CRICKET.

New Zealand Graphic, Volume XLVII, Issue 5, 31 January 1912, Page 8

CRICKET.

Victor Trnmper. . It would have been an easy matter years ago to have written pages of flattery of Victor Trumper and yet not say one word which could be taken as an exaggeration of his many virtues as a cricketer. To-day the matter is not so easy, for like many other great players, he has come back to that, position where embryo can be applied to him without in any way prejudicing his position in the cricket world of to-day. To Trumper and he alone Australia owes a position in cricket which no other player, ancient or modern, ever lay claim to. To say that he once stood alone as a batsman would be only speakiqg the truth. One indeed could go further and say that he is the only player the world has known who could lay claim to be considered the equal of W. G. Grace. Personally, I could go so far as to say that had he been born with the physique of Grace, and played the game in England, he would have outshone that great cricketer, whose very name was a by word in every story book that was written, and read by every schoolboy. Many people are under the impression that In his early days Trumper was not persevered with enough, but with this I disagree. As a matter of fact, his powers as a first-class exponent were slow to ripen, and though his club cricket was phenomenal, it must not be forgotten that there is a vast difference between club cricket and cricket as played in first-class company. When once he had mastered the game his powers were illimitable, and he left his comrades and tradition far behind. He made strokes unheard of, and his power in dealing with difficult bowling was a thing unknown before his advent. When in form he made bowling look simple, and his footwork was wonderful. He is the only batsman I have known who could put the same ball to different parts of the field and each a perfect stroke. It was impossible to stop his strokes, and no matter how’ the field was altered and placed, his scoring went on just the same. Unlike most batsmen, his attack was his defence. He made his stroke and then thought afterwards. His intention was

wonderful, and ho knew no fear. Like W. G. Grace, he could play on any wicket. He showed no partiality to any particular kind of bowling, and was equally at home on good as on bad wickets. He never indulged in any particular stroke, and. he was master of every known stroke. He showed just the same amazing ability in the field. Strange to say, though he will always be considered a good catcher, his record in this department of the game will never be considered in the same plane as his other attributes. He was brilliant, bringing off at times some extraordinary catches, but there were times when he dropped, the easy ones. In his early days he was not a bad bowler, having a good command of length and a quick whip off the. pitch. In latter days he has “come back” to the time when one ean make comparisons, and speak of him as one would speak of other batsmen. He thinks now before he makes his stroke, and though Ire can still at times make the same beautiful strokes as of old, he does not do it with the facility he did years ago. He is, if anything, slower in his methods, and takes a little while to get the pace of the wickets. On slow wickets he shows more of his old ability, and on these kind of wickets he can pull with all his old dexterity. I have seen him on occasions bowled with balls that in the old. days he -would put anywhere. It must not be thought that, because one speaks of his faults, he is not still a great batsman. He is still a great player, but after having built up for himself such a high reputation, it would be well nigh impossible for anyone to keep to it. His driving is just as forceful as of old, but the pace of the bowling troubles him at times. His fielding is just as good as it was vears ago, and one could almost say. the same of his catching. As a personality, Trumper is a host in himself. No man in this country ever had the following he did. His power over his public was amazing. The moment he emerged from the (pavilion people took their seats and waited for. the feast to follow. He rarely failed them. No matter how tedious the game might have been a few days before, all this was forgotten the moment he got to work. A score from him set everybody in good spirits. He did more to inspire and depress the game in Australia than any other player, dead or living. He made the game look so simple and easy that every player who batted after him seemed dull and lifeless. Many and many a time he has carried the match on his own shoulders, and found the burden easy. He is the biggest-hearted cricketer we ever had. Bowlers all feared him, and he knew it. The one man who possessed most of the attributes of Trumper, and who looked the most likely to fill his shoes was J. R. M. Mackay. Trumper has no living counterpart, and never had. His nearest opponent to-day is Aubrey Faulkner. It may be many years before we see his equal; we are grateful that we have had him in this country, and the growing youth and budding cricketer, if they cannot copy, can at least look back upon his form with many degrees of pleasure. If Trumper cannot reproduce that grand form which made him at times the greatest of modern batsmen, we can still be grateful to him for what he does do, and remember with pride those many delightful displays of his which electrified the w’orld and inspired us with such grand hopes.