DART'S TEAM REACH HOME.

Marlborough Express, Volume XXXI, Issue 161, 2 July 1895, Page 3

DART'S TEAM REACH HOME.

Mr Stoddabt's cricket team reached England on May Bth, and the members were " interviewed" by reporters who could catdh them. The following is a part of Richardson's examination : — " Now tell me something about thi^Australian wickets. How did you feel when you commenced to bowl^ on them, and had you to alter if|§r style?" T7r!at^ Z. nrs'u 'ucgan to bowl out t^icre I simply went on the lines that I; adopt m this country —pitohingthe bklls m the same way, and attempting to get the same amount of work from them. I soon found it wouldn't do a^ all. I can compare the wickets out there to nothing else than hard asphalt, and they are as true as a die." " Well, what was the efieot of your bowling m the old way ?" " The effect was disastrous to me. I found that I was simply sending down half volleys, and I gave away nearly 400 runs for the first nine wickets I captured." " Then you altered your tactics, I suppose ?" "Yes, I commenced to wonder whatever I would do, and I soon discovered that m order to get the balls to rise I should require to pitch them quite two yards shorter than I do over here." "Supposing you were to pitch the ball as ' short' m this country as you did m Australia, how would it rise?" "Why, it would come up about breast high and -would probably knock the head off men of the size of Abel or Briggs." "Then you found by pitching short that you bowl almost as well m that country as m England." "-Yes: excepting that I couldn't get anything like the same work on the ball. As^argen_eralrule I couldn'i make the ' do' more -than perhaps two inches, with an occasional delivery breaking three inches. IiTTSa? rather curious," he added, "thai nearly all the Australian batainer attempted to play me hi the same way. They either played forward with their bat at a slight angle ec that the ball would glance off, oi they would play back, and stepping m front of the wicket play the bal off; th^ir legs? Nearly.all runs of my bowling were got m this way." " What do you think of the £us tr&iaff batsmen ?" '" • " They have some grand men ow there. . George Giffen m Australia it a very different batsman from th< George Giffen we have seen in'Ehg land. Perhaps you will remembei that when he was m England last ! used to get his wicket frequently Well, m Australia I tried, and tried and tried, and began to despair o ever bowling him. But I got him a last. He is a great batsman." " And what about the younge men?" " Oh, they have some splendid bat 'coming on.? There is Iredale, fo instance, Darling, Albert Trott, am young Clem Hill. The latter is i wonderful promising batsman, believe Australian batting was neve stronger than at present." " Would you like to go back t Australia next year ?" "Well, I like Australia, but nc next year, thank you. Say the sea son after, and I might be temptec for I should certainly like to visit th colonies