GOOGLIES & CHINAMEN
An Occasional Cricketing Journal
Edition 108
December 2011
Out and About with the Professor
Another month, another meal.
One of the great things about cricket is that if you can no longer play, you can watch; and if there isn’t anything to watch, you can talk about it!
So last week saw me in the Headingley Long Room for the 3rd (might be 4th) annual dinner of the ex-Yorkshire Cricketers Assn. sitting between Susan and Philip Sharpe. All the old boys were there: Close, Hampshire, Stott, Cope, Bird, Wilson and many others whom I failed to recognise. Apart from chatting to the Sharpes and reassuring my wife that she was in fact having a good time (she assured me that was the case), I spent ten minutes or so talking to Brian Close (or “Closey” – as one of your other correspondents would doubtless have called him…but not to his face). He is now in his 80’s but is still an imposing man and, in truth, I wasn’t much looking forward to hearing his views on modern cricket since I had assumed he would be an arch “Of course in my day” exponent. But not a bit of it! He was full of praise for some of the young Yorkshire players and took the view that the team had been rather left in the lurch by the management’s failure to find a top class overseas player. Since that was also my view, I naturally began to regard him as a man of profound sagacity.
But what about other characteristics of the “modern” game?
What about reverse sweeps? “Fantastic…wish I’d thought of it”.
Switch hits? Ditto. “I didn’t even know you were allowed to do that…it would have been perfect for me since I could bat either way.”
How about 20/20? Do you think it has undermined the traditional county game?
“Don’t know about that but it looks like bloody good fun”.
But I had one more round of ammunition – “What, Brian, do you think about helmets?” Bit more hesitation now and a grudging: “Ah suppose it’s sensible, but it does look a bit namby-pamby”.
…well, I think we can forgive him that one.
By comparison the Sharpe’s conversation is rather more homely…or at least Susan’s is. Apparently Philip, unlike most male readers of this journal, is not too useful on the domestic front. Indeed apart from gardening and reading the paper he does very little.
“Does that make you cross, Susan?”
“Well occasionally I throw something at him – but he always catches it”.
Given the relegation to Div 2, I had thought there might be some anger around the place – but I didn’t hear anything. I guess that when you get to the age of these old boys you have seen it all and you know that the good times will come again. Most of them feature in the book published earlier this year: “The Magnificent Seven” (a reference, as all readers will know, to Yorkshire’s run of Championship success in the 1960s) so perhaps they can be sanguine about the current fall from grace. Nor was there much enthusiasm for the new coaching appointment at Headingley – one Jason Gillespie.
“’E weren’t that great when ‘e were bowling ‘ere – how does us know ‘e can coach?”
A reasonable question. It seems Gillespie has done well coaching in Zimbabwe and with the Kings XI Punjab plus he was “well liked” when he was here before – and those are the credentials. Kevin Sharp has got the push as the batting coach, obviously on the grounds that he couldn’t turn Joe Root or one of the other boys into Jacques Rudolph in five months. Perhaps Jason can, given slightly more time.
So not a lot of discord…I suspect it might not be quite the same at the AGM however.
Corfu Matters
Douglas Miller was interested to read the Professor’s Out and About last month
So the Professor has made it to Corfu. I can picture him, the fragrant Judith at his side, passing witty comment on the curious little ground in the centre of the island’s enchanting capital. ‘I wonder how many Googlies readers have visited Corfu,’ he muses. I shall do more than draw level with the sage of Yorkshire and ask, ‘Who else has played there?’
I made the first of four tours to the island in the late 1980s and returned for my last visit in 1995. Our initiation to the ground on our very first tour was the more memorable for the absence of any sign of the supposed opposition. Sympathy for the fallibilities of fixture secretaries is in inverse proportion to the distance travelled for a match, but our presence on the island was powerful evidence that we really had meant to come and the lost match was re-scheduled to give us three games as originally planned.
In the meantime, once we had recovered from our astonishment on first seeing a ground on which Kim Hughes had once hit a six into the Ionian Sea, we resorted to a practice game on the ropey artificial pitch. If an upturned milk crate as a wicket suggested frivolity, it was a misleading clue. The unpromising surroundings did nothing to douse the competitive spirit of. Michael Cockerell, political broadcaster supreme and a good enough cricketer to have played for a strong Brondesbury side in the 1960s, as he engaged with the fervour of an Australian in an Ashes decider.
There is a temptation to believe that those who play their cricket on this rough-shod ground will be a pushover for a side of semi-competent club cricketers, especially as the island’s players are all Greek nationals bereft of ex-pat infiltration. Certainly the long handle is preferred and cow corner is the favoured area, but a good eye, familiarity with local conditions and a home umpire combine to stack the odds against the visitors. Thirty-three-over matches are the norm with a break for ginger beer after seventeen. Fielding first means facing the heat of the day as well as defending shorter boundaries, a feature of the ground that requires some explanation.
Cricket on the island dates back to 1823, and its post-war revival owes much to the enthusiasm of Ron Roberts, whose International XI toured in 1962, to be followed by annual festivals run by Ben Brocklebank and The Cricketer. In those days, one imagines, the outfield was less unkempt and it certainly extended to cover an area in the direction of the sea now devoted to car parking – and herein lies the quirk of the shrinking boundary. Once the tarmac took over, the edge of the car park was defined by a concrete drain about a foot deep and some six inches wide – a deftly conceived hazard when circling under a catch in the deep were it not for an iron grill on top of the drain.
The Nanny State not having penetrated to Corfu when I last played on the ground, the grill had become conspicuously absent above much of the drain, creating a perfect man trap – not lethal, perhaps, but expertly designed to break the odd leg. This drain, I must stress, marks the boundary of the car park, not of the playing area of the cricket ground. Balls hit onto the tarmac remain in play. Fielders hurdle the drain in pursuit, mindful that a ball that touches a parked car will count as a four. This local rule is at least equal for both sides, you might be thinking – but it is not. For the first innings the cars of workers and shoppers fill the parking area, but after the tea interval, as their owners make for home, there is a noticeable paucity of vehicles to hit.
There were four clubs making use of what was the only ground on the island when I toured: Byron, Ergatikos, Gymnastikos and Phaeax. Fielding teams for mid-week matches against touring sides meant many of the same faces would appear in two or three of the games, and from their number would come the Greek national side that competes in the lower reaches of ICC competition. So it was that in one year I could claim to have faced bowlers from three national sides – the opening bowler for Greece, a Pakistani who played for Belgium and a British RAF officer who turned out for Italy.
