All Ten: The Ultimate Bowling Feat

173 Eric Hollies Warwickshire v Nottinghamshire, 1946 County Championship Edgbaston, Birmingham on 24, 25 July 1946 (3-day match) Toss won by Warwickshire Nottinghamshire won by seven wickets Umpires: A Skelding, CN Woolley Warwickshire 170 and 113; Nottinghamshire 135 (WE Hollies 10-49) and 150-3 Nottinghamshire first innings WW Keeton b Hollies 40 CB Harris b Hollies 10 RT Simpson lbw b Hollies 14 J Hardstaff lbw b Hollies 0 TB Reddick b Hollies 1 *GFH Heane lbw b Hollies 4 FW Stocks not out 37 A Jepson b Hollies 7 HJ Butler b Hollies 8 +EA Meads b Hollies 0 FG Woodhead b Hollies 8 Extras (b 4, lb 2) 6 Total (all out, 53.4 overs) 135 Fall of wickets 1-47, 2-52, 3-54, 4-58, 5-62, 6-89, 7-109, 8-125, 9-125, 10- 135 Warwickshire bowling: FR Mitchell 6-2-19-0, RH Maudsley 7-3-19-0, WE Hollies 20.4-4-49-10, WE Fantham 20-3-42-0 Warwickshire: P Cranmer (capt), R Sale, RH Maudsley, HE Dollery, JM Mills, KA Taylor, JS Ord, WE Fantham, FR Mitchell, CC Goodway (wk), WE Hollies Eric Hollies is one of only three leg-spinners (with Kent’s Tich Freeman and Doug Wright) to have taken 2,000 first-class wickets. In a career that lasted from 1932 to 1957 his 2,201 wickets for Warwickshire are easily a record for the county. He usually bowled off an eight pace run-up, varying his stock leg break with a top spinner or well-disguised googly. He also occasionally bowled off breaks or away swingers. A genial and much loved character, fair-haired and of medium height, his sturdy build and powerful legs gave him the stamina to maintain unerring accuracy over many long spells of bowling Hollies was born in Old Hill, Staffordshire in 1912, in the so called ‘Black Country’, the hard industrial landscape west of Birmingham. After three seasons in the Birmingham League, and serving the appropriate residential qualification, Hollies made his Warwickshire debut in 1932. After a pasting by Walter Hammond he decided that a change of style was needed: he would bowl a flatter, straighter line in order to dictate where the batsman played the ball. The change yielded results: by 1935 he was making his