Cricket 1898

M a t 19, 1898, CRICKET : A WEEKLY RECORD OF THE GAME. 137 Cricket: A WEEKLY RECORD OF TEE GAME. 168, UPPER THAMES STREET, LONDON, E.C. THURSDAY , M A Y 19 th , 1898. ^atJtlton The abstract and brief chronicle of the time.— Hamlet. “ I t ’ s an ill-w ind that blows no­ body any good .” This proverb, which was doubtless invented in pre-historic days, is ccnveiiently useful just at present in connection with the game of cricket. The bowlers who came back from the hard wickets in Australia, with somewhat tarnished reputations, have one and all made themselves very much at home under the wintry conditions which have lately been in force, and they can certainly bless the clerk of the weather for his great consideration. C a p t a in E. H . J. H e a t , a well-known cricketer in Madras of whom a biography appears in the Nilgiri News, once took part in a match in the North of India, which was memorable for the way in which the long-leg fielded. This sports­ man, finding the weather very hot, requisitioned a long easy chair in which he luxuriously reclined when his duties called him in its direction. One is reminded b y this anecdote of the famous David Harris of ancient fame, who, being afflicted with the gout, sat down ia an arm chair near the wicket after bow ling an over, even in big matches. O n e of the features of the match between the M .C .C . and Yorkshire, at Lord’s, was the failure of W .G . to break his duck before stumps were drawn. When he went to the wickets there was apparently plenty of time to get fairly settled, but a sudden storm upset all calculations, and the Doctor had no opportunity of making the short run for what his soul always yearns when he begins an innings. O n the ground of the Madras United Cricket Club, Ranjitsinhji gave an exhi­ bition of batting before a crowd of spectators of all nations. But, alas for human greatness ! The wicket was in a very bad state, and the two wall-known native bowlers, Rajagopalachari and Subroyulu, were able to “ tie up ” the famous batsman, who was at last bowled by Subroyulu. I n last week’ s “ Gossip,” attention was called to the remarkable bittin g of V. Trumper in Sydney Electorate matches this season. Up to March 26 he had scored 868 runs in five completed innings: average 171'60. I am now informed that the follow ing Saturday, April 2, he made 162 not out, thus bringing his total to 1,021 for five complete innings : average 204-20. It will be noticed from the fubjoined list of his scores that in eight innings he has only twice failed to make a hundred, and that in the other two innings he only missed the hundred by a few. His 162 not out makes his fourth hundred in succession, and his sixth for the season. 82 for Paddington againstNorth Sydney. 123 ,, ,, Parramatta. 125 ,, ,, South Sydney. 85 ,, ,, Waverley. *120 ,, ,, Glebe. *191 ,, „ Burwood. 133 ,, ,, Redfern. *162 ,, ,, Leichhardt. * Signifies not out. B y the above performances Trumper has completely put in the shade all previous Electorate records in Australia. In 1896-7, A. Coningham made 65/5 runs in the season; and in 1895-6, A. Mac­ kenzie made 565. When these two totals were conpiled the matches extended to three Siturday afternoons, so that a second innings would sometimes be enjoyed, whereas, in the present day, only two afternoons are available. In an article on the “ Difference be­ tween English and Australian Cricket,” Mr. MacLaren, in the London Review, gives various reasons for the failure of the Englishmen during their recent tour. They may be briefly summed up as follow s:— 1. Climatic influences. Heat; kills bowlers, batsmen get out from pure exhaustion. .Pre­ vents sleep at night. 2. Tremendous glare. Difficult to judge a high catch. 3. Extraordinary pace of wickets. Inability of men to alter strokes, which were useful at home; not quick enough for late-cut or hook-stroke. 4. Hot winds. Knock our bowlers out. 5. Playing against Local Eighteen on a matting wicket after a “ test” match. Ball comes above your head, and when you return to tuif wicket you feel strange. 