PROMISING START

Manawatu Standard, Volume LVI, Issue 304, 21 November 1936, Page 9

PROMISING START

M.C.C. MAKE 274 FOR FIVE. LEYLAND ATTRACTIVE. AUSTRALIAN BOAVLING POOR. (United Press Association—By .Electric Telegraph.—Copyright:) - . SYDNEY, Nov. 20. . Conditions were most unpleasant when the match between England and aii Australian eleven began to-day. A cold wind was blowing and rain was threatening: When Robins, winning the toss, sent Fagg and AVortbington to open for England on a perfect .wicket. The morning’s play . was most . uninspiring, the Jinglisli batsmen showing unexpected tiipiuity, when opposed to a weak Australian attack. In the first hour only. 26 runs , were scored, and during that- time AVortbington had been dismissed. Fagg had made two dangerous snicks through the- slips, and Ames also played a lucky shot past the slips. The' English openers again lail.ed.'to give their side a good start, AVortbington being coaught at square, leg off: a,wCak stroke wjien; the total was only 12. Fagg and: Ames set about playing themselves into form, and by lunch-time they were, both employing a nice range of strokes. Upon resuming, both attacked, the bowling, which lacked: variety. Gregory's slow deliveries,- ( which included many full-tosses, were severely dealt with. AVaite and Ryan were too erratic, while Ebeling, .who up to this stage appeared the most likely ' Australian to take wickets,, lost his direction and length. Ames rvas more dashing than-Fagg, racing iijto the seventies while his partner was inthe forties. The first 50 took 83 minutes, but the second only 41. minutes. The pair had added 116 runs when Chipperfield effected a separation. Ames played a forcing stroke, but struck the ball high on his bat: arid was caught in the covers. He: had batted 113 minutes and hit 10 boundaries. He made a shaky start, but thereafter played a fine innings. FAGG RESTRAINED. Chipperfield’s figures.were two for 19, when Fagg, was dismissed in exactly the same way as Ames. Fagg was at the crease for 169 minutes and hit six fours! Except for a short period after lunch, lie was very restrained. The total; was three for 147 when Leyland and Hardstaff became associated. Hardstaff compiled a' scratchy dozen before lie was smartly caught at the wicket. Fishlock, after futile attempts to combat Chipperfield, was brilliantly stumped, and with the total at five for 178 Chipperfield had four wickets for 32. Meanwhile Leyland, batting attractively, was scoring many runs on the leg side. He went back on the wicket to play the slow bowlers, but Robins stepped out and drove them. This' pair put on 50 in 36 minutes. Robins took risks and had severalnarrow escapes, but he showed that by quick footwork, slow bowlers can be punished. Leyland and .Robins were right on top at stumps. The former appears again to have struck his best form. . .. ~ ~ Bradman handled his team well, the Australians’ .fielding being first-class. England’s "score is quite a respectable one, but . perhaps piore Tuns should have been -scored against . the poor Australian eleven attack.' The attendance totalled 13,550. Details: — , ENGLAND. First Innings. Fagg, c Brown, b Chipperfield ... 49 AVortiiingtou, c Robinson, b AVaite 6 Anies, c Brown, b Chipperfield ... 76 Leyland, not out ... 79 Hardstaff, c Talloii,' b Chipperfield .12 Fishlock, st Tallon, b Chipperfield 0 Robins, not out ... 44 Extras ... ... ... ... ... 8 Total for five wickets 274 Bowling analysis.—Ebeling, none for 66; AVaite, 1 for 48; Gregory, • none for 64 ; Ryan,- none for 31;' Chipperfield, 4 for 57. CAUSE FOR UNEASINESS: THE M.C.C. DISPLAY. SLOAV BOAVLING ENIGMA. (By J. B. Hobbs.—Copy right in all countries.—Reproduction in whole or in part forbidden.) ■ • ■F' Received November 21,-9.20 a.m; SYDNEY, Nov. 21. There was somewhat happier news to report of England’s batting to-day at the start of the match with the Australian Eleven, .which contained several young batsmen and a wicket keeper on trial for their country. . Today's display, however, still gives us cause for uneasiness. AVo ought to be able to produce better cricnet than this, though it had its redeeming feature in that Fagg secured runs. Leyland played a typical innings. It was just as well we had him there when things went wrong. Tile failures of Hardstaff and Fishlock placed iis in a serious position tor some tim6, with five out for 178. The ! vexed question of the opening batsmen v i's-not settled yet. Fagg got a good, .deal of practice. If he had had soiiieone like Barnett to stay in with him it would not have mattered about' his being slow, but two men in all dhy .batting at his paoe would lead us nowhere. AVortbington was the victim of an in-swinger that came through quickly and-got up a bit. 1 was surprised to see the bail carried-to short leg as deep as the umpire when playing a delensive stroke; and from this we may consider him a bit unlucky. He or Fagg will halve to go in first. At one time 1 thought Fishlock was a first-wicket batsman; I am not 6ure that he would not be better there now, as lie has shaped badly at this legbreak stuff and was stumped to-day playing a walking shot. . Hardstaff is far from convincing at the moment. An enigma has been the slow bowling. < “ .'Chipperfield was the bogeyman today. He, never put his foot wrong, his length was..perfect, and he was able to make the hall turn. The slow rstart put a big strain on the rest of 'the team. AVith Barnett in we.'should, see a .big difference. One reason for the slowness was Ryan, who dvas bowling negative legtheory. ; A batsman, especially when, out of form, cannot be blamed for leaving alone bkllspon the leg side. Anothekfeature the crowd lost sight of that kept the scoring down was the placing''.bf the field. The Australians can tea<sh .us a lesson, in this respect, and they have always done so. Moreover their bowlers bowl to their field. “DREADFULLY SLOAV.” Insofar ‘las lie batted nearly three hours, Fagg had a useful bit of practice, but 'lie was dreadfully slow. He batted so correctly that many of his best strokes went straight, to the fields-

man. He might have been caught at the wicket when six, and was beaten by a fast yorker from Waites when 26. it was getting towards tea, and he was 49 when he allowed himself to be worried out by the crowd, who had begun to murmur ,at his sloth. Me jumped out to Clnpperfield, hit against tlie spin of a leg-break, and skied the bail. Ames batted extremely well. His confidence in making strokes amazed me, especially considering lie has been ill so long, and this was Jus second match, and practically liis second innings of the tour. Despite the slow start forced on him because we had lost our first wicket at twelve, he scored at the rate of 40 an hour, which was good, going. , He hit the hall hard to all parts of the field, neglecting only a straight drive,. He had a couple of snicks, but these ,were small blemishes in a;, really good- innings. It:was left to Robins to. put some sparkle into the cricket with his unorthodoxy. He had the crowd expecting jlrirn to get out every ball at the beginning. There are not many men able to get their left leg further down the wicket to the pitch of the hall. Ebeling bowled well enough to get three or four wickets. I was keen to watch Tallon because I had heard so much about him as the probable successor to Oldfield. He didn’t keep badly, but was a bit snatchy and has much to learn before displacing Bertie. That is not disparaging, because Oldfield is in a class by himself. The ground fielding was brilliant, as it should l>e from these youngsters. The sixth wicket stand of 96 saved our faces, and put a different complexion on the game. Without it we should have been in ‘'queer street.