CRICKET.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXIII, Issue 7336, 14 January 1911, Page 7

CRICKET.

Mr C G Wilson, the well-known Otago cricketer. returned to Dunedin during tne week alter a visit o. several weeks in .Australia, where lie was fortunate enough to witness the two test matches between tho South Africans and Australian teains, and se\eral interstate matches, in the evening Mr Wilson conveyed a. few of his unuressions 01 the South Africans and tho Australians to a "Daily l; mes roporter. Tho members of tho South Airican team, said Mr Wilson. ha\e made a wonderful impression by their line behaviour, both on and off the field, as-true sportsmen. With the exception of Faulkner, their batsmen do not possess the flnisned stylo of the best batsmen of Australia, but every man on their side was a | flshter. They 'were practising very hard I to get accustomed to the conditions of the last Australian wickets, and the result was 1 t. they were putting up larger scores against the fast bowling as they went along. Still, they did not seem to be at home with the fast bowler, and did not. play him with any degree of confidence. Bit they were without doubt a team of. triers.

Faulkner's performance in the second test on tlie Melbourne ground, when lie nut up a score of 204 runs, must, says Mr Wilson, be classed as one of the finest innings that has ever been seen in a test match. His favourite strokes were to the offl, in front of point, and some beautiful * glances. Slierwell, the wicket-keeper, was almost perfection, and never unnecessarily broke the wicket. His easy style could not be improved upon. Schwarz was the mainstay of their bowling. Their other bowlers were only of medium calibre. Sinclair was a bard hitter, and would delight the crowd and would be a much better batsman if he would restrain ! "i°elf more than he did. He was too much inclined to go for everv ball, and was altogether too anxious. Still, he was a delif-htful batsman to watch, and scored very fast. The remaining batsmen were of the patient order, and not such as to thrill the onlookers. A striking difference between the Australians and the South Vfricans was the manner in which the 'irmer got sintrles. They secured them from hits for which the South Africans would never attemnt to run, they preto wait until the ball had passed the fieldsmen. If thev could onlv run for *.h.*> pineries as the Australians did, it would make a very big difference to their score.

With the exception of Trumper, Hill and Bardsley, none of the Australian batsmen, Mr Wilson added, played the googly "stuff" with any degree of confidence. Faulkner and Trumper were two different batsmen. Trumper was a much more aggressive player, and a peculiar feature of Mto play when Schwarz was bowling to Trumper was that thev had no b'w. This was owing to Trnmper's placing of the ball • ; th his back-cuts, and in to save the boundary hits in. this dirivMnu the nearest fieldsman was placed from 30 to 40 vards awav from the wicket. Yet, in spite of this-, Tnmper continually back-cut Schwarz past these men, showing some beautiful p'ay. Trumper was a player who took risks, as was instanced when, by back-cuttine. he nnlW the ball on. On -v-"r hand, Faulkner was of the safe order of player.

"Writing of the second test match "Felix" in the "Australasian," says:—Slierwell's wicket-keeping was a theme for universal and unstinted praise. Without a shadow of doubt he is a dab hand with the gloves. Moro than once I heard the -words, "Masterly done," "beautiful work," "couldn't be bettered." What I especially admire about his work is his deftness. Pull of animation, he is always alert and Bprv, and there is not the slip-litest manifestation of embroidery. Wonderfully quick to the bails, he is equally at home in taking from the bowler or from the Held. Not : a single bve is down against him in the total of 348. The catch made hv Nonrse was worth going miles to see. He was stationed out'at deep squsre-leg, towards the old scoring-board. Whitty made a fine hit off Faulkner. Most peonle thought it was a fourer. Suddenly the grandlv-built Nourse ran his level best for several . yards, and with a final aerial spring collared the ball with his le r t hand, ■piie cheering was tremendous in recognition of this superb cat" l-1 , one of the finest possible to conceive. Strieker, far away on the other side 'of the ground, at forward square-le*. made an admirable running catch which disposed of Cotter. Strieker missed Whitty in almost the same snot, bnt he had to face the sun. »nd I fancy this had something to do with his error. Faulkner, at short slip, made a snlondid and successful dive for the Kelloway catch.