It was to be several years before our side, which travelled under the name of Nonnunquam, recorded its first victory. On a personal level I only once passed 20 and earned the moniker 001 in recognition of my performance on one tour. I fear there may be a professorial exaggeration in suggesting that there are ‘several other grounds’. Since my last visit a much better equipped ground away from the town centre has been built at Kontakali Marina, and the old ground is apparently mainly reserved for colts’ matches.
Whatever the number of grounds may be, none will challenge the uniqueness of that in the square by the Old Castle. The Professor shows his prescient side in imagining balls flying into the cafés at midwicket. I have seen a lusty left-hander on song despatch a long hop over the protective netting into one of the more vulnerable establishments. The ball landed on a table narrowly missing a female day-tripper from mainland Greece whose husband resolutely refused to return the ball.
Now what the Professor may not have known is that there was little love lost between two adjacent cafés touting for the tourist trade. One supplied the ginger beer – and only their WC facilities could be used by the players. Seeing a fracas developing over the return of the ball, patrons and staff of the rival café determined that old scores should be settled. Chairs and tables were thrown. A senior police officer, a cricketer not engaged in the game, allowed his competitive instincts to outstrip his sense of civic duty and there was mayhem as most of the Corfiot cricketers and a couple of dozen bystanders were sucked into the kind of pitched battle more normally associated with Westerns.
Any cricket lover visiting Corfu should make a point of seeking out the old ground. It is good to know that the game is still thriving. When the civic authorities embarked on building their car park, for all its history and visual charm the ground was becoming a heartless place to play a serious game of cricket.
I also heard from Keir Hopley
I have been a reader of Googlies for a couple of years but have not before put fingers to keyboard in order to contribute anything. However, I read the Professor’s account of cricket in Corfu and thought I would offer some observations as I was the umpire on this year’s MCC tour to Corfu.
Whilst the Professor is correct that the ground in Liston Square bears little comparison with Lord’s, it does have its attractions and its history. It was established when the British took control of Corfu in the 19th century and the Governor took his residence so as to look out onto the harbour one way and the cricket ground the other. It is indeed small, and these days is generally used only for youth games. The local youth – native Greek as well as those of British, Australian or Asian origin – play the game enthusiastically and a coaching session run by a few of the MCC players on this year’s trip was very well attended with not far off 100 kids, both boys and girls, taking part.
The ground is also used for “special” games – such as the MCC’s visit. In order to mitigate the hazard of the 35 yard boundaries, the car park that surrounds the ground on the three sides that the restaurants do not occupy is commandeered as part of the outfield. In order to score a boundary, the ball has to cross the tarmac of the car park as well as the (rather long and coarse) grass of the outfield, which makes fielders’ choice of footwear quite tricky! In keeping with the occasion, an attempt was made to clear the area of cars for the day. However, this being Greece, it was a fairly perfunctory attempt! So there is a special regulation: if the ball hits any part of a car, a boundary is scored, four or six depending on whether the ball has bounced or not previously. However, if the ball runs under a car without touching it, the batsman can keep running until the ball is retrieved! In practice, the latter did not occur as the ball runs pretty quickly across the tarmac and generally reaches the boundary at the far side of the car park. There is nothing much that can be done about the restaurants: a net is placed in front of them but it is about as useful as a chocolate fireguard and diners do indeed need to beware.
Cricket is flourishing in Corfu; and there is special legislation that permits the headquarters of the Hellenic Cricket Federation to be in Corfu. All other national sports governing bodies are required, by law, to be based in Athens. A new ground has been acquired in the marina area of Corfu Town and there are ambitious plans to build a proper pavilion. They could also usefully invest in a mower: the grass is coarse and long and local players tend consequently to use a lot of bottom hand! Nonetheless, they are real enthusiasts for the game and it is great to see.
Spirit Matters
Denis Jones sent me this
Glad to know I was not the only one who thought it wrong to override the laws of the game, and that it was Bell's responsibility, especially being a Test match cricketer, to know, and accept the proper application of those laws irrespective of any so-called 'spirit of cricket'..
As it happens, shortly after I wrote to you I discovered that the 'spirit of the game' HAS been roughly defined by some veterans of yesteryear, and there is no doubt that the current England side, along with most international teams, are constantly acting outside that spirit in the ways you describe.
England are also the worst of the bunch in using substitute fielders when they should not be allowed, i.e. when no injury has occurred. As I understand it, this could be prevented by the umpires applying the relevant law - all seems a bit strange to me that any law can be ignored in such a way, and that the spirit of the game only applies now and again.
Harper Matters
Charlie Puckett forwarded me the following notes written by Daryl Harper earlier this year
I had originally planned to complete the series with my last Test in Dominica next week but the environment became a little unfriendly and today I’ve called time on the cricket umpiring career. Lots of people said it would never last…and they were right. I only lasted for 28 years! It’s worth informing you of the details of my demise because I like to talk in facts and it’s a good story. I’ll try to abbreviate the yarn where possible…
At the pre-series meeting, the West Indies management expressed its concern about the ingrained habit of the Indians to charge...at the umpire. When appealing, it is frowned upon and against the spirit of the game to charge towards the umpire. On the third morning, AbhinavMukund did just that. I moved in quickly from square leg and remonstrated with him and with the Indian captain. During the same morning, debutant opening bowler, Praveen Kumar, a nice sort of lad, just kept running down the centre of the pitch. This is just ‘not cricket’ as damage is caused and that can assist the bowlers unfairly. India was due to bowl last so the advantage would be theirs. There are always two teams to consider…except if Port Power is playing. After the third occasion, I directed Dhoni to remove Kumar from the attack for the remainder of the innings. This is not just an option. It is the only option. Dhoni objected and insisted that I should have been more lenient with the youngster in his first Test. Why? Test cricket is not a training ground for anything higher. Test cricket is the real deal. And he may have been a Test debutant, but he had played 52 one day internationals over almost four years. “We’ve had issues with you before, Daryl,” the Indian captain noted. Oh dear…I interpreted that comment as meaning that I should just leave them all alone and mind my own business. Sadly, many of my colleagues adopt that approach to avoid any poor reports from the captains. It has never been an option for me. So…M.S.Dhoni and I didn’t exchange any pleasantries for the duration, although I did enjoy telling him that his over rate was down from time to time.
I didn’t have my best game of the year but Referee Jeff Crowe who observed every ball, calculated that I had managed to get 94% of all my decisions correct. That analysis was confirmed from HQ in our Dubai office. There was one lbw against Harbhajan Singh that would have been reversed had the Decision Review System been available. I also failed to detect a no ball when West Indian Bishoo’s back foot touched the side or return crease. It’s about as common as Indians eating beef burgers.
