Cricket 1899

“ Together joined In Cricket’s manly toil.”— Byron. n o. 5 iB . v o l . xvin. THUESDAY, AUGUST 3, 1899. p r i c e ad. a c h a t a b o u t A r t h u r SHREWSBURY. There are many first-class batsmen, who, having succeeded in making a good score in partnership with Shrewsbury when the bowling has been exceptionally difficult, have wondered how on earth he man­ aged to make it look so simple. While they have had to do all they knew merely to keep the ball out of their wicket, Shrewsbury has been in no difficulties whatever. The ball might kick or keep low, or do all sorts of in­ iquitous things to the other batsman, but when it had to do with Shrewsbury it appar­ ently behaved itself in the most seemly manner. The same thing must have been noticed by the most ordinary spectator who can, however, never quite appreciate the mastery which Shrews­ bury has had, and still has, over every kind of bowling. Ever since he began to play in first- class cricket, twenty- four or twenty-five years ago, he has had the same skill, and has never greatly varied. For a season or two he went in for hitting with considerable success, and there is no room to doubt that if he had possessed better health hemighthavedeveloped into a batsman who scored very quickly, while gtill possessing his very great powers of defence. Attractive he has always been, and even the most irate enemies of the men who play slow cricket have had very little to say a spectator, even though he might object in toto to the manner in which the great painter had produced his effect; in the same way an innings by Shrewsbury begets a feeling of intense satisfaction in the onlooker, although he may feel that the batsman has laid on his pads too thickly when he ought to have used his bat, his batwork would have been more effective if it had not been so elaborate. But the picture is there, and the whole effect of it is delightful. Every year there are rumours that Shrews­ bury is about to retire, and yet at the present moment he is batting almost as well as he tver did in his career. He has never been a batsman with nerves. It matters no more to him than it does to Hayward, or Noble, or Hill, in what position the game may be; he is at the wickets to make runs, and if the bowler does not fairly and squarely beat him he will make them with a certainty which is exasperating in the extreme to the other side. He has been accused of inventing the famous game of “ playing for keeps,” which has been brought to such a state of per­ fection by some of the Australians, but there were plenty of men before him who did the same thing. Even Shrewsbury has not emulated the feat of the famous old cricketer who kept in for the whole of the three days — or was it a week ?— although he has done some wonderful things in his time in the way of*keeping up his end. against him, for whether he makes runs at the rate of twenty or fifty an hour, his style is so graceful that it is impossible not to admire it. The fact of the matter is that his batting is artistic. There were pictures by Turner in the Guild­ hall this summer which delighted AttTIIlTR SHREWSBURY. (From a Photo by R. W. Thomas de Co., Gheapsxle, London , E.G.)