THE THIRD TEST

Otago Daily Times, Issue 23082, 7 January 1937, Page 9

THE THIRD TEST

AUSTRALIA’S STRONG POSITION SECOND INNINGS TOTAL 564 DOUBLE CENTURY TO BRADMAN ENGLAND SIX FOR 236 (United Press Association) (By Electric Telegraph—Copyright) MELBOURNE, Jan. 6. (Received Jan. 7, at 1 a.m.) AUSTRALIA First Innings Nine wicketi (declared) for .. 200

ENGLAND’S COLOSSAL TASK REGARDED AS IMPOSSIBLE By J. B. Hobbs (Copyright in all countries. Reproduction in whole or in part forbidden.) MELBOURNE, Jan. 6. (Received Jan. 6, at 11 p.m.) Six hundred and eighty-nine runs stood between England and the “Ashes ” when they started in on their colossal task in the second innings immediately after lunch. It is just as easy to describe it as impossible, for such a total has never before been compiled in a last innings. Australia had a big lead with which to start the second innings, and one always finds in a case like that that things go right for the batting side and they continue to pile up runs. When you have runs to get it is a different proposition. Little accidents will happen, and the wicket, although in really wonderful condition considering that there have been four days of play on it, can’t be quite the same as for a first innings knock. So if England get anything above 350 they won’t be disgraced. England did not escape Tuesday’s gruelling unscathed. Voce damaged his ankle and could not take the field to-day. Barnett threw his arm out slightly, Leyland is suffering from an old shoulder injury, and I shouldn’t have been surprised to see Robins’s arm come right out with all the throwing he did. He gave a marvellous fielding display and must have been as tired as Bradman last night. Bradman has a cold and did not field in the second innings. It settled on his chest. He told me that if it had been a close fight he would have gone on the field, but as things were the risk would be foolish. He played before lunch and must have felt it was too much effort to hit the ball, but I believe if he had wished he could have stayed there as long as he liked, the field opened out and allowed him to get singles. Bradman only three times attempted ‘really big hits. One hook went to long-on for two and a terrific off drive from Hammond didn’t bring a run because it went straight to extra cover, where Robins stopped it heroically The third was the cause of his downfall. Verity had been withheld for a long time, but coming on bowling over the wicket, Bradman tried to hit him over the heads of the near fieldsmen He skied the ball wide of mid-on. where Allen safely held a very difficult catch, running away from the wicket with his back to it. I didn’t know Bradman was ill yesterday It was not quite the old Don and . called it a fighting innings, which was nearer the truth than I imagined Everyone in Australia was buzzing with excitement over his big score last night, and there was no other topic of conversation A heated controversy has arisen over people attempting to compare Bradman with Hammond I’m sorry, for they are two entirely different batsmen each great in his own way There’s truth in the old tag that comparisons are odious After striving all yesterday and rapturing only one wicket, England secured two with two balls to-day Allen who was still putting plenty of vim into his deliveries, got M'Cabe leg before under the new rule and Darling played on the next ball Darling was trying out not at all a good shot to attempt off the first ball, because it was not wide enough to cut. Runs seemed of little account, though each was another screw in England’s coffin. When England started batting they soon had luck Worthington, when he was one. tried to hook Sievers, but mistimed the ball badly and gave Fleetwood - Smith a chance forward of shortleg, which was not accepted England made their best first wicket start in a test this season.

