Cricket 1902

CRICKET, APRIL 24 1902 i s 5 F mis I s -J©5— € I Z '/?£CO/?l "> M C . >$ 08 — k ..._>{ ill ^ ©j \ i n 4 “ Together joined in Cricket’s manly toil.”— Byron. no. 595 . v o i. x x i. TH U R SD AY , A P R IL 24, 1 9 0 2 . p b ic e ad. A CHAT ABOUT J. V. SAUNDERS. Three years ago, when the 'personnel of the Tenth Australian Team, then in course of composition, was a subject of keen discussion in Australian cricket circles, John Saunders was generally regarded as one of the bowlers likely to find favour with the selectors. As it happened, he just missed a place, though on his form at the time he was quite one of the best bowlers in Australia. He had been playing in senior club cricket in Victoria for some seasons before, and with considerable success. Still, it was not until the end of 1898 that he really began to come to the front in inter­ colonial cricket. Of slow left-handed bowlers of any pretensions there has been a lack in Australia during the last few years, and J. Travers, of South Australia, has really been the only rival Saunders has had in his own particular line. But admittedly good as he was early in 1899, when the Tenth Australian team was selected for England, it was their return that brought him conspicuously to the front. His record during the Australian season of 1899-1900 established his reputation beyond a doubt as one of the three most successful bowlers of the day. The scoring in inter­ state matches that season was generally high. The New South Wales team, who carried off the Sheffield Challenge Shield, were par­ ticularly in rare run-getting form. The Victorian bowlers, therefore, had the best batsmen to face when they played the senior colony. It was to Saunders’ credit that he shared with Hugh Trumble the brunt of the bowling for Victoria, and in the result, with almost equal honours. But his bast perform­ ance, as it happened, was not in a Victorian match. He was one of the eleven selected to represent the Best of Australia against the Australian team just returned home, in the match played in aid of the War Fund at Sydney, in the first week of February, 1900. M. A. Noble’s fine all-round cricket, in the result, gave the Australian team, after being in arrears on the first innings, a well-earned victory. On the other side, Saunders’ bowling was one of the most notable features. His six wickets in the first innings were got at a cost of ninety- one runs, and his nine altogether in the match for a fraction over twenty runs apiece. In all the four matches played by Victoria in 1900-1 he was invariably successful. This time Victoria won the Sheffield Shield, assisted in a great measure by Saunders’ effective bowling. The two left-handers, Saunders and Travers, the South Australian, took the greatest number of wickets in Australian matches that season. In respect of figures the former had much the better of'it, however, and indeed his average was the be3t of any bowler in inter­ colonial matches. His most notable performance was in the New Year (1901). Victoria were fortunate in putting the South Aus­ tralians in for the fourth innings with 416 to win on a wicket damaged by rain. As the pitch was, Hugh Trumble and Saunders were particularly difficult, and Victoria’s victory was never in doubt. Saunders, too, was able to more than hold his own with Trumble. As it happened, his figures were better, as he took five wickets for 38 runs, while Trumble’ s analysis showed four for 65. In the early part of the season just over, he seemed to be out of form, and indeed it was not until the New Year that he had any success. It was the return match against New South Wales that perhaps gave him his first chance of a place in the team for England. His bowling at Sydney at the end of January for Victoria was singularly successful. The players who had taken part in the test match the week before were all of them absent on that occasion. Still, though the batting of New South Wales was considerably weakened, Saunders, who altogether took eleven wickets for 130 runs, had very much to do with the hard earned victory of his eide. No doubt on the strength of this per­ formance he was selected to represent Australia in the fourth test match a fortnight later. The Sydney wicket was evidently to his taste; at all events he again came off with flying colours. J. V. SAUNDERS. Reproduced by permission of “ The Tatler.”