Another decision that was notable involved ViratKohli. He flashed wide of his body at a short ball that passed well outside his body down the leg side. He clearly gloved the ball and was given out. Replays could not confirm that my decision was right…and they could not confirm that my decision was wrong. Here’s the problem with replays. That delivery was launched at around 135kmph. By the time it passed the batsman, it may have been travelling at possibly 100kmph as a moving object loses velocity in flight. It takes 0.6 seconds to travel from bowler’s hand to the batsman. But the technology in use in this series…25 frames per second photography…means that only 15 frames are taken. On average the ball is travelling 1.3 metres between frames. What are the chances of the moment the ball flicks the glove being captured on film? In the Cricket World Cup recently, they used 50 frames per second equipment. So the ball was travelling 65 centimetres between frames for a quick bowler. That’s still a very long distance that is never captured. Is it any wonder the Indians have been sheepish about accepting the ball tracking technology? If it is based on missile tracking technology, I want to sign up for the enemy camp.
I wasn’t required for the second Test in Barbados so I headed back to the Big Apple to catch up with my favourite Staten Islanders, Kathy and Joe. When I reached Philly for more baseball on Monday, I was alerted to some very nasty comments about my performance. Someone was pulling my leg…surely? Actually they weren’t. One Indian paper claimed that I had made six errors against India; another claimed it was only five. Someone pulled the race card and someone suggested that I had always had it in for the Indians. The captain was quoted making a derogatory comment about my efforts and an ‘unnamed player’ was quoted as saying that the whole team wanted me out of the action. This was bizarre stuff. Obviously I should never have applied the laws of cricket to Indian players.
If someone from ICC management had shown an ounce of leadership, the Referee’s log should have quashed the nonsense immediately. If someone from ICC management had taken action for “inappropriate public comment’ the farce could have been exposed for what it was. I only located the inflammatory articles because they were listed in a brief sent to me by the ICC’s own Media Department. It was the same type of brief that led me to discover that I had been sacked last month.
I decided to search my records for Tests involving India. Going back four years to the start of the current assessment system, I found statistics from my most recent ten Tests with India. I have officiated in 26 Tests involving India over twelve years. I correctly answered 96.7% of appeals in those ten Tests. Of the ten errors made in those ten Tests, five went in India’s favour and five went against them. That’s an average of one error against the team, every second Test…or one error every eight to nine days, one error every sixty hours of international top flight cricket…I know…that’s very sloppy work by me. The Indians certainly were justified in making their protest. “Gimme a break, buddy.”
Are you starting to wonder what happens about fairness and integrity at the highest level and under the auspices of the world’s controlling body? Don’t bother. The average correct decision percentage of the elite panel seems to hover around 93-94%. We aren’t given information about others but I knew that I had been the most accurate umpire in Test cricket from April 2008 until June 2010.
So why have I been sacked and how do I find myself in this position? Well…I do have a bad sense of humour and I can be a tad persistent and very annoying. I have it on extremely good authority that I wasn’t invited to officiate in the fourth edition of the Indian Premier League this year because a former great Australian leg spin bowler (who must surely be related to Sam Newman by surgery) complained that I had sledged him. I’m actually quite proud of that if it is true. But I have been forced to work with some absolute plonkers over the years and I’m not referring to many umpires. For more stories on that subject, you might need to buy the book. But before you do, I might need to write the book. Just as a sample, can you believe that after more than six years on the road as an ICC Match Referee, one bloke had to regularly ask umpires to go to his room to power up his computer and to help find his emails? He routinely sent blank reports to HQ because he rarely remembered to ‘save’ his work before hitting the send button. After more than six years on the job! Guess whose wife had spoon-fed him at home…and is probably still doing it in his retirement?
I anticipated a media frenzy at the third Test if I officiated there. The whole focus would be on my performance and not on the contest between two national teams. This was not a situation of my choosing, it wasn’t good for the game and I just didn’t care to be bothered with the nonsense any more.
So…I was sacked last month but I chose to retire myself this month…I think. It’s funny how things you say come back to bite you. In my most recent postcard from Sarasota, I wrote…“India still doesn’t accept that the technology is precise enough so it is back to playing cricket in the time honoured way of accepting the umpire’s decision.” Remember the wise words of Confucius…”Every dog has his day…”That might come back to bite someone else.
Test Matters
King Cricket published the following written by Ritesh
I solved a mystery yesterday. In a Test that could well see Sachin Tendulkar hit his 100th international century, only 8,000 people turned up on a Sunday to a ground that holds 50,000. Of course such turnouts are not uncommon at marginal grounds where the BCCI insists on hosting Test matches, but this was the Feroz Shah Kotla in Delhi, where cricket has been played since 1883 and which staged its first test in 1948. Yet, what we saw yesterday was this:
Sunday began as a glorious day in Delhi, with no sign of the infamous Delhi smog and the first hint of winter in the air. While reading the previews of the Test over morning coffee, my wife and I agreed that it was a perfect day to watch some cricket. The plan was to get comfortable seats in a stand that serves good food and drink, so we could read the newspaper and chat, with occasional cricket interruptions. Hopefully nothing too exciting would happen in the game to affect our plan.
So we set off early for the 90 minute drive to the stadium. There were more policemen than spectators outside the stadium, and we played a little game of pointing out the paunchiest among them (we found at least a dozen officers of Gatting-esque proportions). When we politely asked where we could park, we were asked if we have “parking accreditation”. Since we were unfamiliar with the term, we were pointed to a location approximately 5km away, where a “park and ride” service was available.
20 minutes and much Google-Maps-fiddling later, we were parked and ready to ride. The organisers unfortunately were unclear about the “ride” part of the arrangement – we were expected to find our own rides back to the stadium, a fact that was complicated by the traffic restrictions around the parking area. But the day was still good for walking and sharing rickshaws with strangers and we had missed only an hour of play when we reached the stadium (again).
On reaching the ticket window, we were informed that the ticket window was closed because it was Sunday. Just reflect on that. It is the first day of the only Test match you will host this year. The ground is not even one-fifth full. Yet you don’t sell tickets because it is Sunday. The policemen (who were genuinely polite and helpful for a change) told us that tickets were also available at major banks and at least one of those banks worked on Sundays. They even gave us directions to the nearest branch, about 3km away. Of course the traffic restrictions were still in place, so again we walked. There was one person selling tickets there and at least 200 people in line. Still, we had come so far so we decided to wait.
At the counter they told us we could buy day-tickets for the concrete bleachers (exposed to the sun and approximately at square leg), but for any other stand they were selling only 5-day tickets. It was as if the DDCA (Delhi and Districts Cricket Association) deliberately wanted to keep the turnout low. We only wanted to watch the game on Sunday, but after much deliberation decided to buy tickets for all the five days because, well, we had come too far to back out now.
