WALLACE AND DONNELLY COMBINE IN BRILLIANT FOURTH WICKET STAND

Otago Daily Times, Issue 27081, 16 May 1949, Page 5

WALLACE AND DONNELLY COMBINE IN BRILLIANT FOURTH WICKET STAND

New Zealand Press Association—Copyright i » Rec. 9.10 p.m. LEICESTER, May 14. A glorious fourth wicket partnership by Wallace and Donnelly in which the two New Zealanders, scoring at the rate of 100 an hour, were together for 299 runs, was the backbone of a first-innings total of 430 runs against Leicester. Wallace and Donnelly came together after Sutcliffe and Scott were both dismissed without scoring and Hadlee had collected only 15. With supreme confidence and cricket artistry the vice-captain and the lefthander mastered Leicester’s varied attack on a wicket that was fairly bare of grass, took the turn slowly, and after the Oval, where frost after the preparation apparently caused early crumbling, was a batsman’s delight.

Under a cloudless sky and in hot sunshine. Wallace made 171 and Donnelly 146; New Zealand’s innings lasted just on five hours, and nearly 10,000 Deople were delighted at. the high average rate of scoring—B6 an hour. The New Zealand tail drooped. When Scott went with the match ■only two balls old the spectators were so shocked that they only murmured their surprise and looked doubtfully at the small boys shrilling. “ He’s out! ” Scott had pulled a long hop. The ball struck his left heel to rebound and dribble against the wicket with sufficient momentum to remove the bails. It was bad luck for the gener-ous-natured Aucklander and one for none made sad reading. Hadlee arrived to glide Symington to leg for 4, and then Sutcliffe faced the medium-paced left-armer, Sperry. The Leicesterman was swinging the balls' away from Sutcliffe. Then he bowled one a little wide of the off stump. Sutcliffe covered defensively,

off-driving and leg-glancing with the habit of a mature batsman. In half an hour he had 30 runs and Wallace was content and leaned on his bat or played defensively with his left elbow at an acute angle. When he was 42 Donnelly was rather bothered by Walsh, a slow left-arm Australian spinner, and flicked at two balls turning away from his off stump. He survived a very confident appeal. It was the shape of things to coma for he went in exactly that manner—but not until he had scored 104 piore runs. Then Wallao bestirred himself, hit eight 4’s in a row and one 6 on to the veranda of the dining room, and reached his fifty in one hour and a-helf, and went racing on to the 60’s. Donnelly reached 50 in 55 minutes. The first century partnership arrived in the same time and at lunch there was 149 on the board, Wallace 67, Donnelly 56. . After lunch they returned with a. will, rattled on 50 in half an hour, 100 in an hour, seeing the ball like a balloon Donnelly was the first to get his century and Wallace was halfway up the pitch ta sneak a‘ single to make sure he did, in one hour 50 minutes. Then Wallace hooked high and hard and he was 101 in two hours five minutes, his third century of the tour. In two hours five minutes of their partnership Wallace and Donnelly put on 200 runs. Another 99 came in the next hour, and between them the two New Zealanders produced every kirnj of stroke in the batting curriculum. Before he went, Donnelly (22 4’s) made one late cut, his bat darting like a python’s tongue. Walsh had him at length, and Wallace remained until after tea. Then Walsh drew him out of his crease and Corrall, who was taking his benefit, nearly strained his vocal chords. Wallace had arrived when the score was four. He left when it was 360 with four hours 40 _ ' minutes’ work behind him. He hit 29 4’s and one 6. It appeared at long last -that Reid, after some protracted query about a bump ball, was there to stay. He made 45 in one hour and, keen for a single at the end of the-over, began to sprint off his right foot, slipped and broke his wicket. It was wretched luck for the Wellington boy, who only requires the comfort of a really good score to find his confidence on this tour. Rabone looked like making runs, executed two stylish square cuts and then, in rushing for a quick single, saw Tompkin crack the wicket witbv a swooping under-arm throw.

the ball bounced on the seam, turned and hit the middle stump. It was a beautiful ball but its merits temporarily escaped the New Zealand lefthander. Both opening bats had gone for a “ pair ” with only 4 runs on the board. There was plenty of reason for Wallace to appear pensive as he took guard, and he refrained from his usual opening overture of a 4. Instead, he thoughtfully tapped Symington to leg for a single and then announced his intention of remaining by a perfect cover drive. Hadlee, understandably a little venturesome on a wicket so attractive after the Oval nightmare, lofted Symington to Tompkin at mid-off and had a life when the ball popped away from the fieldsman's left hand. Shortly afterwards, however, he failed to get sufficiently behind one from Evans, a medium off-spinner, snicked it, and was caught behind the wicket by Corrall. So Donnelly walked in with his neat, short strides with the board reading three for 32; three hours five minutes later he returned and then the score read 331 for four. In that period we watched some delightful batting which, in the immediate after-lunch period, piled on runs at the rate of 100 an hour. Donnelly began with one of his per-fectly-timed off-drives just wide of the wicket, liked the feel of it, repeated it, and then, with a graceful turn of his wrists took three with a leg glance, all off Evans. Wallace repeated that perfect cover drive of his, a model of footwork and timing, and for variation and good measure squarecut Jackson, the slbw off-spinner who had replaced Sperry. The first hour brought 62 runs and the partnership was well on its way. Donnelly continued with his' rapid rate of scoring,