SUNDAY CRICKET

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXIX, Issue 21245, 27 July 1932, Page 11

SUNDAY CRICKET

SUGGESTION IN ENGLAND CRITIC OF MODERN GAME LONDON, July 18 As one of the cures for the financial ills of county cricket clubs, the Gloucester amateur, Mr. B. H. Lyon, suggests that Sunday cricket should be introduced. Writing in the Daily Mail, Mr. Lyon laments the deadly dullness of county cricket, which, he says, results in poor attendances and poverty-stricken clubs. , The critic can see only one remedy for this, namely, limiting an innings to a fixed period. " With some counties the position*is so bad that the M.C.C. is considering putting them on the dole," he says. " We are all worried at their precarious situation, but nobody does anything except—l forgot—the M.C.C. increased the size of the wicket by an inch." Mr. Lyon emphasises the difference between the present and " grand old days " of cricket, when "Ranji," Jessop, Richardson, " Sammy " Woods and Trumper were' playing. In those days, Grace batting on a natural wicket would flick the fastest delivery " out of his beard." " Nowadays,"' writes Mr. Lyon, " Ave see Jardine on a perfect pitch patting Hearne's slow off-breaks gently back to t?.c bowler by a perfect forward stroke, or a copybook back shot. " And Jardine is' England's captain and the cynosure of all young cricketers. Writers defend this kind of play—which, I believe, is slowly killing the game—as demonstrating the science of cricket at its best, and fascinating those understanding the finer points. " To-day, batsmen play a clianceless innings for 40 in three hours, yet people ask, 'What is wrong with cricket?' " Replying to critics Mr. Lyon denies that a time limit would lead to slogging. He says it would only cause batsmen to take reasonable risks in order to get runs. He points out that the M.C.C. refused to try the time limit experiment, although it was empowered to alter the laws.