fourers.

The fifth wicket fell at 472, the splendid partnership having yielded 270 xuns. As .soon as Crawford came in the batsmen commenced to take toll of the toed bowling in the most decisive manner. Crawford was especially brilliant, amd in one over from Wright he hit five fourcrs in 10 minutes, and with ten balls bowled to him he scored 28 runs, six of his hits going fast to the boundary, and almost every one in a different direction. Cxaw-

ford was playing for his side, going for -the win, with a- time limit, as the team had decided to leave for Melbourne by .next day's express. The figures flew up to 500, made in exactly 400 minutes. In half an hour's sensational batting a hundred runs had been put on to the score,

but the pace was too great for Braund, who was tiring. In trying a big hit he lifted the ball at mid-on, and was caught by O'Connor. Though he began deliberately and waited for his ball, Braund played a very fine innings for 160, in which he hit 19 fourers. The sixth wicket was worth 109 to the score, and Braund was batting four hours and a quarter. While he was *n 398 runs were scored, and his last 60 wore scored- in 35 minutes. It was a watch-breaking afternoon.. Crawford ■continued to surpass all the other English batsmen in the bril-

hancy of his hittinig.

Three times in unc-

cession he drove Claxtan to the boundary, and then back-cut him for three, a stroke which put him in the eighties.

l'he score ron from 500 to- 600 in> 34 sensational minutes. Rhodes was content to keep an end up for Crawford, though neither of them had much running to do. Crawford was caught by Chamberlain off his own bowling. He made 114 in 58 minutes, his big hits numbering three sixes and 18 fours. Crawford clearly came in to hit, and he did it in a way that roused' everyone's admiration. It was probably the best bit of hitting ever seen an the Adelaide Oval, and with seven wickets down for 643, the total had

already- beaten the best English record for the ground, which was 609, by Stoddart'e first team.