So triumphantly we walked to the stadium for the third time since the morning. By this time the game was midway through the second session. We were hungry and dehydrated and the missus was growing irritated, but hey we at least had tickets. Unseen treats awaited us on the other side of the security barrier.
Then the metal detector beeped. Our new tablet computer was the problem. According to the fine print behind the ticket, you are allowed to take phones and digital cameras to the ground, but there was no mention of tablets. I gave a full technology demo of my tablet, sent a text message from it (to prove it was a phone) and took a picture (to prove it was a camera). But it fell somewhere in the twilight zone of technology products and the final decision was no.
We had a choice – we could go back to our car (which was parked 5km away), keep the tablet there, walk back and catch maybe 90 minutes of play. Or we could cut our losses and run. We ran. We had spent half a day and several thousand rupees already, and not even the enticing prospect of watching part of Umesh Yadav’s Test debut could bring us back to the stadium. I guess we were insufficiently committed to Test cricket. With fans like these, no wonder Test cricket is dying in the subcontinent.
King Cricket responded
Ritesh’s match report has attracted attention from far and wide. We’ve a nagging concern that people are going to arrive here thinking this is an intelligent website that makes serious points only to be confronted with something like this. But what are you going to do?Even so, we thought we’d give our thoughts on the matter. We seem to find ourself in the entirely unfamiliar position where we’re the optimist. We’re not sure this has ever happened before.
Causes for optimism
There’s some real horseshit spoken about the future of Test cricket in India. Most of it results from empty seats leading to the conclusion that no-one’s interested. “Indians aren’t interested in Tests,” they say – as if a billion people all feel exactly the same.We shouldn’t sit back and be complacent about Test cricket, but at the same time it’s a spectacularly robust beast. Test cricket is still surviving in what is currently a hostile environment and just a few minor changes would help its cause immeasurably.
We’ve come up with a two-point plan of action that can be acted on immediately, after which we can all take stock and ponder the more elaborate plans for “saving” Test cricket in India.
Sell tickets
Be slightly welcoming to fans
What is supposedly Test cricket’s biggest threat, the IPL, couldn’t fill a stadium for its play-offs and the post-World Cup one-day internationals against England were hardly sell-outs. Those sounding the death knell of the longer game might like to ponder whether those formats would retain the same following as Test cricket were they neglected in quite the same way.As far as we can tell, enthusiasm for Test cricket is fundamentally strong in India and that would be more apparent in the grounds were a couple of simple things done differently.
If we were in charge of a TV network paying for Test rights, we would INSIST that certain changes were made and that fans were positively encouraged to attend matches. The people in the stands are a vital and undervalued part of the spectacle. A full house makes you feel that the action’s of earth-shattering importance. An empty stadium makes you feel like you’re watching a meaningless experiment being carried out in lab conditions.That transmits itself to the players too. On field events are actually improved by a good crowd. We, sat on our fat arses on our undersized plastic seats, are the cholesterol-clogged beating heart of this whole sport.
Winter filler Matters
Not all of the Great Jack Morgan’s reports fit into the summer editions and so they come in handy when there is no domestic cricket
When Berkshire captain Bjorn Mordt chose to bat at the Memorial Ground, Finchampstead in the Western Division Championship match against Herefordshire, he put his side on course for a record breaking score of 507 for 7 in the 90 overs allowed for the first innings of these matches. Mike Roberts and Jono McLean embarked on a stunning second wicket partnership of 371 at six runs per over that also broke several records. When Roberts (who failed to shine in a recent appearance for Middx 2s against Glamorgan at Radlett) finally fell for 205 off 237 balls, with 28 fours and a six, a rumour reached me that it was the highest score ever made on the ground at Finch, but if it was, he held the record for barely an hour before McLean (ex-Hants) took it from him by going on to 210* off 249 balls, with 29 fours and 2 sixes.
After Roberts's departure, wickets tumbled as various partners of McLean tried but failed to maintain the exceptional rate of scoring; still, 507 in 90 overs isn't bad, is it? 22 year old slow left armer Steve Bevan took 4 for 120. Herefs' reply started badly with the loss of two early wickets, but emergency opener Faisal Shahid (46) formed a profitable alliance with skipper Chris Boroughs as the pair put on 80 for the third wicket. However, there was little of substance to follow and when Boroughs finally left for 77 with 12 fours and a six, the visitors slumped to 214 all out.
The bowling honours went to off-spinner Carl Crowe (ex-Leics) with 3 for 16 and Middx 2s seamer Tom Parsons (3 for 50). Following on, Herefs did little better, but they certainly should have done as six of their batters (Dave Exall, Steve Adshead, Boroughs, Ben Stebbings, Tom Austwick and Cal Stewart) had done the spade work in reaching 29 or more, but no one could go any further than Austwick's defiant 47 and they capitulated for 249 to lose by an innings and 44 runs inside two days.
This time, it was the ex-Middx spin twins Shaun Udal and Chris Peploe that did the damage. Pepsi (3 for 47) was the more accurate as Shaggy struggled to find his best length, but it was Shaun, with his spin and variety that had the greater success with 5 for 63 and 7 for 109 in the match. Crowe had match figures of 4 for 38, while Peploe returned the impressive analysis of 40-18-67-3. It was a great pleasure to watch a match that was not dominated by seamers exploiting a green track and in which spinners took more than two thirds of the wickets to fall. Berks also have the final of the MCCA Trophy (one day cup) versus Herts to look forward to at Lord's on August 25th.
Red Mist Matters
The Great Jack Morgan noted the following
J Ryder has equalled the record for the number of sixes (16) in a first class innings (held by A Symonds and G Napier) while hitting 175 for NZ v Aus A at (the small) Allan Border Field in Brisbane.
Christmas Books
Douglas Miller has become involved in a re-print of his short book 'Jack Bond: Lancashire Lad, Lancashire Leader', which first came out last year. It received some positive reviews and apparently Vic Marks gave it an honourable mention at the MCC Cricket Society Book of the Year Awards dinner. It is priced at £12, but he will sell it to Googlies readers for a tenner. Orders, with cheques payable to Douglas Miller, should be sent to:
Douglas Miller, Piper's Loft, Whiteleaf, Princes Risborough, Bucks HP27 0LT
I have copies of the bound version of Googlies which I can provide at £12 inc p&p. There are four volumes covering the first eighty editions. Order from the contact details below.
Googlies and Chinamen
is produced by
James Sharp
Broad Lee House
Combs
High Peak
SK23 9XA
Tel & fax: 01298 70237
Email: [email protected]
An Occasional Cricketing Journal
Edition 108
December 2011
Out and About with the Professor
Another month, another meal.
