CRICKET.

Waikato Times, Volume 106, Issue 17804, 31 August 1929, Page 20 (Supplement)

CRICKET.

APPRECIATION OF DUCKWORTH

ENGLAND’S WICKET-KEEPER.

Here is an impression of George Duckworth, England’s wicket-keeper, contributed to the Yorkshire Sports and Cricket Argus by a Lancashire colleague in the person of Charles Hallows, who writes: — There arc many strange things about cricket and cricketers—little "side-line” problems which hit one from time to time. One of these side issues, which struck me not so long ago was this:

How Is It that so many of the best wicket-keepers are llttlo fellows? Are they small because, having bent down behind the wickets a lot they have not grown as much as they would otherwise have done, or have they taken to wicket-keeping because, being limited In other directions, that department of cricket was the one obviously open to them?

I am not going to make any attempt to answer the question which I have set. The fact remains, though. For years and years Bert Strudwick kept wicket for England —a little fellow who, when adorned with ordinarysized pads, seemed to have chest protectors on at the same time. And the successor to “Slruddy” is another little fellow —my county pal, George Duckworth.

People used to tell me that we should never have another “Struddy,” but surely the events of the past few years, and particularly the events in Australia, have proved that we have produced a worthy successor to the little man of Surrey. In Australia they know what good wicket-keeping is, for they have 'had in Bertie Oldfield one of the best, surely, that the game has ever known. And so, when Australia says, with one voice, that Duckworth was as good a wicketkeeper as any they have ever seen “down under,” we accept their opinion. No good purpose would be served by my 'making comparisons between Oklflefd, Strudwick, Duckworth, and other great cricketers. Suffice it to say that Duckworth, in my opinion, has no superiors in the all-round wicket-keeping sense. Perhaps some of my readers may raise an eyebrow over the use of the words allrroundcr as applied to a wicket-keeper. Yet it is a fact that we must always .judge a wicketkeeper by his ability in the all-round sense; that is, his ability to take, and to keep to. any kind of bowling. It is here that I think Duckworth shines most of all. Wo have wicket-keepers who are particularly good when standing up to break bowlers; we have others who are at their best when standing up to express men, but Duckworth can take all sorts. That I think, Is the real reason why he got Into the England side—because all bowling comes alike to him.