Cricket 1901

CRICKET, A UGUS T 1, 1901, “ Together joined in Cricket’s m an ly to il .” — Byron. No. 578. VOL. XX. THURSDAY, AUGUST 1, 1901. PRICE 2d. CHATS ON THE CRICKET FIELD. M R . MURRAY BISSET. The captain of a team which is touring in England has never an enviable task, for his life is a succession of little worries, interspersed with serious troubles, while if his side is losing he has a terrible time of it. Fortunately, Mr. Bisset has been spared the trials attendant upon an unlucky tour, for on the whole the team has done much better than was expected from men who had never played on turf wickets, and who had not been able to obtain any practice to speak of for the last two years. The mistaken policy of a few cricketers at home and in South Africa, who tried to show that Mr. Bisset was not a fit and proper person to be captain of the side, gave him an adver­ tisement for which he did not seek, but even without that a d v e r tis e m e n t h e was bound to be a popular captain, for he possesses all the attributes which go to make one. He had a good reputa­ tion in South Africa, both as a batsman and a wicket-keeper, and this reputation is very much greater now than it was when the tour began, for he has proved himself to be a fine cricketer as well as a fine captain. Mr. Bisset began to play almost as soon as he could run about. “ But,” he said, “ it was not until I was about fourteen that I really took up the game at all seriously. At that time I became a member of the Claremont Club, and first played in a men’s match, taking a few wickets. After that I was in my college team—the Diocesan College at Rondebosch, near Cape Town, which is run on the same lines as English public schools, and is known as the best college for games and sports in South Africa. There are five old boys in the present team—Reid, Prince, Graham, my brother and myself.” “ D o you think that cricket is likely to improve much in South Africa after this tour ? ” “ It will certainly improve, for we have all learned something, but there are very great difficulties in the way of great improvement. For one thing we cannot get grass wickets, and even in Cape Colony, where we have grass of a kind, we cannot possibly make wickets of i t ; so that we always have to use matting, which is painted green when it is used on grass. Another g r e a t d r a w b a c k which must always prevent us from rivalling Australia— as things are at present, at any rate— is the way in which the small population is scattered, and the few facilities for g e t t in g b e tw e e n place and place.” “ Don’t you find it difficult to get match practice ? ” “ Well, we have matches every Satur­ day afternoon, and sometimes they last for three Saturdays, but the worst of it is that one always sees the same familiar faces, because we have so few dubs. People in Cape Town say, when they are told that they ought to take more inter­ est in cricket, that they get no variety; they have seen the same men playing every Saturday for the last four or five years, and one can have too much of a good thing. We do what we can to e n c o u r a g e r is in g