6. Accidents ; illness; hard work. M b . G. L. W ils o n , with five wickets for 103 runs, had by far the best analysis of the Melbourne bowlers in their Pen­ nant match against North Melbourne, although Trumble and the other regular bowlers were playing. D u r in g his stay in Madras, Ranjit- siahji enjoyed almost a royal progress. He was presented with numerous ad­ dresses by the students at native colleges, was feted everywhere, and made several speeches. As a fair sample of the addresses, the follow ing cannot fail to interest and instruct readers of Cricket :— We have all heard of your victories on the fields of England, the land of our rulers; and that there you should have beaten, more than once, the record of the greatest English cricket r living, Dr. W . G. Grace, is a fact ot which we are all proud. We always feel hearty joy when we hear that any of our countrymen have in a fair trial of strength excelled the men of other nations, but our joy knew no bounds when we heard that a Rajput prince, Ranjit Sinhji by name, beat all previous record in a game which is in a special sense an English game. You have shown that natives of this country may become distinguished in the department of field games in which they have hitherto been regarded as deficient. The boundless joy which the English people showed at your victories prove that Englishmen are noble- minded and will always welcome merit, when they come to see it, in the natives of India. You have raised India in the esteem of the English people, and made Indians love the noble race that inhabits the British Isles. M r . E d m u n d B a r t o n , Q C., the leader of the federal movement in Aus­ tralia, is a most versatile man, says the Australasian. A t one time he wrote the reports of cricket matches for the S.M. Herald, and a friend, connected with the education department, frequently assisted him. On the occasion of a b ig match, B irton and his friend agreed that they would have a drink at the fall of each wicket, and then Barton went for a stroll round the ground, leaving his honorary assistant in the Press box, and promising to return in half-an-hour. The game proved most sensational, for wickets fell rapidly, and Barton did not re-appoar during the innings. When remonstrated with in a friendly way, he replied, “ My dear fellow, you know that we agreed to have a drink at the fall of each wicket, and the wickets went down so quickly I could not get away from the refreshment bar.” I n c l u d e d among the guests at the reception given by the Hon. Rai Baha­ dur P. Ananda Charlu to Prince Ranjit- sinbji were the Hon. Mr. Subba Rao, the Hon. Mr. Jumbulingam Mudaliar, Raja Sir Sivalay Ramasawmy Mudaliar, Dewan Bahadur P. Rajaruthna Mudaliar, Dewan Bahadur Streenivasa Rao, the Hon. Mr. Bhashyam Iyangar, Prof. RungaCharry, Mr. G. Parmeswaram Pillay, Mr. G. Narayanasawmy Chetty, Mr. Y . Krish- nasawmy Iyer, Mr. M. O. Parthsararathy Iyengar, Mr. A. C. Parthasarathy Naidu, and Mr. H. C. K ing, a veteran Madras cricketer. LAST year, up to May 18, inclusive, the follow ing hundreds had been scored in first class cricket. Abel 144 and 250, Hayward 130, P. F. Warner 108, not out, Ward 162, N. F . Druce, 227, J. A. Dixon 268, n o to u t; Board, 126 ; Wainwright, 100; Hirst, 134; K . S. Ranjitsinhji, 260 and 157 ; K . J. Key, 110, not o u t ; F. S. Jackson, 124 ; Denton, 112; W . Quaife, 120, Carpenter, 141. This year, up to May 18, inclusive, there have only been three hundreds. C. O. H. Sewell, 111; A. J. Turner, 102; and Storer, 109. No names occur in both these iists. T h e r e is quite a crop of new bowlers this year. Considerable attention has been attracted by the debut of Rhodes, the Yorkshireman, and it is seldom that a beginner has come off with such success. At present he has taken 19 wickets forl08, which is quite good enough to satisfy anybody. A. E. Hind, the Cambridge Freshman, seemed another promising bowler, but in his last match he fell off considerably. Light, the