One of the great things about cricket is that if you can no longer play, you can watch; and if there isn’t anything to watch, you can talk about it!
So last week saw me in the Headingley Long Room for the 3rd (might be 4th) annual dinner of the ex-Yorkshire Cricketers Assn. sitting between Susan and Philip Sharpe. All the old boys were there: Close, Hampshire, Stott, Cope, Bird, Wilson and many others whom I failed to recognise. Apart from chatting to the Sharpes and reassuring my wife that she was in fact having a good time (she assured me that was the case), I spent ten minutes or so talking to Brian Close (or “Closey” – as one of your other correspondents would doubtless have called him…but not to his face). He is now in his 80’s but is still an imposing man and, in truth, I wasn’t much looking forward to hearing his views on modern cricket since I had assumed he would be an arch “Of course in my day” exponent. But not a bit of it! He was full of praise for some of the young Yorkshire players and took the view that the team had been rather left in the lurch by the management’s failure to find a top class overseas player. Since that was also my view, I naturally began to regard him as a man of profound sagacity.
But what about other characteristics of the “modern” game?
What about reverse sweeps? “Fantastic…wish I’d thought of it”.
Switch hits? Ditto. “I didn’t even know you were allowed to do that…it would have been perfect for me since I could bat either way.”
How about 20/20? Do you think it has undermined the traditional county game?
“Don’t know about that but it looks like bloody good fun”.
But I had one more round of ammunition – “What, Brian, do you think about helmets?” Bit more hesitation now and a grudging: “Ah suppose it’s sensible, but it does look a bit namby-pamby”.
…well, I think we can forgive him that one.
By comparison the Sharpe’s conversation is rather more homely…or at least Susan’s is. Apparently Philip, unlike most male readers of this journal, is not too useful on the domestic front. Indeed apart from gardening and reading the paper he does very little.
“Does that make you cross, Susan?”
“Well occasionally I throw something at him – but he always catches it”.
Given the relegation to Div 2, I had thought there might be some anger around the place – but I didn’t hear anything. I guess that when you get to the age of these old boys you have seen it all and you know that the good times will come again. Most of them feature in the book published earlier this year: “The Magnificent Seven” (a reference, as all readers will know, to Yorkshire’s run of Championship success in the 1960s) so perhaps they can be sanguine about the current fall from grace. Nor was there much enthusiasm for the new coaching appointment at Headingley – one Jason Gillespie.
“’E weren’t that great when ‘e were bowling ‘ere – how does us know ‘e can coach?”
A reasonable question. It seems Gillespie has done well coaching in Zimbabwe and with the Kings XI Punjab plus he was “well liked” when he was here before – and those are the credentials. Kevin Sharp has got the push as the batting coach, obviously on the grounds that he couldn’t turn Joe Root or one of the other boys into Jacques Rudolph in five months. Perhaps Jason can, given slightly more time.
So not a lot of discord…I suspect it might not be quite the same at the AGM however.
Corfu Matters
Douglas Miller was interested to read the Professor’s Out and About last month
So the Professor has made it to Corfu. I can picture him, the fragrant Judith at his side, passing witty comment on the curious little ground in the centre of the island’s enchanting capital. ‘I wonder how many Googlies readers have visited Corfu,’ he muses. I shall do more than draw level with the sage of Yorkshire and ask, ‘Who else has played there?’
I made the first of four tours to the island in the late 1980s and returned for my last visit in 1995. Our initiation to the ground on our very first tour was the more memorable for the absence of any sign of the supposed opposition. Sympathy for the fallibilities of fixture secretaries is in inverse proportion to the distance travelled for a match, but our presence on the island was powerful evidence that we really had meant to come and the lost match was re-scheduled to give us three games as originally planned.
In the meantime, once we had recovered from our astonishment on first seeing a ground on which Kim Hughes had once hit a six into the Ionian Sea, we resorted to a practice game on the ropey artificial pitch. If an upturned milk crate as a wicket suggested frivolity, it was a misleading clue. The unpromising surroundings did nothing to douse the competitive spirit of. Michael Cockerell, political broadcaster supreme and a good enough cricketer to have played for a strong Brondesbury side in the 1960s, as he engaged with the fervour of an Australian in an Ashes decider.
There is a temptation to believe that those who play their cricket on this rough-shod ground will be a pushover for a side of semi-competent club cricketers, especially as the island’s players are all Greek nationals bereft of ex-pat infiltration. Certainly the long handle is preferred and cow corner is the favoured area, but a good eye, familiarity with local conditions and a home umpire combine to stack the odds against the visitors. Thirty-three-over matches are the norm with a break for ginger beer after seventeen. Fielding first means facing the heat of the day as well as defending shorter boundaries, a feature of the ground that requires some explanation.
Cricket on the island dates back to 1823, and its post-war revival owes much to the enthusiasm of Ron Roberts, whose International XI toured in 1962, to be followed by annual festivals run by Ben Brocklebank and The Cricketer. In those days, one imagines, the outfield was less unkempt and it certainly extended to cover an area in the direction of the sea now devoted to car parking – and herein lies the quirk of the shrinking boundary. Once the tarmac took over, the edge of the car park was defined by a concrete drain about a foot deep and some six inches wide – a deftly conceived hazard when circling under a catch in the deep were it not for an iron grill on top of the drain.
The Nanny State not having penetrated to Corfu when I last played on the ground, the grill had become conspicuously absent above much of the drain, creating a perfect man trap – not lethal, perhaps, but expertly designed to break the odd leg. This drain, I must stress, marks the boundary of the car park, not of the playing area of the cricket ground. Balls hit onto the tarmac remain in play. Fielders hurdle the drain in pursuit, mindful that a ball that touches a parked car will count as a four. This local rule is at least equal for both sides, you might be thinking – but it is not. For the first innings the cars of workers and shoppers fill the parking area, but after the tea interval, as their owners make for home, there is a noticeable paucity of vehicles to hit.
There were four clubs making use of what was the only ground on the island when I toured: Byron, Ergatikos, Gymnastikos and Phaeax. Fielding teams for mid-week matches against touring sides meant many of the same faces would appear in two or three of the games, and from their number would come the Greek national side that competes in the lower reaches of ICC competition. So it was that in one year I could claim to have faced bowlers from three national sides – the opening bowler for Greece, a Pakistani who played for Belgium and a British RAF officer who turned out for Italy.
