JACK HOBBS ON BATTING.

Wairarapa Daily Times, 5 January 1926, Page 2

JACK HOBBS ON BATTING.

CHAMPION" GIVES ADVICE. The first principle of correct batting is the stance, aiul though many famous batsmen seem to vary considerably in tlreir attitude at the wickets, it will be found that the difference is more apparent than real, it will be noticed that there is nothing rigid or stilted in the pose; each has adopted an attitude which allows him to stand easily and yet gives the. best view of the ball in its flight and the greatest freedom or' arm action in making the strokes. The apparent differences" between great batsmen are occasioned by the greater height, longer leg-length, or longer aim length of each individual. Just as practically all men differ in one or more of -these: respects, so will there scarcely ever be uniformity in stance except in the sense I have indicated. Personally, I hold the bat about the middle of the handle; that is, the right hand below the middle and the left above it. I think the short grip with the right hand nearly down to the blade socket, favoured by a few batsmen, unnecessarily cramps the freedom of stroke, and the “long handle” gives too much scope for accuracy; it would be apt to lead to miss-hits. Only the “hitter” should have any use for the latter method, and though the “hitter” may have a certain value in a team besides the spectacular, he is not generally the reliable run-getter of a side. KEEPING THE BALL DOWN. The right or lower hand should grip the bat firmly, with the wrist right behind its front, the thumb and linger joints presented to the ball, while the grip with the left hand should be such that the knucklebones should go forward with the face of the bat in making a drive. The grip with the left hand will bo light, but it will have the effect, when standing on guard or in repose, of slightly turning the face or tlve bat towards the batsman’s legs. All this helps you to keep the ball on the floor, no matter which stroke you make, and of course gives less chance to the fieldsmen. The left hand should not, however, to hold the bat that the action of the left arm cramps the swing as I hu\c seen so often.

]f in this article I put chiefly my own style, mv excuse is that it is the style best known to me, the style X have tested and found not unsuccessful, and, above all, the style that suits me! Other batsmen will have to find by experience and slight variations the style that suits them. Therefore, I would be the last to say, or even think, that because a batsman differs in method from mo he is wrong. Just as likely he is absolutely right—for him.

I generally prefer “one leg” because I believe that with the bat covering the leg stump and my feet almost close together and fairly close to the bat I can (1) get a more true sight of the direction of the ball, and (-) be in die best position to deal with all sorts of balls, or. if necessary, ready to move smartly to the right position at the moment of contact with the ball. I am not a devotee of the “ two-eyed’ ? stance —that is, standing face on to the bowler—a, tendency .that made its appearance in England siino years ago. X contend that with the left shoulder well advanced towards the bowler though the right is not necessarily out of his view, one can, with a slight turn of the head, get a Clear and true sight of the ball with both eyes. VALUE OP JUDGMENT.

Now anybody can be taught to place himself and hold his bat correctly, but it is after this that the real art of the batsman begins.

First and foremost is judgment, which no coach can give to the ciichoter. Natural aptitude and practice or experience alone can do that what balls to hit and how to hit them, and what balls should be left alone.. What a coach can do is to point out mistakes and how to remedy them. llow quickly a batsman can shed wrong and adopt right, methods almost instinctively indicates his natural aptitude for the art of batting. With the easiest stance and the feet not too far apart the batsman is in the best position to step back—it may be for a purely defensive stroke or a late cut or pull—or to step forward to force a good ball past cover or to jump out 'and turn it into a half-volley and “follow through” with a. powerful drive. But when once you have made up vonr mind how you are to play the ball, do it with complete singleness of purpose. Ho not bo caught in two minds. Hit truly am}, with Mil power, but without any undue strain. A powerful shot, even if it goes to a fieldsman, is less likely to be caught, and more batsmen are out to half-hearted strokes than are generally realsiod. DENTON'S “LUCK.”

David Dent on, wlio is now an umpire in England, and was a very successful batwnm.ii for Yorkshire, was said to have had more of his catches dropped than any other cricketer. “Denton’s Luck*’ was proverbial. But I never did agree that Denton’s luck accounted for his many escapes. Denton Was a thorough, believer in the power of. the bat. When he hit he hit with a will — not wildly or terrifically, but powerfully, And so crisply that the ball always t rave'.led with great force to the fieldsman' —so. fa'st that I contended many of his 'escapes were not “chances” at all in'the true sense of the word. The ball may have conic to the fieldsman’s hands, but it was so “hot” that it was not surprising it was dropped. There i 9 a lesson here for all batsmen. If chances must be l given—and they always will be —they might just as well be made as difficult as possible. The position of the feet when on guard is important, but it is the proper use of the ftc-t when playing the

h'lii'l that marks the first-class batsman. The movement should not only be quick, but be begun «t the earliest possible moment after the ball has left the -bowlers hand, in order that the batsman shall have placed himself in good time in the most advantageous position to make the stroke decided upon. DMA LINO WITH LEO BA'LLS. I have referred to stepping back and playing forward; these are 'actions to meet the straight ball. ■ To deal with the wcW-pitclied-up ball, the left leg should be moved across the wicket as the hat is raised in -order that the full weight of the body he got behind the ■off drive. For the cut the right leg should be moved across. Only thus can ’the bodys poise be preserved and command bo kept over the placing of the stroke. But tire use of the feet is never more important than when dealing with the bn.ll on the leg side, and for no ball is rapid movement more necessary. The instant the ball is seen to be outside the leg stump, the batsman should step in front of his wicket if he intends to execute a leg hit or glide; that is, if the bowling is anything from medium to fast. Against a slow bowler neither the decision nor movement niecd he so prompt, and the- ball, if a trifle short, may decide the batsman to stand his ground and pull it to square leg. This method of poise and stance may be found profitable in meeting a medium fast, well-pitched-up ball on the leg side. FORGET TIIE WICKETS.

To all batsmen I would say that once ■having taken vour guard and stance, forget that there< are three wickets behind you, and remember that it is your business to get the full face of the bat to the ball, no matter how it comics, to you, and generally it. is the best policy to put your fullest power behind the stroke ,except when you have been forced, as happens frequently enough, to play purely on the defensive.

There is the other exception when you deliberately “puli’ ’ your stroke, not in the cricket sense, but as boxers ■at sparing practice “pull” their punches. This is in order to “steal” a short run when a harder shot would simply go straight and more quickly to the fieldsman. But the policy of the “short single” when the ball is sent so much short, of the fieldsman that he has got to run almost as far as the batsman, is .an art in itself, and requires .a nice understanding with your batting partner, as well as good judgment of distance, to- bo entirely successful.