Touching on the campaign of the South Africans, "The Latest" (Durban) remarks that: "It will be interesting to read Australian opinion of Faulkner, as an allround exponent of the game. My own opinion is tba.t he is entitled to rank w'th Hirst and Noble at their be3t, as the greatest all-rounder 'of the laet fifteen yearß. As a batsman he is probably Hot as good as Noble has been, and as a bowler he may not have equalled Hirst: but. on the other hand, aa a bowler he is Noble's superior, and as a batsman Hirst's. With Faulkner it is a difficult matter to say which he is the better—batsman or howler." Commenting on .this, "N t Out," in the Sydney "Referee" a.-Jd3:—On what we have seen of 0. A. Faulkner in Sydney, I should not hesitate to sav that he - ; s greater with the bat than the ball. He is quite a different style of batsman from M. A Noble, and on all wickets can sorrcely be inferior to- the Sidney champion in his best form. As a bowler on Australian wickets he is not so great as M. A. Noble was in his prime, though on English wickets ho would probably be a better howler than M.A.N. Sinco the above was written Faulkner has played his great Innings of the Becond tCBt match. ... As one watched G. A. Faulkner batting against .the Combinted Universities, his form was so beautiful, the placing so sunerior to anything I had seen from him before, and the off-strokes so clean and hard, that I said to myßelf: "This man will finish np the tour in Australia as one of the two greatest right-handers in the world." It appeared to me that ho had already been improved by his Australian experiences, and particularlv in his placing and power on the off side, bv brushing un against the best of our batsmen. And if that was so, it was likely to >o 01 to the close of the tour, and after that Sontli wo'ild see in h-"m a g-wtcr batsma.n than the G. A. Po.u'Vncr they had last Feen on their own wickets.

Interest in the fnrth< , o»v"nc v'sit of tho Ind'an crinVet team to England as the time tfraws near for the trial wn'rhm in "Fomlmv, prervtratorv t'o the flection 'of the team (write, t>o Ceylon "S-vrtsra"n"). It has been dee'ded f nl»y a peries of trial wmov in Fehrnarv. nn>i alreadv.the Bclct.i'm fionvitte© are hnsv in picking "ivfc the rrv*n who- a.re *o tal-e wirt >n tfie=e "n'E'iminorr can f-ers." It wou'd N> a ranit.al hVp if ar-en-nM he m"de to "■-1 too-pHier a "earn i»m'F«ii! of Ei?i«li ama-»->T,r, and rr-fe'"^"! o now in In*"* to -v, n -%+, flip l>roh"Hft t*r*»i <"o r "E-io-_ u n vl, There are haif-"-d-T«n Knp-'-pli »>rn <»«;oiiil« at l)r~»"> 'i T " J ia. t>"V»> <-» *>V>l PoacH-" H-p M>ha-a<"*> „f p.j.tjf.lj.'f 'no-n f|r,J the „*. IT* "•'« -a r. fl«.> —ith ' an m-r.tr well l"">irn Fne-Mol, -,",-. ,„„-o at TJ-,™V.p~ ar,d T3„~„p ;,. W „„ M „„. t-» ,*,-<«=..„]* t/i h r !n~ ah-nt, -~ph p cr.arPP T+- io ve* %t-i,«tho-- tt tt. t^ e Qnliih will 1-c nMe to iva' , e-t-'Ve tw t.r!» I* wa.a recent 7 *-, in a.n T*„p.Vol« that P-in-e "Ram" barf:. deflnit»lv -tpeide'l not to eo. but this ha« pince I*9en contradicted in Bombay. *We sip-erelv hope that this gTeat crietetet will eventually nnd it posibfo to lay

aside the reins of office and go at the head of the Indian team. Apart from the fact that his inclusion in the touring Eide wili strengthen it a hundredfold, it would be the greatest advertisement for the team, to have at its helm one of the world's most famous cricketers. CANTERBTJRT THURSDAY ASSOCIATION. TEAMS TO PLAT WELLINGTON. SPECIAL TO TIIE "' TIMES." CHBISTCHURCTI, January 13. The following have been selected to represent the Thursday Cricket Association a" linst Wellington. at Wellington, oil January 23rd and 24th:— Soniors.-F. A'pe, H. Bi™?t, K. Barritt, C Bright, Bett'e. . I>. Camp.bell, Ldser, Vri!.'".LM.i'd, M-M ihon, Sefton, Sinipsont emergency, Lewis. | Juniors.—An r.ws, Morgan, Re'd. Stevenson, Prnnciß, Booker, l'olard, Baker, Gelletv. Simpsoa Charles; emergency, Ga'lagher. The teams will leave Christchurch ft» Wellington by the 11 p.m. steamer on January 21st. , TEAIfS FCE TO-DAT. Wellington South v. Petono. at Pctone (third class).—Kin''e!l. Litt e, LeCrcu, Nelson, Parton, R/jbinson, Ryan, Suckling, Tavlor, Webb, and Weight. Evans Bay A v. Albion.—Bennett. well, P. C.aridge, Day, Fitzgerald, Kecgan, Kershaw, Plimmer, Morrison, Wr'gley. Smith. B team v. Wanderers, Anderson .Park.—Clarice, fiambrill (2), Brown, Ogier Kerr. Connor, Hunter, Kolls, Flanagan, Williams.