It was to be several years before our side, which travelled under the name of Nonnunquam, recorded its first victory. On a personal level I only once passed 20 and earned the moniker 001 in recognition of my performance on one tour. I fear there may be a professorial exaggeration in suggesting that there are ‘several other grounds’. Since my last visit a much better equipped ground away from the town centre has been built at Kontakali Marina, and the old ground is apparently mainly reserved for colts’ matches.
Whatever the number of grounds may be, none will challenge the uniqueness of that in the square by the Old Castle. The Professor shows his prescient side in imagining balls flying into the cafés at midwicket. I have seen a lusty left-hander on song despatch a long hop over the protective netting into one of the more vulnerable establishments. The ball landed on a table narrowly missing a female day-tripper from mainland Greece whose husband resolutely refused to return the ball.
Now what the Professor may not have known is that there was little love lost between two adjacent cafés touting for the tourist trade. One supplied the ginger beer – and only their WC facilities could be used by the players. Seeing a fracas developing over the return of the ball, patrons and staff of the rival café determined that old scores should be settled. Chairs and tables were thrown. A senior police officer, a cricketer not engaged in the game, allowed his competitive instincts to outstrip his sense of civic duty and there was mayhem as most of the Corfiot cricketers and a couple of dozen bystanders were sucked into the kind of pitched battle more normally associated with Westerns.
Any cricket lover visiting Corfu should make a point of seeking out the old ground. It is good to know that the game is still thriving. When the civic authorities embarked on building their car park, for all its history and visual charm the ground was becoming a heartless place to play a serious game of cricket.
I also heard from Keir Hopley
I have been a reader of Googlies for a couple of years but have not before put fingers to keyboard in order to contribute anything. However, I read the Professor’s account of cricket in Corfu and thought I would offer some observations as I was the umpire on this year’s MCC tour to Corfu.
Whilst the Professor is correct that the ground in Liston Square bears little comparison with Lord’s, it does have its attractions and its history. It was established when the British took control of Corfu in the 19th century and the Governor took his residence so as to look out onto the harbour one way and the cricket ground the other. It is indeed small, and these days is generally used only for youth games. The local youth – native Greek as well as those of British, Australian or Asian origin – play the game enthusiastically and a coaching session run by a few of the MCC players on this year’s trip was very well attended with not far off 100 kids, both boys and girls, taking part.
The ground is also used for “special” games – such as the MCC’s visit. In order to mitigate the hazard of the 35 yard boundaries, the car park that surrounds the ground on the three sides that the restaurants do not occupy is commandeered as part of the outfield. In order to score a boundary, the ball has to cross the tarmac of the car park as well as the (rather long and coarse) grass of the outfield, which makes fielders’ choice of footwear quite tricky! In keeping with the occasion, an attempt was made to clear the area of cars for the day. However, this being Greece, it was a fairly perfunctory attempt! So there is a special regulation: if the ball hits any part of a car, a boundary is scored, four or six depending on whether the ball has bounced or not previously. However, if the ball runs under a car without touching it, the batsman can keep running until the ball is retrieved! In practice, the latter did not occur as the ball runs pretty quickly across the tarmac and generally reaches the boundary at the far side of the car park. There is nothing much that can be done about the restaurants: a net is placed in front of them but it is about as useful as a chocolate fireguard and diners do indeed need to beware.
Cricket is flourishing in Corfu; and there is special legislation that permits the headquarters of the Hellenic Cricket Federation to be in Corfu. All other national sports governing bodies are required, by law, to be based in Athens. A new ground has been acquired in the marina area of Corfu Town and there are ambitious plans to build a proper pavilion. They could also usefully invest in a mower: the grass is coarse and long and local players tend consequently to use a lot of bottom hand! Nonetheless, they are real enthusiasts for the game and it is great to see.
Spirit Matters
Denis Jones sent me this
Glad to know I was not the only one who thought it wrong to override the laws of the game, and that it was Bell's responsibility, especially being a Test match cricketer, to know, and accept the proper application of those laws irrespective of any so-called 'spirit of cricket'..
As it happens, shortly after I wrote to you I discovered that the 'spirit of the game' HAS been roughly defined by some veterans of yesteryear, and there is no doubt that the current England side, along with most international teams, are constantly acting outside that spirit in the ways you describe.
England are also the worst of the bunch in using substitute fielders when they should not be allowed, i.e. when no injury has occurred. As I understand it, this could be prevented by the umpires applying the relevant law - all seems a bit strange to me that any law can be ignored in such a way, and that the spirit of the game only applies now and again.
Harper Matters
Charlie Puckett forwarded me the following notes written by Daryl Harper earlier this year
I had originally planned to complete the series with my last Test in Dominica next week but the environment became a little unfriendly and today I’ve called time on the cricket umpiring career. Lots of people said it would never last…and they were right. I only lasted for 28 years! It’s worth informing you of the details of my demise because I like to talk in facts and it’s a good story. I’ll try to abbreviate the yarn where possible…
At the pre-series meeting, the West Indies management expressed its concern about the ingrained habit of the Indians to charge...at the umpire. When appealing, it is frowned upon and against the spirit of the game to charge towards the umpire. On the third morning, AbhinavMukund did just that. I moved in quickly from square leg and remonstrated with him and with the Indian captain. During the same morning, debutant opening bowler, Praveen Kumar, a nice sort of lad, just kept running down the centre of the pitch. This is just ‘not cricket’ as damage is caused and that can assist the bowlers unfairly. India was due to bowl last so the advantage would be theirs. There are always two teams to consider…except if Port Power is playing. After the third occasion, I directed Dhoni to remove Kumar from the attack for the remainder of the innings. This is not just an option. It is the only option. Dhoni objected and insisted that I should have been more lenient with the youngster in his first Test. Why? Test cricket is not a training ground for anything higher. Test cricket is the real deal. And he may have been a Test debutant, but he had played 52 one day internationals over almost four years. “We’ve had issues with you before, Daryl,” the Indian captain noted. Oh dear…I interpreted that comment as meaning that I should just leave them all alone and mind my own business. Sadly, many of my colleagues adopt that approach to avoid any poor reports from the captains. It has never been an option for me. So…M.S.Dhoni and I didn’t exchange any pleasantries for the duration, although I did enjoy telling him that his over rate was down from time to time.
I didn’t have my best game of the year but Referee Jeff Crowe who observed every ball, calculated that I had managed to get 94% of all my decisions correct. That analysis was confirmed from HQ in our Dubai office. There was one lbw against Harbhajan Singh that would have been reversed had the Decision Review System been available. I also failed to detect a no ball when West Indian Bishoo’s back foot touched the side or return crease. It’s about as common as Indians eating beef burgers.
