TEST SENSATION

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LXV, Issue 19666, 25 June 1938, Page 5

TEST SENSATION

EARLY TOLL CHECKING OF COLLAPSE HAMMOND 210 NOT OUT PAYNTER MARKS 99 RUNS ENGLAND 409 FOR FIVE (Elec. Tel. Copyright—United Press Assn.) (Reed. June 25, 11 a.m.) LONDON, June 24. The weather was line and hot for the opening at Lord’s of the second cricket test of the season between Australia and England. Twenty thousand spectators were present when the game began. Hundreds were coatless.

The gates were closed at noon when every seat had been sold. The crowd then totalled 30,000. Hammond won the toss and England batted. Though the fall of three wickets for 31 runs appeared to presage disaster for England, the fourth wicket took the tally to 253 and at the drawing of stumps for the day England’s score was 409 runs for five wickets.

At the luncheon adjournment' the score was 134 for three wickets. The teams are as follow: —

England.—W. R. Hammond (captain), K. Fames, IT. Verity, L. Hutton, L. E. G. Ames, D. V. P. Wright, C. J. Barnett, E. Paynter, D. C. S. Compton, W. J. Edrich, A. W. Wellard, and J. Plardstafi (twelfth man). Australia. —D. G. Bntdman (captain), S. J. McCabe, .1. H. Fingleton, W. A. Brown, C. L. Badcock. A. G. Chippcrfield, A, L. Hassett, W. J. O’Reilly, E. L. McCormick, L. O’B. Fleetwood-Smith, 8.. A. Barnett and M. G. Waite (twelfth man).

McCormick opened the Australian attack from the pavilion end. A light breeze was blowing across the wicket. McCabe bowled from the other end.

Disaster came early for England. Hutton, after scoring four off a noball from McCormick, played defensively at a shortish in-swinger to the leg stump and cocked up an easy catch to Brown at short square-leg. There was plenty of life in the wicket. McCormick, bowling at the highest speed he had achieved since his arrival in England, badly beat Edrich in the third over and shattered the stumps. Thus two wickets were down for 20 runs within 20 minutes, discounting England’s advantage in winning the toss. Ilammand joined Barnett, who was batting with characteristic confidence, and began crisply. With the first ball of McCormick’s fifth over, Barnett was out. The ball was pitched well up on the oIT-stump and Brown, dashing from short square-leg, held a spooned-up catch. Three for Fifteen McCormick’s tally was then three wickets for 15 runs, a sensational first half-hour. Fleetwood-Smith replaced McCabe when the score was 35, O’Reilly a little later replacing McCormick. Fingleton went close to throwing down Paynter's wicket.

The atmosphere became less tense with Hammond and Paynter playing Fleetwood-Smith and O’Reilly firmly. Hammond was especially graceful and confident. He crashed O'Reilly to the boundary on several occasions. Paynter, after making 17 runs in an hour, hooked Fleetwood-Smith to square-leg for six, raising 100 in 95 minutes and the partnership was worth 100 after 85 minutes at a remarkable rate considering England's b;td position.

At lunch the brilliance of Hammond and the patience of Paynter had helped to offset Australia’s advantage. Play was resumed 10 minutes late after lunch, the King, accompanied by Earl Baldwin, having been introduced to the teams by Hammond and Bradman in front of the stand, after which Hammond called for cheers. The batsmen continued to score at a good rate. Hammond, at 87, square cut McCormick hard to point, where O'Reilly missed a difficult low lefthand catch.

Applause for Hammond

Chipperfield, who bowled one over before lunch, came on again at 178. Paynter, at 54, drove one hard straight back to Chipperfield, who missed a difficult high catch. The ball went to the boundary. Hammond reached his century in 145 minutes, the Australians joining in the applause for a magnificent innings, easily his finest test innings against Australia in England. Fleetwood-Smith and Chipperfield were expensive and the total of 200 was passed in 175 minutes. McCormick used a new ball, but his pace had sadly fallen off. The partnership was worth 200 runs in 100 minutes. McCormick was limping and appeared to have strained an ankle. He dropped to half pace.

The batsmen now were decidedly the masters and scored freely, but when !)9 Paynter nervously faced O’Reilly and walked straight into a leg-before trap. His was a sound and occasionally brilliant innings, which lasted 185 minutes and included one six and 13 fours.

The partnership of 222 is a fourth wicket record for England. Compton was unhappy against O’Reilly and was out trying for a big on-drive. Hammond and Ames baited quietly