but it was nothing to shout about, as it beat the 27 at Sydney by only two runs. Then Barnett went legbefore to O’Reilly, who twice appealed against him for the same thing in the previous over. It looked a clear case. Worthington wasn’t timing the ball well, and at 65, in playing forward to Ward, he was caught at slip. Despite this, by tea England had scored practically a run a minute for a total of 98. Hammond scored liberally off FleetwoodSmith, though he also made splendid shots off Ward. FleetwoodSmith wasn’t able to drop the ball the same length to Hammond as to Leyland, whom he troubled a few times. I think he must have an inferiority complex when bowling against the Gloucester man. M'Cabe captained the side m Bradman’s absence, and soon put a man on the boundary at extra cover to block Hammond’s shots. Probably no wicket has been so good as this one in a fourth innings, considering that 840 runs have already been scored on it. The batsmen played rather more freely this afternoon. Was it because they felt there was nothing hanging to the game? Completing a really excellent half century in 75 minutes, Hammond made what looked to be like a careless stroke to Sievers and was bowled. Leyland played cautiously, as he has so often on this tour. I think he has temporarily lost those offside shots for which he is famous in England. The majority of his runs were scored on the on-side. ' It might almost be said that the game, from Australia’s viewpoint, went according to plan. I wish England had fought a little harder this afternoon. I know the position was hopeless, but this was hardly an excuse for them for crumbling up. Fleetwood-Smith was erratic, but delivered several excellent balls. ENGLISH PRESS COMMENT LONDON, Jan. 5. The evening papers hail Bradman’s score with mixed wonder and consternation, which is best expressed by the Star’s coster, Still piling on the agony.” Mr Carson, in the Evening News, says 500 has never been seen in a fourth innings of a test, but as the Australians were two games down Bradman was compelled to bat tp the bitter end. “ Bradman and Fingleton played the bowling with appalling confidence Of course, we were bound to have a Bradman century. The batsmen frequently turned ones into twos and twos into threes, and had England been batting half of these runs would not have been attempted.” ENGLISH FIELDING SPLENDID SYDNEY, Jan. 6. C. G. Macartney, in the Sydney Morning Herald, commenting on the third test, says the situation is hopeless for England, and the Issue of the match is only a matter of time. Australia set out yesterday to settle the issue, and the methods employed by Bradman and Fingleton from the outset were cautious and the scoring was slow. Nevertheless, the batsmen became firmly entrenched, and no bowler showed any signs of being able to dislodge them. Fingleton played his role admirably. His defence was impregnable, and he was doubly careful that no mistake on his part should jeopardise Australia’s chance of retaining the “ ashes,” Bradman for a long time was not the hectic Bradman, but he made no mistake about the ultimate result. His innings was a mixture of sound defence and punishing strokes, but it was not of an adventurous type. For the first time .in the series Australia revealed its batting powers and it is satisfactory to know that the paptain is showing the way. The English bowling and fielding were never loose, rather the opposite. The fielding generally was splendid. Verity took the bowling honours. No liberties could be taken with him, and had he been blessed by fortune he would have broken the partnership. One admirable feature of the play was the running between the wickets, and stolen singles were delightfully judged. This judgment was of even greater value when the fine fielding and field placement are considered. BRADMAN’S GREAT RECORD SYDNEY, Jan. 6. The test partnership of 346 by Bradman and Fingleton for the sixth wicket is a test record. Bradman has now made six scores of more than 200 in tekts against England. Hammond, with three, is the only other batsman with more than one innings of 200 Bradman had made a century against England in each of four test appearances in Melbourne, and Fingleton has made five centuries in six successive test matches. He compiled a century in each of the last three tests in South Africa last season and two in the first three against England this season. Commenting on yesterday’s play, the Sydney Morning Herald’s cricket writer says Bradman has stepped back on his throne. He showed that he is again capable of demoralising the best bowlers A. A Mailey, in the Daily Telegraph, expresses the opinion that, if the best team is chosen, Australia will win the fourth test and win the “ ashes ” in the following test

Second Innings O’Reilly, c and b Voce 0 Fleetwood-Smith, c Verity, b 0 Ward, c Hardstaff, b Verity ., 18 Rigg, Ibw (new rule), b Sims 47 Brown, c Barnett, b Voce 20 Fingleton, c Ames, b Sims 136 Bradman, c Allen, b Verity 270 M'Cabe, Ibw (new rule), b Allen 22 Darling, b Allen 0 Sievers, not out 25 Oldfield, Ibw, b Verity 7 Extras 19 Total .. .. . 564 Additional Fall of Wickets —Seven for 511, eight for 511, nine for 549, 10 for 564. Bowling Analysis 0. M. R. W. Voce .... 29 2 120 3 Hammond .. 22 3 89 Allen .... 23 2 84 2 Verity .... 37.7 S 79 3 Robins .... 11 2 46 Sims .. ..23 1 109 2 Worthington 4 — 18 ENGLAND First Innings Nine wickets (declared) for .. 76 Second Innings Barnett, Ibw, b O’Reilly . 23 Worthington, c Sievers, b Ward 16 Hammond, b Sievers 51 Leyland, not out 69 Ames, b Fleetwood-Smith ., .. 19 Hardstaff, c Ward, b Fleetwood17 Alien, c Sievers, b FleetwoodSmith 11 Robins, not out 27 Extras .. .. 3 Total for six wickets .. 236 Fall of Wickets. —One for 29, two for 65, three for 117, four for 155, five for 179, six for 195. Bowling Analysis 0. M. R. W. Sievers .... 8 2 19 1 M'Cabe .... 4 — 13 O’Reilly .... 16 6 40 1 FleetwoodSmith .... 21 1 101 3 Ward .... 12 1 60 1