Another decision that was notable involved ViratKohli. He flashed wide of his body at a short ball that passed well outside his body down the leg side. He clearly gloved the ball and was given out. Replays could not confirm that my decision was right…and they could not confirm that my decision was wrong. Here’s the problem with replays. That delivery was launched at around 135kmph. By the time it passed the batsman, it may have been travelling at possibly 100kmph as a moving object loses velocity in flight. It takes 0.6 seconds to travel from bowler’s hand to the batsman. But the technology in use in this series…25 frames per second photography…means that only 15 frames are taken. On average the ball is travelling 1.3 metres between frames. What are the chances of the moment the ball flicks the glove being captured on film? In the Cricket World Cup recently, they used 50 frames per second equipment. So the ball was travelling 65 centimetres between frames for a quick bowler. That’s still a very long distance that is never captured. Is it any wonder the Indians have been sheepish about accepting the ball tracking technology? If it is based on missile tracking technology, I want to sign up for the enemy camp.
I wasn’t required for the second Test in Barbados so I headed back to the Big Apple to catch up with my favourite Staten Islanders, Kathy and Joe. When I reached Philly for more baseball on Monday, I was alerted to some very nasty comments about my performance. Someone was pulling my leg…surely? Actually they weren’t. One Indian paper claimed that I had made six errors against India; another claimed it was only five. Someone pulled the race card and someone suggested that I had always had it in for the Indians. The captain was quoted making a derogatory comment about my efforts and an ‘unnamed player’ was quoted as saying that the whole team wanted me out of the action. This was bizarre stuff. Obviously I should never have applied the laws of cricket to Indian players.
If someone from ICC management had shown an ounce of leadership, the Referee’s log should have quashed the nonsense immediately. If someone from ICC management had taken action for “inappropriate public comment’ the farce could have been exposed for what it was. I only located the inflammatory articles because they were listed in a brief sent to me by the ICC’s own Media Department. It was the same type of brief that led me to discover that I had been sacked last month.
I decided to search my records for Tests involving India. Going back four years to the start of the current assessment system, I found statistics from my most recent ten Tests with India. I have officiated in 26 Tests involving India over twelve years. I correctly answered 96.7% of appeals in those ten Tests. Of the ten errors made in those ten Tests, five went in India’s favour and five went against them. That’s an average of one error against the team, every second Test…or one error every eight to nine days, one error every sixty hours of international top flight cricket…I know…that’s very sloppy work by me. The Indians certainly were justified in making their protest. “Gimme a break, buddy.”
Are you starting to wonder what happens about fairness and integrity at the highest level and under the auspices of the world’s controlling body? Don’t bother. The average correct decision percentage of the elite panel seems to hover around 93-94%. We aren’t given information about others but I knew that I had been the most accurate umpire in Test cricket from April 2008 until June 2010.
So why have I been sacked and how do I find myself in this position? Well…I do have a bad sense of humour and I can be a tad persistent and very annoying. I have it on extremely good authority that I wasn’t invited to officiate in the fourth edition of the Indian Premier League this year because a former great Australian leg spin bowler (who must surely be related to Sam Newman by surgery) complained that I had sledged him. I’m actually quite proud of that if it is true. But I have been forced to work with some absolute plonkers over the years and I’m not referring to many umpires. For more stories on that subject, you might need to buy the book. But before you do, I might need to write the book. Just as a sample, can you believe that after more than six years on the road as an ICC Match Referee, one bloke had to regularly ask umpires to go to his room to power up his computer and to help find his emails? He routinely sent blank reports to HQ because he rarely remembered to ‘save’ his work before hitting the send button. After more than six years on the job! Guess whose wife had spoon-fed him at home…and is probably still doing it in his retirement?
I anticipated a media frenzy at the third Test if I officiated there. The whole focus would be on my performance and not on the contest between two national teams. This was not a situation of my choosing, it wasn’t good for the game and I just didn’t care to be bothered with the nonsense any more.
So…I was sacked last month but I chose to retire myself this month…I think. It’s funny how things you say come back to bite you. In my most recent postcard from Sarasota, I wrote…“India still doesn’t accept that the technology is precise enough so it is back to playing cricket in the time honoured way of accepting the umpire’s decision.” Remember the wise words of Confucius…”Every dog has his day…”That might come back to bite someone else.
Test Matters
King Cricket published the following written by Ritesh
I solved a mystery yesterday. In a Test that could well see Sachin Tendulkar hit his 100th international century, only 8,000 people turned up on a Sunday to a ground that holds 50,000. Of course such turnouts are not uncommon at marginal grounds where the BCCI insists on hosting Test matches, but this was the Feroz Shah Kotla in Delhi, where cricket has been played since 1883 and which staged its first test in 1948. Yet, what we saw yesterday was this:
Sunday began as a glorious day in Delhi, with no sign of the infamous Delhi smog and the first hint of winter in the air. While reading the previews of the Test over morning coffee, my wife and I agreed that it was a perfect day to watch some cricket. The plan was to get comfortable seats in a stand that serves good food and drink, so we could read the newspaper and chat, with occasional cricket interruptions. Hopefully nothing too exciting would happen in the game to affect our plan.
So we set off early for the 90 minute drive to the stadium. There were more policemen than spectators outside the stadium, and we played a little game of pointing out the paunchiest among them (we found at least a dozen officers of Gatting-esque proportions). When we politely asked where we could park, we were asked if we have “parking accreditation”. Since we were unfamiliar with the term, we were pointed to a location approximately 5km away, where a “park and ride” service was available.
20 minutes and much Google-Maps-fiddling later, we were parked and ready to ride. The organisers unfortunately were unclear about the “ride” part of the arrangement – we were expected to find our own rides back to the stadium, a fact that was complicated by the traffic restrictions around the parking area. But the day was still good for walking and sharing rickshaws with strangers and we had missed only an hour of play when we reached the stadium (again).
On reaching the ticket window, we were informed that the ticket window was closed because it was Sunday. Just reflect on that. It is the first day of the only Test match you will host this year. The ground is not even one-fifth full. Yet you don’t sell tickets because it is Sunday. The policemen (who were genuinely polite and helpful for a change) told us that tickets were also available at major banks and at least one of those banks worked on Sundays. They even gave us directions to the nearest branch, about 3km away. Of course the traffic restrictions were still in place, so again we walked. There was one person selling tickets there and at least 200 people in line. Still, we had come so far so we decided to wait.
At the counter they told us we could buy day-tickets for the concrete bleachers (exposed to the sun and approximately at square leg), but for any other stand they were selling only 5-day tickets. It was as if the DDCA (Delhi and Districts Cricket Association) deliberately wanted to keep the turnout low. We only wanted to watch the game on Sunday, but after much deliberation decided to buy tickets for all the five days because, well, we had come too far to back out now.
So triumphantly we walked to the stadium for the third time since the morning. By this time the game was midway through the second session. We were hungry and dehydrated and the missus was growing irritated, but hey we at least had tickets. Unseen treats awaited us on the other side of the security barrier.
Then the metal detector beeped. Our new tablet computer was the problem. According to the fine print behind the ticket, you are allowed to take phones and digital cameras to the ground, but there was no mention of tablets. I gave a full technology demo of my tablet, sent a text message from it (to prove it was a phone) and took a picture (to prove it was a camera). But it fell somewhere in the twilight zone of technology products and the final decision was no.
We had a choice – we could go back to our car (which was parked 5km away), keep the tablet there, walk back and catch maybe 90 minutes of play. Or we could cut our losses and run. We ran. We had spent half a day and several thousand rupees already, and not even the enticing prospect of watching part of Umesh Yadav’s Test debut could bring us back to the stadium. I guess we were insufficiently committed to Test cricket. With fans like these, no wonder Test cricket is dying in the subcontinent.
King Cricket responded
Ritesh’s match report has attracted attention from far and wide. We’ve a nagging concern that people are going to arrive here thinking this is an intelligent website that makes serious points only to be confronted with something like this. But what are you going to do?Even so, we thought we’d give our thoughts on the matter. We seem to find ourself in the entirely unfamiliar position where we’re the optimist. We’re not sure this has ever happened before.
Causes for optimism
There’s some real horseshit spoken about the future of Test cricket in India. Most of it results from empty seats leading to the conclusion that no-one’s interested. “Indians aren’t interested in Tests,” they say – as if a billion people all feel exactly the same.We shouldn’t sit back and be complacent about Test cricket, but at the same time it’s a spectacularly robust beast. Test cricket is still surviving in what is currently a hostile environment and just a few minor changes would help its cause immeasurably.
We’ve come up with a two-point plan of action that can be acted on immediately, after which we can all take stock and ponder the more elaborate plans for “saving” Test cricket in India.
Sell tickets
Be slightly welcoming to fans
What is supposedly Test cricket’s biggest threat, the IPL, couldn’t fill a stadium for its play-offs and the post-World Cup one-day internationals against England were hardly sell-outs. Those sounding the death knell of the longer game might like to ponder whether those formats would retain the same following as Test cricket were they neglected in quite the same way.As far as we can tell, enthusiasm for Test cricket is fundamentally strong in India and that would be more apparent in the grounds were a couple of simple things done differently.
If we were in charge of a TV network paying for Test rights, we would INSIST that certain changes were made and that fans were positively encouraged to attend matches. The people in the stands are a vital and undervalued part of the spectacle. A full house makes you feel that the action’s of earth-shattering importance. An empty stadium makes you feel like you’re watching a meaningless experiment being carried out in lab conditions.That transmits itself to the players too. On field events are actually improved by a good crowd. We, sat on our fat arses on our undersized plastic seats, are the cholesterol-clogged beating heart of this whole sport.
Winter filler Matters
Not all of the Great Jack Morgan’s reports fit into the summer editions and so they come in handy when there is no domestic cricket
When Berkshire captain Bjorn Mordt chose to bat at the Memorial Ground, Finchampstead in the Western Division Championship match against Herefordshire, he put his side on course for a record breaking score of 507 for 7 in the 90 overs allowed for the first innings of these matches. Mike Roberts and Jono McLean embarked on a stunning second wicket partnership of 371 at six runs per over that also broke several records. When Roberts (who failed to shine in a recent appearance for Middx 2s against Glamorgan at Radlett) finally fell for 205 off 237 balls, with 28 fours and a six, a rumour reached me that it was the highest score ever made on the ground at Finch, but if it was, he held the record for barely an hour before McLean (ex-Hants) took it from him by going on to 210* off 249 balls, with 29 fours and 2 sixes.
After Roberts's departure, wickets tumbled as various partners of McLean tried but failed to maintain the exceptional rate of scoring; still, 507 in 90 overs isn't bad, is it? 22 year old slow left armer Steve Bevan took 4 for 120. Herefs' reply started badly with the loss of two early wickets, but emergency opener Faisal Shahid (46) formed a profitable alliance with skipper Chris Boroughs as the pair put on 80 for the third wicket. However, there was little of substance to follow and when Boroughs finally left for 77 with 12 fours and a six, the visitors slumped to 214 all out.
The bowling honours went to off-spinner Carl Crowe (ex-Leics) with 3 for 16 and Middx 2s seamer Tom Parsons (3 for 50). Following on, Herefs did little better, but they certainly should have done as six of their batters (Dave Exall, Steve Adshead, Boroughs, Ben Stebbings, Tom Austwick and Cal Stewart) had done the spade work in reaching 29 or more, but no one could go any further than Austwick's defiant 47 and they capitulated for 249 to lose by an innings and 44 runs inside two days.
This time, it was the ex-Middx spin twins Shaun Udal and Chris Peploe that did the damage. Pepsi (3 for 47) was the more accurate as Shaggy struggled to find his best length, but it was Shaun, with his spin and variety that had the greater success with 5 for 63 and 7 for 109 in the match. Crowe had match figures of 4 for 38, while Peploe returned the impressive analysis of 40-18-67-3. It was a great pleasure to watch a match that was not dominated by seamers exploiting a green track and in which spinners took more than two thirds of the wickets to fall. Berks also have the final of the MCCA Trophy (one day cup) versus Herts to look forward to at Lord's on August 25th.
Red Mist Matters
The Great Jack Morgan noted the following
J Ryder has equalled the record for the number of sixes (16) in a first class innings (held by A Symonds and G Napier) while hitting 175 for NZ v Aus A at (the small) Allan Border Field in Brisbane.
Christmas Books
Douglas Miller has become involved in a re-print of his short book 'Jack Bond: Lancashire Lad, Lancashire Leader', which first came out last year. It received some positive reviews and apparently Vic Marks gave it an honourable mention at the MCC Cricket Society Book of the Year Awards dinner. It is priced at £12, but he will sell it to Googlies readers for a tenner. Orders, with cheques payable to Douglas Miller, should be sent to:
Douglas Miller, Piper's Loft, Whiteleaf, Princes Risborough, Bucks HP27 0LT
I have copies of the bound version of Googlies which I can provide at £12 inc p&p. There are four volumes covering the first eighty editions. Order from the contact details below.
Googlies and Chinamen
is produced by
James Sharp
Broad Lee House
Combs
High Peak
SK23 9XA
Tel & fax: 01298 70237
Email: [email protected]
